Movie Review: ‘A Wrinkle in Time’

A Wrinkle in Time is the latest adaptation of the popular YA book by Madeleine L’Engle.

The movie is gorgeous, updated, and true to the spirit of the original, but you may want to avoid binge reading just before you go see it. A slightly fuzzy memory of the book details will serve you well.

For those not familiar with the book, the story revolves around Meg Murray, a mathematically gifted middle school student unaware of her own self-worth, and her young genius brother, Charles Wallace. Their father vanished four years ago under mysterious circumstances, and they still mourn his loss. On a dark and stormy night, the Murray family is visited by a mysterious Mrs. Whatsit, who will eventually introduce them to Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which and take Meg, Charles Wallace, and classmate Calvin on a fantastic adventure to find their missing father.

Director Ava Duvarnay and writer Jennifer Lee have taken liberties with the source material in order to adapt it for film. Some changes are very welcome, such as an intentionally more diverse cast and updated “words” for Mrs. Who to borrow. She even quotes Hamilton.

Some decisions may be a little more troubling for fans of the book. There are no centaurs and no Murray twins. The Happy Medium is now a man (played by Zach Galifianakis). None of that detracts from the basic story of A Wrinkle in Time, although it remains to be seen how they’d handle other books in the series without the twins.

The costumes on the three Mrs. are fantastic, and the cosplay possibilities are endless. The special effects are dazzling. The overall story works well, even if it is compressed. There are a few stiff acting scenes from minor characters, but Storm Reid does an amazing job as Meg.

Overall, this is a gorgeous family movie with an empowering message for young women. Just don’t expect it to be exactly like the book.

A Wrinkle in Time opens March 9th.