There’s nothing more disheartening then realizing how sick
our country is. If these election results have shown anything, it’s how divided
we as Americans have become. Our politicians, media, and very way of life have
us seeing incredibly nuanced issues as simple matters of black and white, right
and wrong, good and evil. But I didn’t start this blog to get political, merely
to go on very long, detailed rants about movies.
The problem is, it’s sort of impossible to blog about movies
when the election is on everyone’s mind. What’s the point of covering
entertainment, when so much of it is escapist fantasy? It’s not anchored to our
world, right? Merely a way of escaping to another reality for a few hours,
living in blissful ignorance of the world around us. To confront the issues of
today, we must put aside escapism and live in the real world. I’m all for
living in reality, but ignoring escapism doesn’t sit right with me. I’m here
today to get rid of that mindset.
While much of our entertainment can be escapism, we must
remember that our movies, books, comics, games and shows do not exist in a
vacuum. They are a response to the world around us, and in many ways force us
to engage with our own reality in new and exciting ways. Much of this seemingly “escapist”
entertainment can actually be the cure for this anxiety-riddled election year. And
most recently, that cure ironically comes in the form of a doctor who literally
hops realities.
I speak of course, of Doctor
Strange, the fourteenth installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Starring the British Tumblr god that is Benedict Cumberbatch in a Hugh
Laurie-esque American accent, Strange tells
the story of an egotistical neurosurgeon who turns to magic to heal his damaged
hands. He is taught by the always ethereal Tilda Swinton, a stern Chiwetel
Ejofor and a badass but comically challenged librarian named Wong. He travels
through Astral, Mirror and Dark dimensions, channeling mystical energies and
the psychedelic drawings of the late, great Steve Ditko. And in doing so, the
good doctor has given us a socially relevant superhero whose message rings
louder now that our country is more divided than ever.
A Familiar Formula,
with a Touch of Magic
First, let me say that this film is not perfect. Of course,
no film is, but coming off the superhero nirvana that was Captain America: Civil War, it doesn’t hold up. This isn’t the
worst of the MCU films, but it’s not in the top five either. Much of that stems
from having to tell Strange’s origin story, which plays like a mix of Iron Man and Batman Begins but with magic.
The now stale MCU formula of underdeveloped villains (Mads
Mikkelsen’s Kaecilius) and unneeded romance (Rachel McAdams’ Christine Palmer)
is still very much in effect. Strange’s character arc isn’t anything new, if
you factor in how Tony Stark and Thor began their first films. But despite the
overly familiar story, this film manages
to do some wondrously strange things
that let it stick out from its MCU brethren, all while carrying the entire
universe forward.
For all the flak that the familiar storytelling may get, I
can’t fault this film’s visuals. This is probably the most gorgeous looking
Marvel film since Guardians of the Galaxy.
While that film opened up the cosmic level of the MCU, this one sets up the
mystic. For the first time, we get to play around with alternate dimensions and
the Multiverse. One scene in particular, where Strange is sent flying through
several realities by Tilda Swinton’s Ancient One, wouldn’t look out of place
during an intense LSD binge. It feels like Stanley Kubrick looked at the
Stargate sequence from 2001 and said,
“Not trippy enough. More acid!” To say the film is a visual delight would be
underselling it.
Not to mention, the magic itself is gorgeous. We’re talking fiery whips, shields and portals made of
pure energy, sentient floating cloaks, shifting dimensions that turn New York
into a living M.C. Escher painting (enough to make Inception go “damn, son”) and an item that can screw with time
itself. These wizards didn’t graduate from Hogwarts, that’s for sure. They’d
probably give Potter and his pals a serious run for their money, and that’s
great when it comes to giving this world’s magic its own visual style apart
from Rowling’s.
What’s even better is how director Scott Derrickson manages
to make all this click in the same universe with Iron Man and Captain America,
while never detracting from the mysticism of it all. Sure, it’s explained the
sorcerers draw power from alternate dimensions, but it still looks and feels like magic. The MCU just pulled
off another huge feat, at least in world building if not in storytelling.
