★ ★ ★

This movie clearly had good bones and a fascinating plot. However the poor choice in its direction — by notable horror film director Sam Raimi — is what derailed this film for so many viewers and Marvel fans. What would have been a strong and fascinating look into the multiverse felt both too much while also being lackluster. The moments that intertwined the multiverse alternatives of characters we may know and love felt unimportant with the disregard of those characters within the storyline.

Also the blatant villainization of Wanda as a mother felt callous and unnecessarily evil. While I think showcasing her motherly instincts would’ve been a strong move on the part of the plot, where it fell through is in the direction of the movie. By having a horror movie director there were grotesque horrific scenes that did not lend themselves to the Marvel cinematic universe, there were moments that felt disjointed with the rest of the universe.

Some of these elements could have been interesting and possibly even well done if the director had more knowledge of the fan base and knew what people were looking for in a movie. This movie left a lot of questions for the audience, which could be interesting to explore in a follow up movie or within one of the other upcoming Marvel movies. But a lot of the final choices were entirely unnecessary and were clearly seeking shock factor and to service the fans, in all the wrong ways.