Doctor Strange is many things, but visually boring is not one of them. The latest release from Marvel was always going to be ambitious – focusing as it does on the titular Sorcerer Supreme, who learns how to manipulate space and time, and travel between dimensions. The only to way properly convey these things would be to truly expand the visual experience of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and now, courtesy of Collider, we can get a glimpse of the technology behind the movie.
The featurette includes interviews with Visual Effects Supervisor Stephane Cerutti, Stereoscopic Supervisor Evan Jacobs,and Executive Producer Victoria Alonso – who each explain in detail the difference that’s made to the viewing experience by retroactively applying 3D and IMAX technology to the film.
“If you go out to any theatre you’re going to see conceivably a very nice presentation and a very nice theatre with leather seats and all that stuff and that’s great, but what they’ve done at IMAX is that they have taken our movie and actually reprocessed it to actually reduce the noise, increase the sharpness and actually enhance the presentation on a shot-by-shot, artist-driven process…We also do additional color grading here, so it’s like taking the movie and turning it up to 11 is really what we’re doing.”
Doctor Strange certainly does lean in to the mind-bending visuals that are needed to bring the character and his environs to life. The effects throughout the film are astonishing in 3D, but in particular, Doctor Strange’s first foray into alternative dimensions is incredibly immersive and satisfying. It is indeed the case that these new technologies are worth embracing for this type of movie – and you can see the results for yourself, as Doctor Strange is currently in theatres.