Doctor Strange: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Doctor Strange is the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident renders his hands useless. When traditional medicine fails him, he travels to the remote Kamar-Taj in search of a cure, but instead discovers the mystical arts and becomes a powerful sorcerer battling dark forces bent on destroying our reality.
Marvel Studios has had such a great track record with their films. Even the movies that weren’t the greatest are still really good. So with their films being so consistent to me I always have this lingering feeling going into each new one: What if this is the film that completely bombs? Well I know now (and should always remember) to ignore that feeling because Doctor Strange was awesomely terrific. This is a movie that I feel that the Marvel Cinematic Universe needed at the moment. Just like how Guardians Of The Galaxy introduced a different aspect of the MCU, Doctor Strange did the same exact thing with the introduction to a more mystical universe. I feel like a movie like this was definitely needed right now in the MCU as it opens the door to much more possibilities as far as storyline goes. I almost see this film as a jumping off point to the new set of heroes that will be showing up soon. Much like the way that Iron Man jump started the Marvel films in the first place. Cumberbatch played Strange a lot like Downey Jr. played Stark except they really made him SUPER unlikable. I was unsure for the first half of the movie how they were going to come back around to have us get back on his side but they most certainly did just that. It completely made sense that the story was that of redemption and that he would become someone that could lead the “new school” into the future. I honestly wasn’t too keen on Cumberbatch as the Sorcerer Supreme initially but by the end of the film I could see that he fit the role perfectly and much like my initial hesitation about the film, I know not to question Marvel Studios’ casting picks…lol. Without any question this is going to be a film that you’re going to want to see because in one case it pushes everything slightly forward but at the same time it’s just a fantastic film all around. 9/10
Special Features:
A Strange Transformation – A really great feature that looks at the story and cast as well as the challenge of Cumberbatch taking on such a classic role.
Strange Company – This feature focuses on the supporting characters in the film.
The Fabric of Reality – This was mainly about the production of the film. Everything from production design, costume design as well as shooting locations.
Across Time and Space – A feature that mainly focuses on visual effects, stunt work and fight choreography.
The Score-Cerer Supreme – A really cool feature about the music in the film and how it compliments the movie itself.
Marvel Studios Phase 3 Exclusive Look – A small retrospective on the MCU and a nice glimpse at the future films.
Team Thor: Part 2 – A hilarious short that involves the more issues with Thor and his roommate Darryl.
Deleted & Extended Scenes – Around 5 scenes here that are pretty interesting to check out but don’t offer too much more.
Gag Reel – These are always a favorite of mine and this was just as funny as I thought it was going to be.
Audio Commentary With Director Scott Derrickson
