Ranking The Characters Of Doctor Strange

Now that Doctor Strange – the 14th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – has been released, critics are chiefly praising its astonishing visual palette and its very strong cast. In connection to the latter, Marvel have always managed to get some terrific actors to play superheroes and villains in their movies, but Doctor Strange is certainly one of their most prestigious casts yet. There are no less than three Academy Award nominees in the movie – Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams and Chiwetel Ejiofor, respectively – as well as one Academy Award winner – Tilda Swinton, of course. Not to mention Mads Mikkelsen, a very popular face on the big and small screens for such roles in Casino Royale and Hannibal. But does the movie match up to these big talents and give them strong material to work with? For the most part, yes. Obviously, this is a special effects-heavy endeavour, with an emphasis on action/adventure over searing drama (not that’s there is anything wrong with that, of course), but just about everyone in the cast gets some solid serious and comedic material to work with. Who came out the best though? Read on to find out as we rank the characters of Marvel's Doctor Strange. 8) Dormammu Superhero movies have poor history with adapting all-powerful cosmic beings from the comics. There was Galactus in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, there was Parallax in Green Lantern, and you could even count the Phoenix in X-Men: The Last Stand. Doctor Strange’s Dormammu is another such character. While we can thankfully say that he is in no way as bad as those previously mentioned examples, comic fans will be disheartened by how the on-screen version differs from the character on the page. For instance, in the comics he is a humanoid with a flaming head. In the movie, however, he is a massive face in the sky. Quite why they decided not to even allude to his most distinctive feature is a mystery. That said, the climactic scene he features in is a brilliant one, showing the conviction and bravery of our hero as he is content to be eternally tortured by Dormammu if Earth will be spared. As such, he comes across as a dangerous force, even if he isn’t as cool as he could have been. Dormammu is still out there, though, so there's always the opportunity for him to return in future movies. If he does, let’s just hope he brings his flame-y head with him. 7) Kaecilius Much has been said before about the relative quality of the villains of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the likes of Loki in Thor and, er, Loki in The Avengers are beloved, other antagonists - like Darren Cross from Ant-Man or Whiplash from Iron Man 2 - are fairly mediocre ‘reverse of the good guy’ types with little to no backstory. With a fantastic villainous actor like Mads Mikkelsen on board, there was the hope that Doctor Strange’s villain would be one of the better ones. So is he? Well, in the result he’s much the same as most other Marvel antagonists. As a rogue student of The Ancient One, he recalls those examples we mentioned as another bad guy who has the same powers as the hero. We know that he wants to bring Dormammu to Earth because he believes that he will be granted eternal life, but we don’t really know why he wants such a thing. There is a hint that he truly believes the whole world would benefit from Dormammu’s coming, but the interesting angle that he might see himself as the hero is left unfortunately unexplored. That said, Mikkelsen gives a good performance and the cracking skin around the eyes makes him a visually memorable villain. 6) Christine Palmer Another element that is a little hit in miss in Marvel’s films (we do love them, though, we promise!) is the love interest. Steve and Peggy might have had a charmingly chaste relationship in The First Avenger and Tony and Pepper share witty repartee, but others like Thor and Jane Foster fall a bit flat. Again, the romance between Stephen Strange and Christine Palmer isn’t one of the worst but it’s not one of the best either. Benedict Cumberbatch and Rachel McAdams do have solid chemistry, which really helps to sell the attraction between the pair. That's a good thing, because the film itself is really not very interested in doing so. The romance between them is largely an adjunct to the main plot and as such is a bit underdeveloped. As ex-lovers, they slightly rekindle their relationship when Strange has his accident, but then they don’t see each other for a long time while Strange goes to Nepal. Christine is basically fine with that when he eventually returns. A little more exploration of their complicated relationship wouldn’t have gone amiss. On the other hand, the ambiguity over their future is better than a stereotypical ‘the hero gets the girl’ ending and McAdams gives her best in a limited role. Ultimately, though, she's just in the movie to provide a second female character after The Ancient One. 5) Wong Fans were shocked when it was announced that the character of Wong would feature in Doctor Strange. In the comics, the character is, let’s face it, a massive Asian stereotype – a loyal manservant to Strange who is also good at kung-fu. So, how would the movie version fare? As played by the perfectly named Benedict Wong, the character is very far removed from his comics counterpart – which is definitely for the best. Instead