A Wrinkle in Time review

A WRINKLE IN TIME:

AN IMPERFECT BUT SOLID RE-TELLING OF THE BELOVED NOVEL!

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

DISNEY

Reese Witherspoon, Oprah Winfrey, and Mindy Kaling in A Wrinkle in Time

            Oprah is a goddess, Reese Witherspoon is a flying leaf of cabbage, and Chris Pine is the human incarnation of Gary from Team America: World Police….A Wrinkle in Time everyone! Ava DuVernay (Middle of Nowhere, Selma, 13^th) makes her leap to fantasy film directing with the film adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s best-selling children’s novel, A Wrinkle in Time.

            This wouldn’t be the first time L’Engle’s book was translated to live-action film, there was also a 2003 Wrinkle in Time mini-series on ABC’s The Wonderful World of Disney with Alfre Woodard, Kate Nelligan, and Allison Elliott. Unfortunately, that adaptation was widely despised even by Madeleine L’Engle herself, makes perfect sense because if you include stock footage from The Neverending Story III in your project, it’s already dead on arrival.

            Can Ava DuVernay bring the enchantment and wonder of the book to life and finally give us the perfect adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time? Not exactly, but it’s fine enough as a fantasy movie.

            The movie gets elements of the book right, the visuals are gorgeous and leap off the screen, the acting for the most part is solid, and has some real legitimate drama. But at the same time, the film does fall flat with plot holes in its narrative, some “Not so good” performances, and it feels like half the time the movie’s trying to be the next Wizard of Oz or Alice in Wonderland when it really doesn’t need to be.

            The film follows a young girl named Meg Murry (Storm Reid-12 Years a Slave, Sleight, NCIS: Los Angeles) struggling with issues of self-worth and trying desperately to fit in at her school. She is the daughter of two world-renowned physicists and is intelligent and uniquely-gifted as with her little brother, Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe-Stephanie), but she just doesn’t know it yet.

            Suddenly their father, Dr. Alex Murry (Chris Pine-Star Trek (2009 trilogy), Into the Woods, Wonder Woman) mysteriously disappears, who was on the brink of discovering the secrets of the universe. To make things stranger, Meg, Charles Wallace, and their neighbor, Calvin (Levi Miller-Terra Nova, Pan, Supergirl) are greeted by three odd-looking women, Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey-The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Princess and the Frog, Selma), Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon-Legally Blonde, Walk the Line, Wild), and Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling-The Mindy Project, Wreck-It Ralph, Inside Out) who inform them that their father is alive and trapped in another world.

            Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin must journey across space and time to rescue their father and possibly even save the entire universe from an evil entity known as the IT (and I ain’t talkin’ about no killer clowns here!). Can they rescue their father in time or will IT destroy all life in the universe?

            The film also stars Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover trilogy, Dinner for Schmucks, Puss in Boots) as The Happy Medium, Michael Peña (End of Watch, Ant-Man, The Lego Ninjago Movie) as Red, André Holland (Selma, The Knick, Moonlight) as Principal James Jenkins, Rowan Blanchard (Girl Meets World, The Goldbergs) as Veronica, David Oyelowo (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Selma, Queen of Katwe) as the IT, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Miss Sloane, Beauty and the Beast (2017), The Cloverfield Paradox) as Dr. Kate Murry.

            Overall, A Wrinkle in Time is a beautiful but clumsy re-telling of the book that delivers a strong message about female empowerment and diversity, much like Wonder Woman or Black Panther. The film’s visuals are stunning to look at, the worlds are imaginative, and the cast ranges from good, bad, to complete madness (for better or for worse).

            Most of the cast I thought did a decent job but Levi Miller, I’m sorry and I’m sure you’re a nice kid, but his performance in this is terrible. He’s supposed to be the popular boy at school who befriends Meg on their adventure, but wow, do they make him stupid? There’s a scene where the three of them are eating sandwiches on a mysterious beach and the little brother exclaims that it tastes like sand and he still eats it, you’re like a hybrid of “Shyamalized” Mark Wahlberg from The Happening mixed with Ed from Ed, Edd n Eddy…and somehow you put them both to shame.

            Thankfully Miller’s performance doesn’t kill the movie and there’s plenty of things to appreciate about the film. As previously mentioned, the worlds and visuals are beautiful and have kind of a Wizard of Oz, Dark Crystal, and Avatar vibe to the designs of the environments and creatures, and if you’re watching on a large-screen, you feel entranced.

            The movie also has some pretty effective drama with themes of trying to fit in, loss, and family. You feel for Meg in the beginning of the movie after her father goes missing, she pretty much shut herself out from her classmates and the school bullies don’t cut her any slack.

            A Wrinkle in Time isn’t a perfect adaptation of the book but it’s miles ahead of the mini-series, even if it doesn’t quite live up to the magic and emotion of the novel, it’s a decent attempt. If you’re a fan of the book or looking for a strange and odd adventure in another world, you might enjoy A Wrinkle in Time.

And now because I don't know any better, here are the Top 10 Jokes I Made While Watching This Film:
1. Had no idea Charles Wallace knew the Force
2. Laughing at the overacting child
3. When the three kids enter the creepy-looking cul-de-sac where the kids are bouncing balls all at the same time "Oh my God, they found Purgatory!" 
4. You were the chosen one! 
5. The IT is the Nothing from Neverending Story
6. Levi Miller can't act to save his life!
7. Oprah the Goddess, surprisingly fitting!
8. Chris Pine is the human incarnation of Gary from Team America
9. Obvious Pennywise joke
10. Girl Meets Pwnage!