A Wrinkle in Time
- Apr 4, 2018
- 2 min read
A Wrinkle in Time was one of my favorite books when I was younger. The book had everything that I could ask for as a young reader. The characters, situations, and overall science fiction themes made me want to live the the world of the book. Reading about children close to my age who were solving incomprehensible scientific quandaries while at the same time fighting the entity of darkness itself inspired me to work harder in school and to question more about my surroundings. I felt as though if those characters existed in real life they would be my best friends. With all of those feelings and memories, hearing that Disney was releasing a new A Wrinkle in Time movie, I was excited. Sadly much of the magic was lost in this adventure.
The key strength of A Wrinkle in Time and many other movies targeting younger demographics recently is their focus on empowering the next generation. Star Wars The Last Jedi, Pacific Rim Uprising, and Coco all go out of their way to show children that even in stories that have adults as the main characters, the future belongs to the youngest among us. The characters of A Wrinkle in Time are primarily motivated by a drive to rescue their father. A man who is by all counts well respected and admired for his scientific discoveries needs to be rescued by children who are still trying to understand just where they belong in the world. This message is designed to resonate with its children viewers, but other age groups may notice that this single focus fails to contribute to making a strong overarching story.
Youth being the strength of humanity and being the only ones who can fight the darkness is well hammered home in A Wrinkle in Time. In every conversation between characters, we are reminded that no matter how powerful or intelligent the adults of the world are, it is the young girl Meg, and only Meg, who can save the world and her father. The audience is constantly reminded that Meg and her companions are gifted with skills that make them better suited for the challenges they face than anyone else, but we are never shown these gifts. Many times we are told about Meg’s brains and Calvin’s diplomatic ability and the audience is made to know that these characters are special. While Meg does at time solve problems, it is immediately followed up with a comment about how special she is. For Calvin there are no clear moments where we see his gifts at all.
This inability to show and having the audience constantly be told what we are supposed to think about the main characters is what prevents A Wrinkle in Time from being the inspirational story it should be. Undeveloped characters aside, there are beautiful scenes to behold and lead actors who try to give more to their characters that the story itself does. Children will be able to recognize the message that they are special and that they hold a key place in the future. For all other viewers, the magic promised is sorely lacking.
4.5/10
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