4 stars out of 5
Can we please just can it with the multiverse for a hot minute? Couple of pals said, “you gotta see Everything Everything All at Once,” yet three words into the summary I read, it said multiverse, and I was all, thank you but no; myself and my parallel selves are outta here.
The multiballverse was admittedly very cool in that cartoon Spidey movie, and who didn’t enjoy seeing Tobey Maguire (or wait, was that Elijah Wood?) et al. in the recent No Way Home. But at the end of the day it’s really lazy storytelling and needs to stop.
OK then, so why did I purposely go see a movie with Multiverse in its freaking title? Two words: Sam Raimi. The early Spider-Man installments that he directed remain the series’ best. Besides, the modern Marvel Universe could certainly use some of his Evil Dead-style goofiness.
Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange is thankfully less wisecracky than he’s been in recent appearances. Though a problem with having such a top-flight actor in this film is that some other cast members pale in comparison. Teen Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez, in a key role as the “asset” Strange needs to protect, gets the job done but doesn’t really stand out. And brace yerselves for a hot take, true believers: Elizabeth Olsen is not a very good actress and doesn’t have much screen presence. Plus, her Scarlet Witch outfit looks like a leftover Rite Aid Halloween costume. Luckily, Rachel McAdams is around to pick up the acting slack. I remain a fan.
The film’s first two thirds are alternately entertaining, needlessly confusing, and stupid. I’ll concede that jumping from universe to universe provides some impressive visual effects. But in the final third, the movie improves from merely watchable to something I honestly felt was very good. And that’s because it finally becomes a Sam Raimi flick. In the early going, it seemed like he was hamstrung by all the Marvel canon that needed to be jammed in. But finally, Raimi gets to be Raimi, and we get a zany horror film with genuine scares and laughs. Elizabeth Olsen truly comes into her own as a limping, bloodthirsty killer. Strange multivitaminverse madness, and very much fun!!
Jack Silbert, curator