Capsule Summary (minimal spoilers):

A Wrinkle in Time is a new film from Disney, based on the popular novel of the same name, written by Madeleine L’Engle. This movie is an adaptation of the original, and has been ‘modernized’.

Meg (Storm Reid) and Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) live with their mother. Their father went missing several years ago, and was on the verge of making a scientific discovery. After meeting some eccentric neighbors, they are convinced to go on a special journey to rescue him. It appears that Meg is a child with gifts, which she has ignored.

This is a very lavish film, with a decent cast. All the beauty and majesty of it is weakened by a lack of depth. As the story is geared towards children, perhaps my separation from that market segment is coloring my opinion, but the film, overall, was not satisfying. Perhaps the film could have been improved with a 3 hour runtime, but that works against childhood patience.

I suspect that adults expecting to see the book mirrored on screen will be disappointed, as well. Maybe their children won’t be, and that’s what matters.

Main Review:

Meg is a child of great potential. She has become sullen and withdrawn after her father’s disappearance. Even her classmates hate her because she doesn’t fit in. It is her brother, Charles Wallace, who is the one to bring her out of the funk, by introducing her to two odd neighbors, Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon) and Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling), two extremely colorful and eccentric women. They hint that they know something of her father, and introduce Meg, Charles Wallace, and friend Calvin (Levi Miller) to Mrs. Which (Oprah). The three women convince the children to go on a journey to find and rescue their father (Chris Pine) from, well, something, or somewhere dark.

Thus begins the typical Disney Children’s adventure. That can be summed up as Children with lost or missing parents who go on an adventure, and meet all sorts of interesting things and people along the way. Almost ALL Disney stories begin that way. Once on the journey, the kids meet unusual people and see incredibly lavish and lush things, including the three women, themselves. The movie is such a pleasure to look at, no matter where your eyes go.

There is a bit of an abrupt turn in the story, as if the screen writers intended to have more exposition and imagery, but it was cut for time. I won’t go into detail, but to me, it felt like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but without the tea party.  I felt shorted and disappointed.

I’ll state once again that I’m not the target demographic for the film, so maybe I’m expecting too much. I was in with an audience of parents and children, who perhaps loved it more than I ever could, so that’s where I’ll stop.