Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen plays a layered villain in the highly anticipate
WHEN Mads Mikkelsen was approached to be in Marvel Studios’ spiritual superhero extravaganza, Doctor Strange, it did not take long for him to jump on board.
“Director Scott Derrickson pitched it to me, and he ended up saying magic and flying kungfu,” says Mikkelsen.
“I said, ‘Hold it right there. I’m on’. It’s a world of a 15-year-old boy’s fantasy. Everything we ever dreamt of when we were kids is what we’re doing right now on this film,” says the Danish actor excitedly.
Although the kungfu might have been an irrefutable element, it was the story that appealed to Mikkelsen.
“We’re dealing with a man who is a fantastic surgeon and who has a touch of arrogance to him,” he says.
“When something terrible happens, he has to confront his fears and beliefs. I thought that was a very human and brilliant way of setting up a superhero.”
MARVEL FAN AND SEARCH FOR TRUTH
“Let him start there and see where he goes,” says Mikkelsen of the titular superhero, who is played by British actor Benedict Cumberbatch (of Sherlock fame).
Though he grew up with Marvel comic books, Mikkelsen admits that he was not familiar with the title in particular.
“Doctor Strange has been under the radar for many people, especially in Europe,” he says.The movie is based on the comic book character, created by Steve Ditko, that first appeared in Strange Tales #110 in July 1963.
“I think it was much bigger in the US. Also, it’s a product of the 1960s or 1970s and a little more out there than some of the other things. But I got my hands on a few copies and I loved them all,” he adds.
In the movie adaptation, Mikkelsen plays the villain Kaecilius (kay-see-lee-us), saying that his character, “is part of Kamar-Taj (an isolated community in the Himalayas near what is now Tibet, which is the home and training grounds to the Masters of the Mystic Arts) but has a different viewpoint”.
He adds:“If the majority is looking for the truth here, he’s looking over there for the truth. So he’s caught up on the wrong side of the river in a sense.
“He believes if he’s going that way, then the world will be much more beautiful and all his questions will be answered eventually. He’s trying, like anybody else, to make this world much more beautiful and make this world make sense.”
Derrickson said in a previous interview that the villainous character was developed “to allow us to introduce the idea of certain individuals who live in other dimensions”.
According to him, “Kaecilius has a very compelling point of view that Doctor Strange is confronted with in the movie”, which is what made for a good opponent for the hero of a story.
Kaecilius has been likened to John Doe from Seven (1995) and the Joker from The Dark Knight (2008).
For Derrickson, these were all men of ideas that have watertight logic for their ideals and actions.
SPIRITUALLY SERIOUS WITH HUMOROUS TURNS
Elaborating on how he views the tone of the film, Mikkelsen says: “It’s a serious journey forDoctor Strange and it’s not to be taken lightly. Having said that, there will be encounters where the inevitable will happen where people are misunderstanding each other and there will be humour.
“It’s a very delicate balance because you do want to take this story seriously but at the same time you don’t want to be pretentious about it. So, the humour will be there.”
Mikkelsen says that Derrickson’s energy was infectious and made it a memorable filming experience.
“Scott loves this film and its universe. You can simply see his face light up when something succeeds the way he envisioned it. It’s definitely not just a film; it is a mission. He’s wonderful,” he says.
A family man with two children, Mikkelsen, 50, feels that Doctor Strange is “something we’ve never seen before”.
He adds: “When I read the screenplay, it was a really fluid story and very interesting as well as heartbreaking. But the dimensions that are behind the whole story coming to life will be exciting to see.”
HOLLYWOOD CALLING
The Copenhagen-born actor, who established himself in Denmark after starring in close to 20 films, made his big screen debut with Pusher in 1996.
Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, it was an international success, which spawned two sequels, and saw the actor playing a drug dealer.
Mikkelsen also starred in several other films by the director and went on to play marginalised, often comic roles in popular Danish movies before Hollywood came calling.
Although he appeared in the action adventure film King Arthur (2004) as Tristan, it was his charismatic turn as the Bond villain Le Chiffre in Casino Royale (2006), that got him on the radar of contemporary moviegoers worldwide.
