Like most Marvel movies, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” was hyped up, and everyone was more than ready to flood the theaters to see it. However, the movie fell short in many regards. 

The music and the CGI were great, but the character writing and plot direction felt lacking at times compared to other movies. I found it hard to get behind the motivations of many of the main characters, especially the newest character America Chavez, who Marvel failed to interestingly flesh out. 

A few of the characters felt watered down and less developed, most likely for the sake of moving the plot along. Though the plot felt somewhat loose, it did move fluidly and with purpose, not lingering on any scenes. 

One thing many Marvel fans might be disappointed with is the lack of mentions of other Marvel content–the only relevant references being from Doctor Strange and Wandavision–which is part of the Marvel brand at this point. You can expect what you’d anticipate from any Marvel movies: Well coordinated fight scenes, lots of action, and some comedy with a little drama mixed in along with some darker themes as well. 

The movie starts with an action packed sequence of Strange and a new character, America Chavez,  running from a demon in an unknown dimension.This is our first glance into the multiverse. Strange wakes up in his own world and not long after that madness, like the title of the movie suggests, ensues. 

In Strange’s dimension, Chavez who is named later, is still being hunted, and it’s revealed that she has never before seen powers that the villain of the movie wants to take. Strange steps in to protect her because the villain obtaining her powers could be detrimental to the entire multiverse. 

This leads to a series of dimension jumping as the main cast evades capture and tries to find an object that will give them the upper hand over the villain who possesses a weapon of great dark power. They land in a universe that contains a way to get to the object they seek, but trouble arises as Strange and his new companion are captured and trapped by a group in the new dimension while the villain struggles to find a way to reach them. 

Nearing the end, when all hope seems lost, Strange will bend his morals and the natural order to do what he feels is necessary to save the day. 

Visually the movie is vibrant and beautiful with amazing music to back it. I think the best example of this is a fight involving two characters attacking each other with musical notes. The song played for the fights is played on these musical notes as the fight is going on. 

The movie is aesthetically pleasing as well, most evident in the alternate dimension they stay in the longest where everything is lush and green with futuristic houses and transportation. 

As mentioned before, the plot was lacking compared to other Marvel movies. There were multiple different solutions to the problem at hand, but they seemed to be ignored for convenience and to keep the action in the movie going. It also has multiple fake out victories, where it seems like the heroes have won, but alas, they haven’t. That has always annoyed me, and it halts the plot more often than not. 

Nevertheless, I did enjoy this movie, and I got the Marvel experience. If you’re willing to put aside plot holes for the sake of a fun and entertaining movie, then you shouldn’t have any problem with it.

If you’re a huge Marvel fan, I’d recommend watching it in a theater; otherwise, just wait until it comes out on a streaming service. I give this movie a 7/10 for its fun, adventurous themes, satisfying visuals and beautiful music.