Why do we even have films to enjoy? Many say to learn from. Others say to spark a nerve in people through a message. But don't they really exist to allow us to escape into another world where we can experience limitless boundaries? Many films fall under the latter description, such as "Alice in Wonderland", "Peter Pan", "Goosebumps", "Zombieland" and now we are offered "A Wrinkle in Time".
Following the discovery of a new form of space travel as well as Meg Murry's scientist father's (Chris Pine) disappearance, she, Meg (Storm Reid), her brother, Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe), and her friend, Calvin (Levi Miller) must join three magical beings-- Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon), Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling), and Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey)-- to travel across the universe to rescue him from a terrible evil, The It (David Oyelowo). After Charles Wallace introduces his sister and her friend to these three celestrial beings, Meg is reluctant, at best, and Calvin is more open. Subsequently, Meg seems to understand, but is still skeptical, but to attempt to fit in, decides to go along for the ride--quite literally.
Others to round out the cast are Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Meg's mother and Mr. Murry's husband, Zach Galifianakis as Happy Medium, Michael Pena as Red and Andre Holland as Principal Jenkins.
This was helmed by visionary director Ava DuVernay ("This Is the Life" (Documentary) '08, "I Will Follow" '10, "Middle of Nowhere" '12, "Selma" '14, "For Justice" (TV movie) '15, "13th" (Documentary) '16) plus TV, shorts and documentary shorts. This filmmaker has the innate ability to extract certain emotions from her actors in order to convey a message, but usually in an entertaining way. And the fact that this director can't be pigeon-holed makes her more marketable than her commercial counterparts. It was adequately written by Jennifer Lee ("Wreck-It Ralph" '12, "Frozen" '13, "Zootopia" (story) '16) plus video games and Jeff Stockwell ("The Dangerous Lives of Alter Boys" '02, "Wilder Days" (TV movie) '03, "Bridge to Terabithia" '07, "The Ottoman Lieutenant" '17) plus TV, based on the novel by Madeleine L'Engle. Surely the novel was much more descript and went into more detail, because when it came to this film version, it became choppy and lacked a fair amount of continuity. It had a difficult time connecting the search of Meg's father and the time travel involved. Certainly these screenwriters are seasoned, so I'm not sure what happened. Rushed the project too quick? Not sure, but suffice it to say, it needed polish, The best thing about this was the effervescent personalities the three beings. The character developments of these was fresh as it was entertaining. I'm not sure if the new age philosophy is a good thing or not--I think it depends on the individual. Some may not like this philosophy, some will, so one might want to keep this in mind when taking the youngsters to see this.
Fantasy films are a great way to spend an afternoon or evening, and this film is certainly a visual feast, but it's truly sad that the script could not have been a more polished one. It the plot doesn't do it for you, the visual effects will get you through and all on a 2D or IMAX format as well.
Out of 4 Stars: 2.5 Rated: PG 110mins.
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