A Wrinkle in Time is a television film based on the children's fantasy novel of the same name by Madeleine L'Engle.
In 2003, a television adaptation of the film was produced by multiple Canadian production companies to be distributed in the United States by Disney. It was directed by John Kent Harrison, from a teleplay written by Susan Shilliday. Although footage from it appeared in a trailer on Spy Kids DVD and VHS copies as early as 2001, broadcast of the completed film was delayed several times; it finally aired in the United States on May 10, 2004, on ABC.
Plot[]
Meg Murry is having a difficult time. Her father, astrophysicist Dr. Jack Murry, has mysteriously disappeared. Her youngest brother, Charles, a genius, is teased and belittled and thought to be stupid because he does not talk to anyone but family. Meg does not get along with her peers, teachers, her 10-year-old twin brothers, or even with herself.
Into this unhappy situation comes a stranger, the mysterious, weirdly dressed Mrs. Whatsit, and her friends, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which. They take Meg, Charles, and their new friend, Calvin O'Keefe, via tesseract to other planets, preparing the children for a mission to rescue Dr. Murry from the malevolent "IT" on the planet Camazotz. Along the way they ride on the back of a beautiful winged creature (the transformed Mrs. Whatsit), learn about the shadow of tangible evil known as the Black Thing, and visit the Happy Medium.
Once they reach Camazotz, however, it is up to Meg, Calvin, and Charles to face the dangers of CENTRAL Central Intelligence, aided only by each other and a pair of Mrs. Who's glasses. They do find and rescue Dr. Murry, but Charles is seduced away from his family by the Man With the Red Eyes, one of IT's shapes, and thus comes under IT's control. Dr. Murry manages to tesser himself, Meg, and Calvin away from Camazotz, but Charles is left behind, trapped in IT's mind. Angry with Dr. Murry, Calvin, and herself for leaving Charles behind, Meg is cared for by the sightless and motherly Aunt Beast on the planet Ixchel, and argues with Mrs. Which about returning to rescue Charles. Returning alone to Camazotz, she must find a quality in herself—love—to free him, and possibly free Camazotz as well.
Cast[]
- Katie Stuart as Meg Murry
- Gregory Smith as Calvin O'Keefe
- David Dorfman as Charles Wallace Murry
- Chris Potter as Dr. Jack Murry
- Kyle Secor as "IT" and "Hank", Jack's research partner
- Sean Cullen as the Happy Medium
- Sarah-Jane Redmond as Dr. Dana Murry
- Kate Nelligan as Mrs. Which, the witch
- Alison Elliott as Mrs. Who the talking lady
- Alfre Woodard as Mrs. Whatsit, the lady with the clothes
- Munro Chambers and Thomas Chambers as Sandy and Denny Murry, the twins
L'Engle's review[]
In a Q&A with MSNBC/Newsweek Entertainment reporter Melinda Henneberger, L'Engle said of the film "I have glimpsed it...I expected it to be bad, and it is."
Release history[]
The film was premiered at the Toronto Children's Film Festival in 2003. There it won the festival's 2003 Best Feature Film Award, as chosen "by Sprockets audiences".
Originally produced as a television miniseries, the film was at one point intended to air on two nights in February 2002. It was postponed, however, rescheduled for February 2003, postponed again, cut to 128 minutes, and aired in a single three-hour block on May 10, 2004.
The film was released on DVD, on November 16, 2004, ISBN 0-7888-4336-2. The special features included deleted scenes, a "behind the scenes" segment, and a "very rare" interview with Madeleine L'Engle who discusses the novel.
Gallery[]
External links[]
- A Wrinkle in Time (2003 film) on Wikipedia
- A Wrinkle in Time at AllRovi
- Madeleine L'Engle's Official Site
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