A fascinating exercise to watch Raimi's SPIDER-MAN 2 and DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS back to back and to see in action what I found myself thinking: that SPIDER-MAN 2 is a Sam Raimi film which happens to feature Marvel characters while DOCTOR STRANGE (love the easter egg in the former – prescience, much?) is a Marvel film which happens to be directed by Sam Raimi.

While occasional Raimi-ness flared up in the third act of STRANGE - that music note throwdown was pure, giddy genius - I was, as almost always with the Marvel films, disappointed by the weightlessness of it all, the amusement park line-ride fan service, and Raimi's disheartening - though unsurprising - MCU restraint.

For all that DC's done wrong with their approach to their films - and they've done plenty -, they let their directors do their thing: the James Gunn of the THE SUICIDE SQUAD and PEACEMAKER is a far more exciting James Gunn than GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY James Gunn.

(For what it's worth, SPIDER-MAN 2 is still the greatest comic book film of all time, a note-perfect examination of what being a hero is - and the train stopping sequence remains the best 15 minutes of superhero cinema ever. So very very good to see it again.)