“I am underwhelmed,” I said, pushing open the doors to the cinema as the credits for A Wrinkle in Time rolled on behind me. I chose this particular wording because it was a favourite line in the film, stated not once but twice by two different characters, during two completely unrelated scenes with no one connection to the other whatsoever.
A Wrinkle In Time follows Meg (Storm Reid) and her younger brother, Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) as they venture out into the universe in search of their father, Mr Murry (Chris Pine), a scientist who had suddenly vanished four years prior. They are accompanied by their schoolmate Calvin (Levi Miller), and three magical beings (Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling and Reese Witherspoon), who receive no comprehensible introduction nor explanation for their existence.
Meg is a stubborn girl with a heart that is broken over the loss of her father. Her younger brother, intelligent beyond his years, befriends these three random and mystical beings (again, nothing is explained as to their relationship or how it ever began), and seems to understand everything that no one else does. Meg is frustratingly useless at overcoming the obstacles that they face on their quest, and Calvin, a fifteen year old boy who looks much younger, has this uncanny ability to project an expression that I like to call ‘sex eyes.’ He does it every time he looks at Meg, which is often. And yes, it is as uncomfortable as it sounds.
The three traverse as yet unexplored and unknown planets of the universe, going from one to the next by manner of teleportation and fighting evil along the way. A Wrinkle In Time had the potential to be an incredible tale of strength, faith and magic. However, the film has fallen sorely short of its mark. With Disney as its creator, I had expected great things. What I got instead was a juvenile script, subpar acting, shoddy direction and mediocre camerawork.
The character introductions were poorly executed and their growth throughout the film was predictable and boring. With such a star-studded cast, I had anticipated some top-notch acting and yet, once again I was thoroughly disappointed. The lines were poorly composed and felt akin to the words of a child exploring writing for the first time. The close-ups of the actors’ faces were excessive and unrelenting, making for many a cringe-worthy moment where I found myself sliding down in my seat hoping to disappear.
I can’t quite express how much I disliked this film but I am sure that you get the gist. In another’s more competent hands, I believe that A Wrinkle In Time could have been what we had hoped it would be – a journey of discovery and epic transformation. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and the film has ended up instead in the pit where promising ideas go to die.
Fun Fact:
Oprah Winfrey got the role on the spot without Auditioning or getting an offer. She was texting Ava DuVernay one day and she mentioned to her that she’s currently developing a new “A Wrinkle in Time Adaption” and she asked if she can work with her and Oprah said “No Problem”.
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