of a servant, he acts as another mentor to Strange in the ways of the mystic arts and the pair have an enjoyably prickly relationship. Much of the film’s (surprisingly large amount of) humour is derived from Strange trying to make the stoic Wong laugh or to magically get past him to look at the forbidden texts in his mystic library. He’s also a secret fan of Beyonce. Wong is also capable in the field, as he joins Strange and Mordo in the final fight against Kaecilius and his Zealots in Hong Kong, and has knowledge of Infinity Stones. Something that will no doubt be put to good use when he appears in Avengers: Infinity War. 4) Thor No, the God of Thunder doesn’t actually appear in the main body of the film, but the Asgardian does turn up in Doctor Strange’s mid-credits sequence – and in doing so threatens to steal the movie away from its actual stars. In a scene presumably lifted from next year’s Thor: Ragnarok, we see Chris Hemsworth’s character show up at 177A Bleecker Street to ask for Stephen’s help in tracking down his father Odin. The pair share some barbs about Thor’s brother Loki but eventually Strange decides to help him out, teasing a bigger role for the hero in Ragnarok. It’s a very funny scene, with Cumberbatch and Hensworth both on fine comic form. As a first glimpse at the third Thor movie, it shows that director Taika Waititi (of What We Do In the Shadows fame) is bringing his unique brand of humour to the MCU. e.g. Thor calls Strange a “wizard" and is perplexed by the way his beer glass keeps filling itself up. The previous Thor films weren’t exactly standout entries in the franchise, but going by this scene, Ragnarok is shaping up to be a lot of fun. 3) The Ancient One There was (and still is) a lot of controversy around Marvel’s decision to recast The Ancient One, an elderly Asian male in the comics, into a younger, white female in the movie. There are valid points to be made about the under-representation of Asian actors in Hollywood movies, but Doctor Strange proves that director Scott Derrickson and his team were 100% right to cast Tilda Swinton in the role. The Ancient One isn’t anything we haven’t seen before. She’s the stock wise mentor character who must train her Chosen One pupil until she pops her clogs and lets the student become the master. She’s Obi-Wan Kenobi. Or Dumbledore. Or Uncle Ben. As that list of old men demonstrates, The Ancient One isn’t a role that women get to play and it’s a delight to see Swinton in the part. Her androgynous features fit the ethereal role perfectly. Plus, the character is given shades of grey when it’s revealed that she leeched power from the Dark Dimension in order to sustain her own life. In swapping her gender, Doctor Strange gives us one of the MCU’s most distinctive female characters. One who is not defined by her romance with the hero but for being a powerful character in her own right. 2) Mordo In the comics, Baron Mordo is Strange’s arch-enemy – a previous student of The Ancient One who reacted with jealousy when Strange was picked as teacher’s pet instead of him. As you do, he proceeded to use his powers for evil. He’s a vibrant character on the page, but for the screen they needed to add a little texture to the character to make him work. By giving his usual role to Kaecilius and recasting him as an ally of Stephen’s, Doctor Strange allows Mordo to become a hugely compelling character. With Chiwetel Ejiofor in the role, Mordo begins as a likeable, if slightly aloof, friend of Strange and loyal acolyte of the Ancient One. He’s very strict in his beliefs but he’s not afraid to make a joke or two (such as one of the funniest moments of the film, when he gives Strange the wi-fi password – “we’re not savages”). The Ancient One believes that combining Mordo’s rigidity with Strange’s out-of-the-box thinking will make them both stronger. Unfortunately, throughout the movie Mordo’s faith is tested and it drives them apart. The post-credits scene, which sees him remove someone's magic as the first step in his newfound quest to rid the world of sorcerers, suggests he is starting his descent into supervillainy. Something that should be great to see in Doctor Strange 2. 1) Stephen Strange A lot was resting on Doctor Strange. Would introducing magic into the Marvel movie universe be too much? Would viewers accept this hero as much as the previous Avengers? Would he be good enough to play a larger role in the franchise later on, as he so surely will? Thankfully, the answers to these questions are: no, yes and definitely. On the page, Stephen Strange is very Tony Stark-like. He’s an arrogant rich man who is brilliant at his job and knows it. Yet through a harrowing experience, he learns to use his great mind to help others and become a hero. It could have been irritating to have such a similar character, but Benedict Cumberbatch dispels any notion that Strange is just an Iron Man copy. Somewhat channeling his most famous role as Sherlock, Cumberbatch is naturally superb at playing a rude genius. Yet, it’s more fascinating to see him in Strange’s darker moments. For a sizeable portion of the film, he's a lost man, driven to obsession over finding a way to regain the loss of his hands – their nerves irrevocably shattered in a car crash. Given his amazing skillset, Doctor Strange will no doubt go on to be a prominent member of the Avengers in future. And, given the evidence here, the MCU is in very safe hands.