Dr. Strange and The Multiverse of Madness is the second Marvel project revolving around the hero Dr. Strange. Marvel brought back Sam Raimi who directed the Spider-Man trilogy for this project. With Raimi at the helm, Multiverse of Madness allowed Marvel to explore its horror and thriller side.
With high expectations heading into the film, Raimi does a fantastic job in developing story beats and acts with this sequel.
The film follows the protagonist Dr. Strange as he begins to learn that he cannot do all the saving the world, and now the multiverse, needs alone. He needs to trust those around him like Wong, and now America Chavez.
Act 1 sets the story by continuing the introduction of the protagonist, Dr. Strange, introducing the antagonist and setting the basis for the movie. The first beat of the movie establishes the Scarlet Witch as the villain, revealing her goal and how Dr. Strange must stop her. The audience learns that the recent experiences in Dr. Strange's life was ultimately orchestrated by the Scarlet Witch which brought him to her.
Transitioning into an early test for the protagonist, Raimi sets the first major fight scene of the movie, The Battle of Kamar-Taj. Here, the audience sees that Dr. Strange alone is no match for the Scarlet Witch. He then enlists the help of Wong, America Chavez, and the fortress’s defenders. After narrowly escaping, Dr. Strange and Chavez separate from Wong and enter their own adventure.
After this battle, Dr. Strange must keep Chavez away from the Scarlet Witch and figure out how to stop her, so they move from reality to reality to find a solution. Raimi illustrates this perfect entrance into Act 2 through a series of different realities that officially set the film occurring in Marvel's multiversal world.
This movement develops a new beat arriving in Earth-838 (world in the multiverse). In the canon MCU world, Dr. Strange’s fiance, Christine Palmer died in a car accident. When Dr. Strange and Chavez enter the world, they meet Christine Palmer, the person who has a solution. The audience is given a deeper view into what Dr. Strange’s and Christine’s relationship was like in the canon world and the impact it has on Dr. Strange to be in her presence again. From allowing himself to work with Wong and Chavez, Dr. Strange allows himself to be vulnerable and work with Christine to save the multiverse from its threat in the Scarlet Witch.
Through the help of Christine Palmer, Dr. Strange comes up with a plan to save Chavez who has been taken by the Scarlet Witch, and the multiverse. This takes the film into Act 3. In order to stop the Scarlet Witch, Dr. Strange must perform the magic of dreamwalking another form of himself, but to do that he needs to return to his world, leaving Christine. This beat portrays the personal growth from Strange as he is sacrificing what he has wanted most in life (more time with Christine) to save the multiverse.
Stemming from his sacrifice, Dr. Strange was able to save Chavez and defeat the Scarlet Witch through the help of another form of himself and Wong. Even through the moments of loss, Dr. Strange puts his trust in others and puts an end to the multiversal danger.
Through an unexpected and adventure filled movie, Raimi develops a satisfying ending as Dr. Strange’s growth is clear and opens up new ideas into the expansion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Each story beat continues the development and structure of Dr. Strange’s growth throughout the film. Multiverse of Madness proves to be an example of how the division of acts and utilization of beats structures the plot of a film that remains the audience engaged throughout its entirety.
These techniques in film are explained through the Pixar In A Box lessons that provide detailed instruction on how films are created and the elements needed to carry out a creative and structured plot.
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