Doctor Strange: How Humor Plays Into The film
No matter how much some fans want the Marvel Cinematic Universe to take a dark turn at some point, [...]
No matter how much some fans want the Marvel Cinematic Universe to take a dark turn at some point, especially with the game-changing confrontation with Thanos on the horizon, Marvel boss Kevin Feige has promised that will never happen. Injecting levity into tenuous scenes has been a large part of Marvel's success and will never go away. Of course, some of films have more humor than others.
As for Doctor Strange, director Scott Derrickson thinks the film has plenty of humorous moment, though not as jokey as Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) was. He believes the film's humor is more comparable to the judicious approach Joe and Anthony Russo took with humor in 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
"There's comedy in it, but it's not Guardians," Derrickson told ComicBook.com and other press during a visit to the Doctor Strange set. "It's not that tone, by any means. It's closer to Winter Soldier, which has comedy in it and has some really funny moments in it. I just named my two favorite Marvel movies, by the way, and part of my love for Winter Soldier is the high impact, grounded nature of the action in that movie and the subversive, grounded ideas of that movie within what is just one of the great kick-ass action movies. That's what I love about Winter Soldier, in a nutshell. We have a lot of humor spread throughout, but it is a very grounded, realistic movie about a guy who suffers a lot and transforms, so it's also very dramatic. Yeah."
And where does the film's sense of humor come from? "It's Benedict," Derrickson offered. "How can it not be funny?"
Some of the film's humor will come from fish-out-of-water moments as the former neurosurgeon puts aside his Western way of thinking to open his mind to Eastern mysticism. It worked brilliantly in the trailer when concluding with "the Wi-Fi password" joke. Hopefully, we get more of that.
From Marvel comes DOCTOR STRANGE, the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident robs him of the use of his hands. When traditional medicine fails him, he is forced to look for healing, and hope, in an unlikely place – a mysterious enclave known as Kamar-Taj. He quickly learns that this is not just a center for healing but also the front line of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Before long Strange – armed with newly acquired magical powers – is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it all behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence. Join Strange on his dangerous, mystifying, and totally mind-bending journey.
The cast features Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Star Into Darkness, The Imitation Game), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), Rachel McAdams (Sherlock Holmes), Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man), Mads Mikkelsen (Casino Royale) and Tilda Swinton (The Grand Budapest Hotel).
The film is directed by Scott Derrickson (Sinister) and written by Derrickson, Jon Spaihts (Prometheus), and C. Robert Cargill (Sinister).
Marvel's Doctor Strange is produced by Kevin Feige with Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Charles Newirth, Stephen Broussard and Stan Lee serving as executive producers.
Marvel's Doctor Strange will cast a spell on audiences November 4, 2016.