The Bill Comes Due
(Warning: Here There Be Spoilers)
Speaking of which, while the story itself may be Strange’s weakest link, try telling that
to the actors. Cumberbatch’s arc may be familiar, but by the end of the film he
is Strange, both in looks and
personality. After getting past the American accent, you can see how much
Cumberbatch embodies this once arrogant man who learns to find new meaning in
life. It’s an old story, yes, but this talented actor still gives it weight. Swinton’s
Ancient One is a clever riff on the old mentor archetype, exuding the power and
wisdom that comes from immortality while still bringing a youthfulness to the
role.
And then there’s Chiwetel Ejofor as Karl Mordo. Comic fans
know him as one of Strange’s archenemies. Here, the filmmakers thankfully
bypassed the obvious villain arc and made this man much more nuanced. Mordo is
a loyal disciple of the Ancient One rooted in tradition. He embraces the
natural order of things, seeing rule-breaking as a cardinal sin, and holding
his mentor above reproach. Mordo begins as an ally of Strange, and assists him
in the final battle. But due to a heartbreaking reveal, he learns the world is
not what it seems, and begins his path to darkness.
It is Mordo’s arc, perfectly juxtaposed against Strange,
which reveals the true nature of the film. Mordo learns that the Ancient One
draws her immortality from Dormammu, ruler of the Dark Dimension. Realizing
this, and seeing Strange use an Infinity Stone to rewrite time itself in the
finale, convinces him that sorcerers defy the natural order of things and must
be eliminated. Since he lives his life by unbendable rules, Mordo cannot
reconcile that his mentor used forbidden powers for the greater good.
Strange may have been humbled throughout the film, but right
to the end he saw that sometimes rules need to be broken. Unless Strange was
willing to be flexible and open to change, accepting that magic does exist, he
would never have been able to defeat Dormammu. Mordo becomes disillusioned with
sorcery because of his unwillingness to bend the rules, while Strange embraces
creativity in using magic. How else could he have defeated a demonic
dimensional overlord by weaponizing time itself?
Open Your Eye
This basic idea, that the battle between “good” and “evil”
is much blurrier than we thought, drives the whole film. Strange has to adjust
his whole outlook on life when he realizes he’s nothing compared to the vast
Multiverse in front of him. But just because he’s one man in the face of
infinity, doesn’t mean he’s worthless. The burden of having power, and fear of
losing it, plays out in a lot of superhero films. Thematically it reached a
crescendo in Civil War, and was
covered in its own unique (if not well-handled) way in Batman v Superman.
In Doctor Strange,
we see how Strange derived power from being a great doctor and then felt
worthless after his accident. Sorcery gave his life meaning again, but even
then he had to learn how to surrender to forces greater than himself in order
to master them. It speaks volumes of the way control plays into our own lives,
and how we cope with situations where we feel powerless. This is the message
that an escapist fantasy can give to us. It’s a message that seems especially
relevant, following this election.
So much of our politics stem from wanting to feel empowered,
to enact true change in our daily lives. How often do we wish we could actually
use magic, to cast a spell on the world, maybe even rewind time the way Strange
does. If Doctor Strange has taught us
anything, it’s that being small in an incredibly large universe doesn’t mean we’re
worthless. Life in and of itself has value and meaning. As long as we learn to
be flexible in our views and unite in embracing the vastness of our world, then
there’s real magic to be found.
Strange may not be
the best of the MCU films, or the worst. It’s not politically charged in the
same way Civil War was. But it did
have an intense morality to it, which bears repeating in this brave new world
we now face. It’s no coincidence that this simple yet complex story was timed
with the election. Stories like these still inspire us in times of great
happiness and, more importantly, in great peril. No matter what your views,
take pride in knowing that we’re at least getting films like Doctor Strange that can serve just as
well as morality lessons as they do as escapist fantasy. After all, life needs to
be strange sometimes to see its real value, doesn’t it?
