Moon Knight (05.20.22)

 

Choosing to watch a movie or TV show based on a comic book property can be a daunting task these days if one isn't, as the late legend Stan Lee would say, a “True Believer.” Marvel Studio’s latest theatrical release, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, has no less than four entries in the greater MCU series that are most likely to be required watching before seeing it, if my calculations are correct. Shared universes can be fun for those who get in on them at the ground floor, but it can also be a nice break to invest in something a little more self-contained every now and then. Moon Knight, the latest Disney+ original miniseries set in the MCU, is one such adventure, and this lack of baggage is one of the many factors that make it one of the best ones so far. 

You don’t really need to do any homework before jumping into Moon Knight. In fact, you don’t really have to be a fan of the superhero genre at all (although it certainly does help, particularly by the last episode, which presents a much more straightforward superhero climax). Driven and elevated by Oscar Isaac’s brilliant performance as a very mentally troubled gift shop attendant who finds himself mixed up with an evil cult, a violent Spectre, and Egyptian gods, Moon Knight is an action-fantasy adventure that, more often than not, isn’t content to stay within the boundaries of your typical superhero fare. Things get trippy pretty quickly, and the series occasionally dips into straight horror territory, a first for the MCU (or second, depending on whether or not you watch this or Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness first). The imagery and camerawork are particularly interesting, and the look of the show owes much to its directors, which is not often the case with a studio that usually prefers to churn out content via metaphorical assembly line. Another bright spot is the soundtrack, which is exciting, memorable, and fantastically mysterious. 

The special effects occasionally do not quite measure up to the lofty standards set by these successes. Marvel Studios has claimed that movie-level budgets set their Disney+ original miniseries apart from others, but if this is true than this money was clearly spent inconsistently, as Moon Knight’s CGI sometimes looks goofy and weird (although some of the things are kind of hard to portray in a non-goofy way to begin with, to be fair). A couple of the episodes in the middle of the series are also not quite as good as the others, and it is these two entries that are also the most straightforward and traditional of the bunch (along with the aforementioned finale). Moon Knight is at its best when it is doing its own thing, not aping The Mummy or Indiana Jones. The series can also be quite dark, and not just in its subject matter; occasionally I had a hard time making out what exactly was happening on screen. 

Even with these shortcomings, Moon Knight is by far my favorite of the Disney+ MCU series thus far. The only other one that comes close in my estimation is the equally weird WandaVision, which just goes to show that breaking the mold every now and then can be greatly beneficial, even if the mold is one that has proven to be successful time and time again. 

All six episodes of Moon Knight are now available on Disney+.

 

This review was first published in The Keizertimes on May 20^th, 2022. Visit at http://keizertimes.com/

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (05.13.22)

 

Nothing dates a movie quite like bad CGI. Take Peter Jackson’s Hobbit films as an example: Released at the very beginning of the twenty-first century, their precursor, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, easily holds up under the scrutiny of eyes that are now twenty years older. The Hobbit films, on the other hand, were pretty ugly to begin with despite coming out much later. Much of this has to do with the timelessness of practical effects over special effects, as one is as good looking as its ever going to get while the other is constantly improving. Sometimes, however, a story is so batcrap crazy and so indistinguishable from the real world that CGI is the only option. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is one such film. Frenetic, trippy, and a joy to look at, the Doctor’s latest adventure is a scarily good time despite a few notable flaws.  

               As part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Multiverse of Madness is a sequel to not only 2016’s Doctor Strange, but also to Avengers: Endgame and Disney+’s WandaVision. If you are already a fan of the MCU, you will be happy to know that Disney/Marvel Studio’s streak of decent to exceptional content is unbroken. If you are not a fan, then you will have absolutely no reason to watch this movie, as the continuity lockout is severe at this point in the franchise. If you can remember the basics of what came before it, however, Multiverse of Madness will be a mostly satisfying experience. Benedict Cumberbatch is back as the master of the mystic arts, and he is as good as ever. He is joined once again by Rachel McAdams (who has slightly more to do in this movie than the last but is still mostly wasted), Benedict Wong, and talented newcomer Xochitl Gomez, but it is Elizabeth Olsen who thoroughly steals the show this time around as the broken, ticking timebomb that is Wanda Maximoff. Taking over director duties is horror and superhero movie legend Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead trilogy, Toby Maguire’s Spider-Man trilogy), who brings a delightfully scary yet endearingly corny touch that is perfect for Doctor Strange’s corner of the MCU. It is his signature style of filmmaking that makes Multiverse of Madness stand out more than anything else, and it’s nice to see that the Disney/Marvel juggernaut still has room for individual flair.   

               Multiverse of Madness definitely has its flaws. The soundtrack by the illustrious Danny Elfman is surprisingly generic and rarely noticeable, and while the unabashed weirdness of Multiverse of Madness works more often than not, some of the weirdness occasionally comes across as simply dumb. This is also the case with the dialogue, which ranges from satisfactory to cringy, as well as the ever-present CGI that will constantly remind you that you that yes, you are watching a movie filmed almost entirely in front of a green screen and no, none of this is something that can conceivably happen in the real world.  

               But Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is still a treat for those who have sunk so much time into a universe that skipping any entry would be tantamount to heresy. With a good many thrills, a few scares, and a cheer-inducing cameo or two, it might be just what the doctor ordered.   

               Sorry, I was dying to get that phrase in there somewhere.   

               Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now available exclusively in theaters.   

This review was first published in The Keizertimes on May 13th, 2022. Visit at http://keizertimes.com/