'Doctor Strange' 'in the Multiverse of Madness' Reviews Applaud Director Sam Raimi's 'Spookiness'

Photo: Courtesy Marvel Studios

TheMultiverse of Madnesslives up to its name.

This Friday, Benedict Cumberbatch returns as his genius, magical Avenger inDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessafter unintentionally blending alternate universes in December’sSpider-Man: No Way Home. Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlett Witch also makes a comeback after her devastatingWandaVisionfinale, even more hell-bent on being reunited with her kids.

First reviews for the sequel dropped Tuesday, withThe Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw calling the film a “freaky adventure” that is “handled with lightness and fun.”

In hisVarietyreview, Owen Gleiberman called the Marvel movie a “ride, a head trip, a CGI horror jam, a what-is-reality Marvel brainteaser and, at moments, a bit of an ordeal. It’s a somewhat engaging mess, but a mess all the same.”

Elizabeth Olsen inDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness(2022).Courtesy Marvel Studios

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Though, DeFore added, it could have gone further beyond the PG-13 limitations: “It’s fun to imagine them giving Raimi a small fraction of the usual budget, authorizing an R rating for the thirdDoctor Strangeand saying ‘go make a Sam Raimi horror film.’ " (The 2-hour-6-minute movie is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, frightening images and some language.)

IGN’s Amelia Emberwing felt Raimi’s “full range of weirdness and spookiness is on full display from start to finish here,” and she praised Olsen’s performance: “There’s not a bad actor in the bunch, but Elizabeth Olsen is constantly reminding us how easily she can shift into a capital-a-Actor as Wanda Maximoff.”

Justin Changwrotefor theLos Angeles Timesthat Olsen, 33, “does possibly her most impressive work since her stellar debut in the 2011 independent dramaMartha Marcy May Marlene.”

USA TodaycriticBrian Truitt wrote, “While the Marvel-ness ofMadnesswill make your head spin, Raimi’s signature style, penchant for the macabre and sense of humor oddly ground the film.”

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessalso stars Rachel McAdams, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong and Xochitl Gomez as new character America Chavez.

source: people.com