Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Rachel McAdams, Hayley Atwell, Jett Klyne, Julian Hilliard, Michael Stuhlbarg, Sheila Hilliard, Adam Hugill, Lasana Lynch, John Krasinski, Charlize Theron, Bruce Campbell, Anson Mount, Patrick Stewart.
All that you is not just down to how you act in this world, it is also how others see you, what they witness, what they perceive, their judgements and their biased convictions; but what if it went deeper than that, what if the shroud of what we are, when pulled back, revealed more than just one face, but several, each with their own history, each with a perception of life that is reflected in the decisions and paths taken, and those we believe we would never take.
Life spins on a dime, and it is the beauty of acknowledging that there must be a reaction to any personal decision taken which makes us wonder, that allows us the point of thinking through a choice of what the outcomes could be.
The groundwork for Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness was laid several films and a couple of Marvel series ago, and yet it is one that, despite its sometimes over balancing act of appeasing every possible scenario, captures and frames the imagination, and in which the satisfaction of having Wanda Maximoff turn decidedly towards her natural heritage is more than the fan could hope for.
Parallel existences, the multiverse, whatever you want to call it, it offers an escape, the belief that there was a part of you that was meant for another role, the faith that worlds and history may have been altered by one small decision, one moment of choice, could have seen you play the beggar or the royal, the hero, or the villain, and it is one that fits the filmed arrogance of Doctor Strange, and the soulful searching that resides underneath, with clear and presentable precision.
Full of colour, of effects, of detail, and the odd moment where it becomes too much for the senses to cope normally, Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness is a ride into the unknown, a passion of response to all the fans who have clamoured for certain characters to be introduced, for some actors to stake their claim to be included in the franchise, but above all it is chock full of excitement and holding the principles of Marvel’s founder firmly and proudly intact.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Elizabeth Olsen square up in their respective roles superbly, but it to Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Rachel McAdams, and all too briefly seen Hayley Atwell, reprising her role as Captain Carter in the animated What If? series, that the film has its heart firmly entrenched; and whilst the film could have been made without any of these stalwart actors being involved, the fact that they are makes it even more special, a treat within an indulgence that you cannot wait to unwrap.
The Marvel universe keeps unfolding, and it doesn’t want to stop yet.
Ian D. Hall