Dr. Stange and The Tale of Two Adults Missing What They Never Had

“Are you happy Steven?”

This is a review of the recent Marvel movie, Dr. Strange. It is not a regular review, it is one where project my issues onto the movie way too much but I think it is still pretty accurate. TLDR 8/10.

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers.

Seemingly, this movie is the classic “Two tortured souls, one becomes a hero and saves the world and the kid, the other one almost destroys it but good prevails in the end so does the right thing.” plot. Except it is not. It is not a superhero movie at all. There are all sorts of superpowers flying around but it is about two adults who have achieved godhood and yet failed to be happy.

“Are you happy Steven?” this sentence is the centerpiece of the movie. At the beginning of the movie, we see Dr. Steven Strange getting ready by using his magic to put on a suit for the wedding of the woman he loved/loves, with another man. He puts on his very broken wristwatch and goes to the wedding. Eventually, the bride asks him this question which he promptly lies to.

Wanda, the Scarlet Witch, repeatedly dreams of a family she never had. Tucking in her children that never existed, over and over again in the same dream every night.

Both these characters are portrayed as nothing more than humans, despite their obvious reality-altering powers. Dr. Strange is the most powerful sorcerer there is, in all multiverses, and yet in all of them he is searching for a way to reconcile with something he has lost a long time ago. Despite all his achievements and status, he is not happy yet he manages to go about his stuff with the occasional destructive stint. He will use his magic for literally any occasion, even in forbidden ways, but he won’t fix his goddamn broken wristwatch with it. His only link to what he lost.

Scarlet Witch is a reality-altering being that has incredible power and yet all she wants, despite the shrine made in her name and the power to destroy realms, is to be able to tuck her kids in. The kids she never had. The kids she had in every other reality but hers. “I am meant to rule over the universe.” she says “This is a throne, and I don’t want it.”.

This movie came on top of the numerous conversations I have been having with people about identity and accomplishments. So obviously the lens I had on when I walked into the theater was that lens. It is incredibly common among people, all adults really, to associate their self-worth and identity with what they have been able to accomplish. We strive and struggle for some imaginary achievement that will eventually make us say “That’s it. I am complete now.” Somehow this never seems to happen and we continue to ache and long for things we never had. Things we probably don’t even know we are missing.

We see both characters in the movie longing for what never was, which was never an accomplishment but love. Which is a cheesy plot in all honesty, but then again, it is a mainstream movie. What makes this good is that the “happy ending” is not about reconciliation this time, it is about moving on and letting go. The good doctor doesn’t get the girl and Wanda doesn’t get her children. Dr. Strange finally accepts Wong as the sorcerer supreme despite Wong not being his equal in the craft. But he is the superior man in terms of enlightenment. Wanda walks away from her children in another realm and leaves them with their actual mother who is an alternate self of hers and destroys her throne. We finally see Dr. Strange mending his broken watch, not with his magic but with traditional methods, almost with compassion, cherishing the memories but moving on nonetheless.

There is really no “A-ha” moment to this particular read of the movie. It is just a reflection of the Marvel cinematic universe audience consisting of as many (or maybe even more) adults as kids. The younger audience will love how action-packed the movie is, older audience too I think. Some of the members of the audience will take other things from the madness in it. Graphics are absolutely stunning as well. All in all, I enjoyed this immensely, and would recommend.