A Wrinkle in Time (2003 film)

A Wrinkle in Time

A Wrinkle in Time DVD cover
Written by Susan Shilliday (teleplay)
Madeleine L'Engle (novel)
Directed by John Kent Harrison
Starring Katie Stuart
Gregory Smith
David Dorfman
Chris Potter
Kyle Secor
Seán Cullen
Sarah-Jane Redmond
Kate Nelligan
Alison Elliot
Alfre Woodard
Theme music composer Jeff Danna (film version)
Patric Caird (four-hour mini series cut)
Shawn Pierce (four-hour mini series cut)
Country of origin United States
Canada
Original language(s) English
Production
Producer(s) Jolee B. Lovick
Jordan Kerner
Cinematography Jon Joffin
Philip Linzey
Editor(s) Sue Maggi
Running time 124 minutes
Production company(s) Dimension Television
Fireworks Entertainment
The Kerner Entertainment Company
Distributor Walt Disney Television
Release
Original release
  • April 24, 2003 (2003-04-24)

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 A Wrinkle in Time was produced by multiple Canadian production companies to be distributed in the United States by Disney. The TV movie was directed by John Kent Harrison, from a teleplay written by Susan Shilliday. Although footage from the project 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.[1]

Plot summary

From left: David Dorfman as Charles Wallace Murry, Katie Stuart as Meg Murry and Gregory Smith as Calvin O'Keefe on the planet Uriel.

Meg Murry (Katie Stuart) is having a difficult time. Her father, astrophysicist Dr. Jack Murry (Chris Potter), has mysteriously disappeared. Her youngest brother, Charles Wallace (David Dorfman), 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 (Munro Chambers, Thomas Chambers), or even with herself.

Into this unhappy situation comes a stranger, the mysterious, weirdly dressed Mrs. Whatsit (Alfre Woodard), and her friends Mrs. Who (Alison Elliot) and Mrs. Which (Kate Nelligan). They take Meg, Charles Wallace, and their new friend Calvin O'Keefe (Gregory Smith) 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 (Seán Cullen).

Once they reach Camazotz, however, it is up to Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace 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 Wallace is seduced away from his family by IT's agent, the Man with Red Eyes (Kyle Secor), and thus comes under the control of IT. Dr. Murry manages to tesser himself, Meg and Calvin, away from Camazotz, but Charles Wallace is left behind, trapped in the mind of IT. Angry with her father, Calvin and herself for leaving Charles Wallace behind, Meg is cared for by the sightless and motherly Aunt Beast (Ellen Dubin) on the planet Ixchel and argues with Mrs. Which about returning to rescue her brother. Returning alone to Camazotz, Meg must find a quality in herself—love—to free Charles Wallace, and possibly free the planet Camazotz as well.

Cast

Reception

A Wrinkle in Time received generally negative reviews from film critics. In a Q&A with MSNBC/Newsweek Entertainment reporter Melinda Henneberger, author L'Engle said of the film "I have glimpsed it... I expected it to be bad, and it is."[2]

Release history

A Wrinkle in Time 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".[3]

Originally produced as a television miniseries, A Wrinkle in Time 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.[1]

The film was released on DVD, on November 16, 2004. The special features included deleted scenes, a "behind the scenes" segment, and a "very rare" interview with Madeleine L'Engle who discusses the novel.[4]

The home video rights to the film have since been obtained by Echo Bridge Home Entertainment, which has released the title both as a standalone DVD and as part of several family film bundles.

References

  1. 1 2 "A Wrinkle in Time DVD Review". UltimateDisney.com. November 2004. Archived from the original on 30 December 2006. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
  2. ↑ "I Dare You: Madeleine L'Engle on God, 'The Da Vinci Code' and aging well". www.newsweek.com. 2006-05-07. Retrieved 2009-01-08.
  3. ↑ "News: Announcements and Press". madeleinelengle.com. Crosswicks Ltd. 2005-03-31. Archived from the original on 12 December 2006. Retrieved 2006-12-10.
  4. ↑ A Wrinkle in Time (DVD ed.). November 16, 2004. ISBN 0-7888-4336-2.

External links

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