MARVEL'S Doctor Strange - November 4, 2016*

That was Fox, not Marvel Studios.

 

He was in Strange Tales, but they were his stories.

 

I think the point of greater concern is the timing. The issue of race in casting has more traction this year than ever before. Like I said I don't think it'll impact the box office, but there'll be lots of chatter. Going forward a lot more attention will be paid to casting parts reflective of the ethnicity of characters in comics and novels.


Cat

 

Hate being dissapointed.
Just saying.

 

With rare exception, Marvel Studios has demonstrated an uncanny ability to sidestep disappointment.


Cat

 

What do you put that done too?

 

The ability to walk a generational tightrope that respects the original material while still connecting with younger audiences.


Cat

 

Trailers so far look a little too Inception meets Green Lantern. Not what I was hoping for, but still rooting for this to be a good movie.

 

MARVEL releases new Dr. Strange preview

Get a sneak peek as Marvel goes behind the magic with new 'Doctor Strange' preview »

 

I think the fact that they cast a woman probably suggested to them that they might not be hit by that because they a diversity of gender. I'm all for casting the best actor for a part and, with some limitations, the part should be written so that a person of ANY race can play the role.

 

I agree. I think gender is a bigger factor than race as far as movie casting, in other words it's a bolder move to cast the ancient one as a female than non-Asian. Marvel has Black Panther and Luke Cage in the works, heck even Nick Fury is black which is cool but I grew up with him as Sgt Fury leading the Howlers. DC is going to beat Marvel to the punch with Wonder Woman, the first female super-hero lead character.

 

Music for the closing credits written by Michael Giacchino.

 

Early comments about the first screenings are positive, with its strength being the action scenes and visuals, along with Cumberbatch.

Doctor Strange Just Screened, Here’s What The Critics Are Saying - CINEMABLEND »

 

I agree with neo: the major reviews are very positive...

“Yes, this new project shares the same look, feel, and fancy corporate sheen as the rest of Marvel’s rapidly expanding Avengers portfolio, but it also boasts an underlying originality and freshness missing from the increasingly cookie-cutter comic-book realm of late. From this second-tier side character, the studio has created a thrilling existential dilemma in which its flawed hero’s personal search for purpose dovetails beautifully with forays into the occult New Age realm of magic and sorcery where Doctor Strange ultimately finds his calling.”
Film Review: ‘Doctor Strange’ »

“Determined, among other things, to top Christopher Nolan at his own game when it comes to folding, bending and upending famous cityscapes to eye-popping effect, this action movie ostensibly rooted in the mind-expanding tenets of Eastern mysticism is different enough to establish a solid niche alongside the blockbuster combine’s established money machines.”
'Doctor Strange': Film Review »

“In a year where bloated, empty spectacles have induced a crushing level of CG fatigue — Now Showing: ‘Alice Through the Warcraft Suicide Apocalypse Justice’ — this funny, freaky adventure reminds us of how effective VFX can be when they’ve got some imagination behind them.”
'Doctor Strange' Review: Cumberbatch Brings Magic to Marvel Universe »

 

Looks like I'll be going to the movies in a couple of weeks.

 

I'll be checking it out soon, report back.

 

I'm jazzed -- the trailers look great and the reviews are great, which is very positive.

The comic book was weird as hell, but I have to admit I read it in the late 1960s and early 1970s, back in the day. BTW, it's interesting to note that co-creator Steve Ditko is still alive, but I don't think makes a dime on the movie adaptation due to the bad contracts Marvel had with artists and writers in that era.

 

It's worth noting that Ditko was arguably the sole creator of Doctor Strange, or at minimum the primary creator. He designed the character and plotted and drew the first Doctor Strange story by himself on spec, without input or prior approval from Stan Lee. Lee probably came up with the character's name, but everything else came from Ditko.

Ditko's situation is not unusual for a creator of his era. Until the early 80s, Marvel did not offer any sort of profit participation to comic creators whose work was used in licensed products or other media. Steve Gerber (creator of Howard the Duck) was able to get himself grandfathered in via a lawsuit in the 80s, and there are other creators who have taken legal action or threatened action and received some form of compensation as a result (the Jack Kirby Estate and Bill Mantlo, creator of Rocket Racoon for example). But for the most part the creators of Marvel characters prior to around 1982 do not receive any payment for their use in films. And as we discussed earlier in this thread, Ditko is not someone who would ever take any sort of legal action to get money for the use of the character in this film.

 

Yep, I'm aware (painfully) of the realities of work-for-hire contracts: the creators basically hand over 100% of their rights for a check, in perpetuity. But WB/DC did eventually make an exception for the creators of Superman, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster (after considerable public pressure), and Marvel did (after a prolonged lawsuit) give Jack Kirby's estate $40 million. You'd think they'd be nice enough to do the right thing and give Ditko at least a token payment of something. Stranger things have happened.

 

Do movie studios ever just give someone unsolicited money, in exchange for nothing? I don't have the inside experience that you do, but I would think such a thing would be extremely rare. Ditko's not going to ask for money, he's not going to sue, and he's not going to do anything to create bad publicity for the studio. In short, he's not going to do any of the things that have been successful at shaking money loose from the studios in the past.

 

Well Ditko did create the "web", some kudos and lucre in order methinks.

 

Yeah brilliant !!!
Much better than I thought ( only 2D,convience factor).

CGI outdid ~Inception.
Zillion sfx vfx end credits......
Also, the first of the two taster films is a hoot.

 

I have to say that growing up with Marvel reprints in the UK in the 70s, I always preferred Lee and Kirby's FF and Thor, but have been disappointed with the movie versions, so I hope my third favourite 60s title fares better.

 

Prefer Kirby's mass muscular creations myself. But, Doctor Strange is up there with the better Marvel films.