Somewhere around the latter part of my elementary school
days, I first read A Wrinkle in Time
by Madeleine L’Engle. Even then, I was quite the reader, so more than likely I
read it a few more times over the next several years. For most of my adult
life, I have proclaimed it to be a great book and one of my all-time favorites.
Cut to 2019. While scanning Netflix recently looking for
something to watch, I came across the latest Disney movie version and a few
days later had a brief conversation about the book and movie with my brother.
We both agreed that the book was wonderful, and though neither of us had seen
the movie, we both agreed it was probably terrible. (At least that was the
opinion of most of the reviews I had read.)
Cut to the present. I’ve re-read the book and watched the movie. Of course, I
have. What else does one do when you’ve talked about a book? You read it. And
then, you go and watch the movie to compare it to the book. Right? So, here’s
my (now) informed opinion on them both.
First, a word of caution. Reading a children’s book as an
adult is a bit tricky. (Probably the best way is to read it aloud to your own
child.) Be prepared. As is probably true for any book written for a young
audience, it has a pretty simple and straightforward plot, and as an adult, I
liked it, but I found myself wondering what had so captivated me about the book
when I had first read it.
I suppose as a pre-teen, I loved the adventure, the idea of
the kids saving the parent, the magic of jumping around the universe to
different planets, etc. Even though I couldn’t appreciate the wonder at my current age, I will say that I
maintain all my fond memories of the book and I’m sure that it played a large
part in fueling my love for reading that hasn’t been diminished by time. So,
despite my waning enthusiasm, I would still highly recommend the book to the
appropriate young audience.
And the movie? Well, again, not great, but still worth the
watch? I’m on the fence. Honestly, it suffers in comparison to the book (as
always, because “the book is always better” Can I get an Amen from all the
English teachers out there!), but it’s not as bad as some critics have rated
it. It is still a good tale of adventure with an upbeat ending, and there were
some great moments, but overall, there were some problems, as well.
First, although it follows the plot of the book, the
screenwriters felt the need to add several ridiculous scenes that do nothing
but distract. (Did we really need the Mean
Girls subplot? Or the silly tree/tornado scene?) The bigger crime (IMHO) is
the way they failed to stay true to the characters, and I don’t mean their
appearance. (Many people were bothered by the movie portraying the Murrys as a
multi-racial family. I was fine with the casting and the acting was solid, but
the writers made several characters into very different people, especially the
three ladies. Mrs. Whatsit (the nicest one in the book) becomes somewhat mean
and sarcastic. Mrs. Who (smartest, most knowledgeable) is now a moron who can’t
even speak on her own. Mrs. Which (most powerful, mysterious, and frightening)
is shown as a sweet, gentle, grandmotherly type. And her make-up and costumes?
Just bizarre, to say the least. And why make Charles Wallace an adopted child
in the movie?
Anyway, I could go on, but I won’t. As I said before, the
movie did have its moments, and the music and some of the visual effects were good, but I’m rarely satisfied with
movie adaptations of books I like. And by the way, how come no one ever told me
the book had 4 sequels? And now I’ve gone and gotten too old to truly
appreciate them!
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