So much can be said about the answers to the meaning of life. Since the beginning of humanity, people have had questions, and as mankind has advanced, there have been more questions about life, the universe, and everything. There also questions of other realms or alternate universes. Can we travel to far-away places on the other side of the galaxy through means we have not discovered yet?
“A Wrinkle in Time” is the new film directed by Ava DuVernay (Selma, 13th). Starring Storm Reid (12 Years a Slave, Sleight), Deric McCabe (Hold On, Stephanie), Levi Miller (Jasper Jones, Pan), Oprah Winfrey (The Butler, The Color Purple), Reese Witherspoon (Legally Blond, Walk the Line), Mindy Kaling (Inside Out, The Office), Chris Pine (Wonder Woman, Star Trek), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Belle, Concussion), Zach Galifianakis (Due Date, The Hangover), and Michael Pena (Crash, End of Watch), it is the story of Meg (Reid), a teenage girl who lives with her mother (Mbatha-Raw) and brother, Charles Wallace (McCabe). After her father (Pine) disappear without a trace while both her parents were researching multiple dimensions, she is having trouble adjusting on multiple fronts. On the fourth anniversary if him vanishing, Meg and her brother meet up with three spiritual beings named Mrs. Which (Winfrey), Mrs. Whatsit (Witherspoon), and Mrs. Who (Kaling) which take them to a new realm in hopes to get their father back.
There is a ton of CGI done in the film, but it is done correctly, with the look of some of the alternate realms looking beautiful. There are outdoor shots using real locations where the CGI is added in and it looks perfect. When it comes to the acting, Reid does well as the lead, showing the right amount of emotion in the right places. I see no nominations in a year from now, but it was still good.
This film started off strong, but about of the halfway point, it gets too complicated. There is no way that a five to ten-year-old will be able to follow this plot at all. There were many times where I wondered what direction the film was going in, and at an hour and fifty minutes long started to seem a little long at the end. I did enjoy the message the film tries to get across, but there was one point where one of the beings compared Meg to Gandhi and other important people in history that really had me asking questions. Due to the visuals, I am recommending this film, but BARELY as on network TV only.