A Wrinkle In Time
Thirteen-year-old Meg Murry struggles to adjust to school and home life ever since her father Alex, a well-renowned scientist, disappeared while he was studying astrophysics. Both Meg and her mother Kate believe he solved the question of humanity’s existence and theorize he was teleported to another world.
During the night, Meg’s younger brother Charles Wallace welcomes a stranger named Mrs. Whatsit into the Murry house. She mentions the tesseract, a type of space-travel Alex was working on, is real, and leaves soon after. The next day, Meg’s classmate, Calvin O’Keefe, joins them to go to the house of Mrs. Who, another strange woman who only speaks in quotes and seems to know Charles Wallace.
When Calvin joins Meg and Charles Wallace in their backyard, Mrs. Whatsit appears with Mrs. Who and another woman, Mrs. Which, the oldest and appears as a giant. The three reveal themselves as astral travelers, and lead Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace through a tesseract taking them to a distant planet named Uriel.
Mrs. Whatsit transforms into a beautiful green creature, and takes the children up into the atmosphere, where they see a dark shadow known as The IT. Mrs. Which tells Meg her father’s experiments resulted in his being captured by The IT, a malevolent entity plotting to take over the universe. Gaining the women’s trust, Meg and the others tesser to another planet where a seer known as the Happy Medium resides.
The Happy Medium shows them Meg’s father is trapped on a planet called Camazotz. Mrs. Which also explains The IT represents all of the greed, anger, pride, selfishness, and low selfesteem in the world. Showing them examples of these characteristics, Meg learns that while Calvin is popular at school, he is abused by his father and her bully at school Veronica Kiley is extremely self-conscious. The three Mrs. propose they travel back to Earth to regroup, but Meg’s refusal messes with the tesseract, and they travel to Camazotz instead.
Upon arriving on Camazotz, Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit, and Mrs. Who are unable to stay because Camazotz’s evil is stronger than their light. Before they depart, they bestow gifts upon Meg; these include Mrs. Who’s glasses, the knowledge of Meg’s faults, and the command to never separate.
The trio treks through Camazotz’s hazardous traps before reaching a crowded beach where they meet the IT’s bodyguard, Red. He offers the starving children food and tells them Alex is safe and happy. He reveals to them there is nothing to worry about here, but Calvin and Meg realize something is wrong when Charles Wallace proclaims all of the food tastes like sand. When Red starts repeating the times tables, Charles Wallace is hypnotized by the rhythm, allowing IT to take full control of his mind.
When Meg and Calvin pursue Charles Wallace, they find themselves in a seemingly empty room. Using Mrs. Who’s glasses, Meg finds an invisible staircase leading to the room where her father is being kept prisoner. After bringing him out of captivity, IT’s power allows Charles Wallace to forcefully drag them to finally meet IT. As Calvin and Meg fall under IT’s power, Alex opens another tesser and prepares to leave with the children, abandoning Charles Wallace. Meg refuses and projects out of the tesser herself, leaving her alone. When she confronts Charles Wallace, she realizes IT uses deception and hate to fuel IT’s power. Using her love for her brother and the knowledge she is imperfect, Meg frees Charles Wallace from the control of IT and releases the control IT has on Camazotz. The three Mrs. return and tell Meg her time is here to tesser for herself.
Returning home, Meg thanks the women for their help and for rescuing her father and they part ways. The film ends with the Murry family celebrating a joyful reunion and Calvin going home to confront his abusive father.
Classification: PG