He was also in Clash Of The Titans (2010) and The Three Musketeers (2011). Film fans will also get to see him in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which opens in December.
MIND-BENDING JOURNEY
Doctor Strange is about world-famous neurosurgeon Dr Stephen Vincent Strange, whose life changesafter a horrific car accident robs him of the use of his hands.
When traditional medicine fails, he is forced to look for healing and hope, in an unlikely place — an enclave known as Kamar-Taj.
He quickly learns that this is not just a centre for healing but also the frontline of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality.
Before long, Strange — armed with newly acquired magical powers —is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it all behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence.
The movie will take viewers on a dangerous, mystifying and totally mind-bending journey. It also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Michael Stuhlbarg, Benjamin Bratt, Scott Adkins and Tilda Swinton.
Mikkelsen talks further about Doctor Strange:
WHAT MAKES DOCTOR STRANGE DIFFERENT (FROM OTHER SUPERHEROES)?
Doctor Strange is a very human character, but the period that he’s from (1960s) is just a different time.
All of the other characters grew out of the 1950s, where people looked at the world in a different way.
All of the sudden in the 1960s, people were asking different questions about the universe, about why we’re here and about religion as well. We sought the same things with films in that era. We sought the same things with music during that period.
People were experimenting with the higher self, with something that was above us and the comic books were doing it as well.
HOW DOES YOUR CHARACTER FIRST MEET STRANGE?
Once Stephen Strange hits the temple, my character has dedicated himself to the other side. So their first encounter is quite brutal actually.
They fight the first time they meet. Doctor Strange does not have his powers and he is not as skillful a fighter as the rest of us at this point because we’ve been there for 20 years already.
WHAT WAS THAT SCENE LIKE TO REHEARSE, DISCUSS AND SHOOT?
Rehearsal was tough. The preparation was immense in the sense of being physically prepared because it’s a certain fighting style they created for the film.
They allowed us to do, if not all of it, most of it. It was tough but it was really fun. It’s not every day you get to smash glass and get paid for it.
DID YOU WANT TO DO MORE STUNTS?
There are very few things I haven’t done myself. The stunt guys are very good in that way.
If it’s dangerous, of course, we’re not allowed to then. If we look bad, they will do it as well but they’re very honest in the sense that if we look good, we are allowed to do it.
We are all very protective about doing our own things right and well. And that’s the way it should be.
KAECILIUS AND HIS FOLLOWERS HAVE A DIFFERENT LOOK. TELL US ABOUT THAT.
My character and his followers have a kind of evolved facial expression that goes with his specific cult.
It’s a make-up process that takes about 2 hours every day but it looks absolutely fantastic. So we’re all really suffering for the beauty, in a certain sense.
TALK ABOUT THE DETAIL IN THIS FILM.
The people doing this are at the top of their game, the best. Every time they have a chance to build the real thing, they do. We don’t have to pretend that we’re here. We are here.
DO YOU GET TO SEE PLAYBACK?
We actually look at what they call the pre-vis (pre-visualisation). This is an animated film for the whole thing where we can actually understand exactly where we are at that moment, just to give us an idea so that we can also add something to it.
IS IT REASSURING TO SEE SUCH GREAT ACTORS IN THE CAST?
They have assembled some really great peoplefor this project. It’s been a fantastic joy to work with them. I have my deepest respect for all of them. It’s been an extra icing on the cake for all of them to be in this film.
WHY IS BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH RIGHT FOR STRANGE?
He’s the perfect choice in the sense that Strange is a character that transforms from one thing to another and Benedict possesses the ability to do that.
He can be very physical and direct. But he can also be very intellectual and he can play very arrogant.
This character has a fair amount of arrogance in the beginning of the film and his journey is obviously to figure out what purpose that arrogance is serving.
WORKING WITH SCOTT DERRICKSON WAS MEMORABLE?
Yes, because he really loves the Doctor Strange universe. He’s wonderful and gives us a lot of liberty in that we can put in our own ideas as long as it corresponds well with this universe.
The Walt Disney Company (Malaysia)
Doctor Strange is currently playing in cinemas nationwide.