A Wrinkle in Time is a movie based on the 1962 novel with the same name and is directed by Ava DuVernay. It tells the story of Meg and her brother who go on an adventure to rescue her trapped father through tessering, a phenomenon which allows you travel between time and space and go to wonderful places . It stars Storm Reid, Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling, Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Levi Miller and Deric McCabe.

Being honest, the trailers really didn’t impress me, I wasn’t anticipating this movie at all. Now having seen the movie I can say that this movie was mostly what I expected it to be with a few surprises. This is a weird movie not story wise but in pacing and writing. With a run time of less than 2 hours this movie goes for it, sometimes without even explaining. The story just starts so quickly it’s like it’s racing to get everything in the run time. Calvin played by Miller literally says “I don’t know why I’m here but something told me I had to be, right here, at this spot.” that something is the script.

The second act was really messy, they were literally going from one place to another because the script demanded it. At the end and everyone says this, there’s a huge amount of screen taken away from the main character and given to a young actor who doesn’t quite deliver on what the role asks him to do. This really brings the movie down because it’s really corny and cheesy and the movie is begging you to take it seriously.

In the first couple of scenes we meet Meg, a bright young student who is lost and doesn’t know what to do except for shutting out everyone due to her father’s disappearance. When all the crazy stuff starts happening she just stands there staring emotionless. That being said I think Reid did a wonderful job with Meg, she’s one of the best parts of the movie. I actually enjoyed the movie for what it is although the low expectations helped. The movie is like a mix between a Disney Channel movie and The Wizard of Oz. Badly written but visually pleasing and has heartwarming moments. I can see this movie gaining some sort of status with the kids of today.

Once I got a grip of how the story was going to flow I accepted it and the movie became more enjoyable. The performances were good for the most part. Chris Pine and Gugu Mbatha-Raw play a convincing couple and they provide some of the more emotional scenes which worked really well. They were one of my favorite aspects of the movie, in fact the whole family minus the kid were really believable and heartwarming. The trio of Kaling, Winfrey and Witherspoon was good, Oprah gave a good performances and provides a lot of wisdom and charm, Kaling was entertaining but her character was a bit 2-dimensional. Witherspoon was a bit annoying not the actress herself but her portrayal as the cliched character who actually means well but comes off as mean.

The best thing about this movie is that is it has something to say and it says it really well. The theme of self-love and accepting our faults is really well utilized within the plot. The movie shows the journey of how Meg finally accepts herself with all of her faults and near the end there is a beautiful scene with Meg alone and it was one of the strongest parts of the movie. I’d go so far as to say that the scene and the wonderful inclusion of those important themes actually save the movie. The only complaint I have with the ending is that although we know what happens to Meg and her family, the movie dumps Calvin’s character he’s literally there for serving as the love-interest. I would’ve loved to actually see more to flesh out of his character. I say this because although the character is badly written, Miller brings a lot of charm to his portrayal.

In the end I was actually glad I watched this movie. I would highly suggest this for children and preteens this movie could really teach them about self love which is important. I really suggest watching this if you’re an adult, just  watch with low expectations and if you see past the major flaws there lies a visually pleasing movie with an important and beautiful message.

RATING: D+