one-nine-eighty This film is Marvel's cinematic introduction (or reintroduction if you believe that the 1978 film should be counted as the first outing - although that was before Marvel Studies was a thing) to a long-time favourite character of comic nerds everywhere, Doctor Strange. Doctor Strange is the master of mystical arts and one of the Marvel Universes most powerful people. More than just a magician or a wizard, he controls powers that affect time and space as in this existence and others. Like other movies, this is an origin story to introduce him. It accounts his story from being one of the world's finest surgical physicians who loses his skills in a freak car accident, to becoming a master of mystical arts and protector of Earth. Being a superhero film you'd already expect a lot of CGI, throw in the magical element and you know that nearly every scene will be CGI'd. Threat not though, for the most part it's actually tastefully done. There are some beautiful scenes in the city reminiscent of "Inception", there are some wonderfully choreographed fight scenes too, and wit and humour is never far away from the screen. Some film's feel like they need the central character to grow up and become an adult with responsibilities in order for the film to advance. This feels the opposite, while Strange is a responsible adult at the start of the film he needs to relax and let go in order to be victorious. Perfect for what doubters and Marvel haters need to go through to watch something like this unreservedly without pre-judgements. If a man of science and medicine had to believe in magic in order to accept what his eyes and ears were telling him, then I'm sure cinema goers will be okay to sit and watch this for the joy of cinema rather than ulterior motives. Benedict Cumberbatch plays the Doctor and his portrayal, while a little wooden and void of emotional attachment at times, it was exactly how I'd image Strange being on screen when being plucked from the pages of a comic. I'm a fan of Mads Mikkelsen in general, I think his demeanour is very powerful, he is believable as the villain Kaecilius and I only wish there was potential to be in future films. Oops, nearly a spoiler. OK, so the story is a little formulaic, but it has to be, it's an origin story. The central character was X, then Y happens, now he has to cope with Y if he wants to be Z. It's simple sure, but at least this film had the manners not to pretend it was something it was not. It's a simple and fun film with visual treats that won't offend. I couldn't rate this as highly as other Marvel film's I've watched, but I'm not worried about that either. I know that this is an origin, we'll see Doctor Strange in other things soon, the next film, I'm sure will be better than this - but for now, I say decent introduction, 6 out of 10.

domtaylor The visuals are undoubtably fantastic, leading to some very unique action set-pieces that have enough style to set them apart from other superhero films, and its outstanding soundtrack is one of the best of the MCU. It's a shame, then, that the story and tone of 'Doctor Strange' drag it down to be one of the worst films of the Marvel cinematic universe. Stephen Strange is an unlikeable protagonist, one who we can never root for, and this means that the audience doesn't really have any reason to care about the story. Also, the narrative is very predictable and the film doesn't have a proper grasp on time; the 'training montage' is over very quickly and because there is no indication of how much time has passed, it seems as if Strange has gone from a nobody to the sorcerer supreme in mere days. Therefore, it feels entirely unbelievable that Strange can masterfully use his powers and save the world by the end of this film. Throughout the picture, Strange should have been struggling to use his powers, indicating to the audience that he is still learning and developing over time. Another big issue with the movie is its ham-fisted attempts at comedy. It is never funny, yet its 'humour' is always prevalent, even undermining serious moments on several occasions, and this becomes extremely annoying. Sure, a few comedic moments wouldn't have gone amiss, but since the character of 'Doctor Strange' isn't a funny one, this film should have had more of a focus on its serious elements and getting them to be successful. Without its superb visual elements and soundtrack, this could have been a disaster. 6/10

MJB784 It mostly bored me with unemotional characters and too much talk. It had a few cool fights, but I don't understand the logic in Doctor Strange needing to be a superhero. He was just a surgeon and traveled around the globe to get better treatment after his accident, but the person he came to see knew realms of other worlds and gave him powers just for the sake of being a superhero. Usually superheroes discover their alter ego on their own.

dseanjj So Marvel told the basic origin story of Doctor Strange (Earth's supposed Sorcerer Supreme). But, didn't it feel a bit undeserved? Like really, what did Dr. Strange have to suffer through in order to become the master of mysticism? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! However, Marvel does have a chance to rectify this situation and make this character one of their better franchise movies by simply following up the first movie and making the classic magnum opus Triumph and Torment. If they made this as their second movie, not only would it flesh out Dr. Strange more by showing that he actually deserved the title, but it would also introduce Marvel to the something that it has sorely lacked throughout ALL it's movies; a complex villain more worthy than all of its heroes put together: Dr. Doom. After butchering nearly all of the Thor movies and killing off Odin like some B-rate character, the fans deserve this movie! Stop being lazy Marvel and finally do your films some justice!