144. A Wrinkle In Time; movie review

A WRINKLE IN TIME
Cert PG
109 mins
BBFC advice: Contains mild threat

During my childhood, the opening Disney music, image of the magic kingdom and accompanying fireworks was always a prelude to a joyous adventure.
Nowadays, it resonates less because I am in my mid-50s and the studio has, for me, lost some of its lustre.
Therefore, I would have been interested in a child's take on what Mrs W and I felt was a disappointing movie by Ava DuVernay.
To us, A Wrinkle In Time lacked the energy and enchantment of the Disney films of old, instead relying on a tepid story and plenty of CGI.
It stars Storm Reid as Meg, a bright girl who has become disruptive since the sudden disappearance of her scientist father (Chris Pine).
Then, just as she is about to be admonished for yet another infraction at school, a crazy lady (Reese Witherspoon) appears at her home and her life is about to take a dramatic turn.
It transpires that aforementioned woman has come through a rip in the universe and wants to take Meg, her brother (Deric Mccabe) and the lad from down the road (Levi Miller) on a trip across the cosmos.
When they arrive they meet a friendly giant witch (Oprah Winfrey), another magic woman (Mindy Kaling) who speaks in quotes and a wizard (Zach Galfianakis) who stands on one leg.
Ok, so Mrs W and I could be accused of an imagination failure and not being in touch with our inner child.
But the fact is, despite an obviously extravagant budget, A Wrinkle In Time is a grand case of style over substance and is nowhere near the Alice In Wonderland it tries to be.
What DuVernay forgets is that the real magic of Disney is in character-development not fairy dust.
Unfortunately, only Megan's is explored to any extent but it is never explained why she is capable of saving the universe.
Nevertheless, she is thrust against the powers of darkness and depression which threaten to subsume the world.
This strand is typical of a movie where plot holes abound. As we walked away from Nottingham Cineworld Screen 13, Mrs W simply rolled her eyes.
Enough said.

Reasons to watch: If you are a devotee of Disney fantasies and feel as if you have to...
Reasons to avoid: the plot offers very slim pickings 

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 4.5/10

Director quote - Ava DuVernay: "People who really loved me and are looking out for me told me, Ava, this book is unadaptable but when Disney came to me..."

The big question - Are some books unadaptable?

Share this post