A Wrinkle In Time Movie Review

Disney’s A Wrinkle In Time movie is a Sci-Fi movie for kids and the kid at heart. You can read my spoiler-free A Wrinkle In Time movie review down below. I share takeaways from this movie, as well as A Wrinkle In Time summary, and who should see this film. 

Photo Credit: Disney

A Wrinkle In Time Movie Review

I had the opportunity to attend the world premiere of Disney’s A Wrinkle In Time in LA a few weeks ago. {thank you Disney}  While in LA, myself along with 24 of my colleagues interviewed most of the cast from this movie, as well as the director (see links to those interviews below). This film is a different type of movie. It’s not Toy Story or the Incredibles. While it’s a Sci-Fi movie, it touches on a lot of issues our kids are dealing with in today’s society. It’s also not as funny, and you may just find a tear or two crawling down your face as emotions reek through your body because you have been Meg. 

What is A Wrinkle In Time movie about?

From visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.

Photo Credit: Disney

Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is her younger brother, Charles Wallace, but Meg has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of her father four years ago, which has left Meg devastated and her mother heartbroken, and while friends and faculty at school urge her to move on, Meg knows he is still alive. Before he vanished, Mr. Murry was tracking events in the cosmos when he discovered tessering, a wrinkling of time and space through which intergalactic travel is possible, but it is still an unproven theory, and one the scientific community regards with much skepticism.

Reese Witherspoon is Mrs. Whatsit, and Deric McCabe is Charles Wallace Murry in Disney’s A WRINKLE IN TIME.

One night, Charles Wallace, Meg, and a classmate, Calvin, meet three otherworldly visitors who have traveled to Earth with an important message for Meg: Her father’s discovery is, in fact, an extraordinary accomplishment, but a darkness has infiltrated the universe, and he is now in grave danger. Together they set off in search of Mr. Murry with Mrs. Which, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Whatsit as their guides, tessering to worlds beyond their imagination and confronting the powerful, evil energy face-to-face. But in order to save her father, Meg must first overcome her own flaws and insecurities and harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness…and it is a journey she must come to on her own.

Who Is This Movie For?

This movie is for kids. When Ava introduced the movie (we screened it twice while in L.A.), both times, she mentioned that A Wrinkle in Time movie is for kids and adults who are still kids at heart. When I first watched this movie, I watched it with an adult mind. And while I picked up some great messages, it didn’t connect with me. When I screened it for the second time, I took off my adult glasses and watched it with my big kid glasses. 

Rowan Blanchard is Veronica in Disney’s A WRINKLE IN TIME.

Throughout “A Wrinkle In Time”, several messages jumped out at me. 

• Self-Confidence. Throughout this film, Meg Murray, played by the talented Storm Reid deals with a lot of self-doubt and seems to lack confidence. 
• Absentee parent. Although the focus of the movie is not about what life is like growing up in a single parent home, it does shed some light on what kids go through when they are raised by one parent. In Meg’s case, her father just vanishes. Not only does she have to deal with being bullied by other kids, the teachers and leaders also spreading rumors about where her father went. We get to see her brother, Charles Wallace stand up to those teachers and put them in their place. 
• Bullying. Speaking of bullying, we get to see what our kids deal with in 2018. It’s unfortunate that bullying is spreading like wildfire, but it’s the reality of what kids go through. I have conversations quite often with my boys about this. Kids get picked on for being too fat, wearing the wrong shoes, off-brand clothes, race, hair color, and the list goes on and on. 
• Bullies are people too. Another theme that is shown in the movie is the bully itself. Hurt people hurt people. A bully picks on people because of their own fears and internal feelings. In A Wrinkle In Time, Meg is teased quite frequently by her next-door neighbor, Veronica (played by Rowan Blanchard). A scene later on in the movie shows Veronica dealing with her own ugly battles of not being thin enough. 
• Be A Warrior.  Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey) talks to Meg about how she is needed to be a warrior to save her father. Mrs. Which along with other Mrs. shed some light on the “it” and how people can be mean. When I think about all the things that are going on around us, in the news, politics, on our jobs, online, etc., the “it” is all around us. People are spreading darkness instead of light. Warriors are needed. People that can be kind-shed light on some of the darkness is what we need in 2018. 
• We all deserved to be love. Towards the end of the movie, when Charles Wallace is taken by the “it,” Meg reminds her brother that she deserves to be loved. This resonated with me and left me with this thought. Regardless of what we go through in life, challenging situations, dealing with bullies, pain, grief, poor, rich, different backgrounds, race, etc., we all deserved to be love. 
• Representation matters. A Wrinkle in Time represents so many of us. So many young girls have grown up as Meg Murray. A Wrinkle In Time breaks the glass ceiling of being your typical Hollywood and Disney film. Many young girls will find themselves on-screen, thanks to the careful casting by Ava.“As a woman, the story of a female heroine at the center of a spectacular journey really resonated with me.” Ava continues, “’A Wrinkle in Time’ is this beautiful stew of mystery, fantasy, adventure, science, romance, social commentary, and spirituality. It’s not often that we see girls at the center of a story— and certainly not girls of color—amid all these different worlds and planets. It really is something out of my wildest imagination.”

Photo Credit: Disney

Is A Wrinkle In Time for Teens?

No. Unless your teen is into Sci-Fi movies, or just love Disney movies period; then I would say no. My teens have shown no interest in A Wrinkle in Time. (they are 15). 

Is A Wrinkle In Time for Tweens?

Yes, depending on the age. Tweens around the age 11-13 will enjoy this movie, and I know my 12-year-old son is looking forward to seeing this movie. He also thinks Storm is cute, so there’s that. I feel he is that the age where he will be able to grasp the messages in this movie and walk around with more self-awareness and self-confidence. 

Here are my 12-year-old’s unapologetic thoughts on A Wrinkle In Time- 

“That movie was good, but it’s kinda messed up- I’m not gonna lie. It’s freaky. The little boy turns into a demon. And Mrs. WhatIt’s, she turns into a giant leaf that can fly, that was pretty cool. Storm is a very smart and intellectual woman, and I would be very happy if I could date her.”

Storm Reid is Meg Murry in Disney’s A WRINKLE IN TIME.

Is A Wrinkle In Time a good movie for little kids?

The ideal age for A Wrinkle in Time movie is between 7-12. However, if your 6-year-old saw Black Panther and was able to understand what was going on, they may be okay. Every child is different, and you know your child the best. There are some scenes in the movie where Charles Wallace turns into a brat. His mind is taken over by the “it,” and it comes across as a kid having a really bad tantrum. There is no violence, and I don’t remember hearing any swear words. This film does dig into emotions of self-confidence, dealing with bullies, and overcoming evil, but it’s directed in a way that kids will understand and get it. Sometimes we don’t give our kids enough credit- they understand more than what we think they do 

Is A Wrinkle In Time as good as Black Panther?

My son and husband asked me if this movie was as good as Black Panther? It’s hard to compare the two, since they are different genres and for different audiences. Both movies can hold their own and are making history because of the messages portrayed in these movies and the cast involved.

When does A Wrinkle In Time movie come out?

You can tesser to the nearest theater on March 9th, to watch Disney’s A Wrinkle In Time movie. {if you don’t understand what tesser means– you will after watching this movie}