In a recent chat with indianexpress.com, Benedict Cumberbatch spoke about Bollywood's inclusion in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He said, "I don’t think the two (industries) are exclusive. You know you’ve got a very avid movie-going public and that translates whether it’s Bollywood or Hollywood. And I think that’s fine. There’s room for both. It’s not an either and or equation at all."
He added, "There are incredible Indian actors, whether they are born in the UK like obviously Sir Ben Kingsley or Dev Patel, who I just had the good fortune to work with. I mean it’s obvious you have an incredibly talented and incredibly thriving cinematic culture and have done it for years. I have loved the filmmakers that have done work in the English language and you’ve had a massive influence. I think Bollywood needs to sort of be part of the MCU. Maybe have a massive dance and bring in the first Indian superhero."
Indian Express's Shalini Langer has given the film two stars and says 'that the film doesn't amount to much'.
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She writes, 'Real marvel, on the contrary, isn’t a formula that one can copy off a book. When Marvel gets it right, a lot of things come together — action, humour, warmth, dread, heart, and above all, fun. Helmed by the otherwise foolproof Sam Raimi, The Multiverse of Madness is really a multiverse of muchness, not amounting to much.' Read full review here
Fans say that Elizabeth Olsen, who plays the role of Scarlet Witch in the film, carried it 'on her back'.
"I liked the new Doctor Strange. It’s a tad clunky and some stuff feels unearned, but I can’t be mad at a movie so unapologetically bonkers. Definitely a different feel and tone from the rest of the MCU (and that’s a good thing)," writes Eric Vespe on Twitter.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared on Twitter, "#Xclusiv... THE BIGGIES... 'AVENGERS', 'SPIDER-MAN', 'DR STRANGE' SCREEN COUNT... ? 2018: #AvengersInfinityWar: 2000+ ? 2019: #AvengersEndgame: 2845 ? 2021: #SpiderManNoWayHome: 3264+
? 2022: #DoctorStrange: 2500+ NOTE: All versions."
Collider’s Perri Nemiroff wrote, “MARVEL MADE A HORROR MOVIE! It’s weird, scary and earns the title Multiverse of Madness. If you were at all concerned this movie wouldn’t feel Sam Raimi enough, fear not! I can’t imagine a more Sam Raimi MCU film. My genre loving heart is bursting right now.”
Another wild fan theory suggests that Doctor Strange could actually be a Skrull. One Reddit user referred to the latest comic where Dr. Strange loses his magic and travels to a Skrull planet to forge a new time stone. Other fans felt that the Doctor Strange in Spider-Man: No Way Home was somewhat odd.
Talking about the moviemaking process of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, director Sam Raimi told AP, “Every part of this moviemaking process has been great, but every part of the process went on too long and became a little too intense. I love the writing but the writing never stopped. Michael (Waldron) was writing the script all throughout the production. And the shoot was great but then we had to do reshoots. Also because of COVID, things got stretched out.” Read more
A fan theory suggests that Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch will be the main antagonist of the film. It can’t be ruled out, as Wanda Maximoff has shown her affinity for the dark side, from the Age Of Ultron days to holding an entire town captive in WandaVision as she was unable to cope with her grief of losing Vision (Paul Bettany). She knows she has made plenty of mistakes and has always managed to find her way back—but after WandaVision, we’re not entirely sure. However, it’s also possible that the ‘real’ Wanda has been imprisoned in an alternate dimension prison.
After its world premiere in Los Angeles, BuzzFeed’s Nora Dominick called Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ‘a ride from start to finish’. She added, “A little rushed in some spots, but it has the iconic Sam Raimi wild vibe. No surprise, but Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch is a force and she surprises at every turn as she builds upon everything she’s done in the MCU so far.”