A Ring of Endless Light (film)

A Ring of Endless Light
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Written by	Madeleine L'Engle Marita Giovanni Bruce Graham
Directed by	Greg Beeman
Starring	Mischa Barton Ryan Merriman Jared Padalecki
Theme music composer	Phil Marshall
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
Production
Running time	88 minutes
Release
Original network	Disney Channel
Original release	August 23, 2002 (2002-08-23)

A Ring of Endless Light is a 2002 Disney Channel Original Movie based on the Madeleine L'Engle book of the same name filmed on location in Australia, and starring Mischa Barton in the main lead role. It is one of two Disney adaptations of novels by Madeleine L'Engle, the other being A Wrinkle in Time. In the U.S. it was aired on August 23, 2002.

When 16-year-old Vicky Austin, her sister Suzy and little brother Rob visit their grandfather on Seven Bay Island, Vicky faces several unexpected challenges. Her beloved grandfather, the retired Reverend Eaton, seems to be seriously ill, but tries to pretend that nothing is wrong. Vicky met the rich but emotionally troubled Zachary Gray the previous summer, and he reappears to renew the acquaintance. Another boy, 17-year-old Adam Eddington, recruits Vicky to help him with a research project, working with a dolphin called Basil. Vicky discovers she can communicate telepathically with the dolphin and his mate - and possibly with Adam as well.

Vicky copes as best she can with the increasing stress placed on her by her grandfather's illness, especially once he admits to her that he is dying of leukemia. In turn, Reverend Eaton tries to encourage Vicky with his gentle wisdom and appreciation of her talents, especially her writing, in marked contrast to her parents' long distance expectations that she study science.

A rivalry develops between Zach and Adam, which becomes an uneasy alliance as the three teenagers seek to expose the illegal use of drift nets, which trap and kill dolphins, by a ship owned by Zach's father. Eventually they succeed, saving their dolphin friend (and Adam himself) from the deadly net just as Vicky's grandfather arrives with the Coast Guard. The excitement is too much for Reverend Eaton, however, who dies soon afterward. He leaves behind a new blank book for Vicky in which to write her poetry. Vicky decides to follow her heart and her talents rather than her parents' plans for her.

The television adaptation is considerably "lighter" in tone than the novel A Ring of Endless Light. In the book, a family friend has just died while trying to save the life of Vicky's troubled friend Zachary Gray. Shortly thereafter, a baby dolphin dies, a marine biologist of Vicky's acquaintance is nearly killed in an accident, and a sick girl suffers a seizure and dies in Vicky's arms. In the film, Vicky's grandfather is dying and some dolphins are threatened by illegal fishing nets, but that is about the extent of the death and impending death Vicky sees around her. The fishing nets storyline, which does not appear in the novel, is standard Disney fare in that it involves young characters behaving heroically in an adventure setting. Its climax, in which one of the major characters is tangled in a net and nearly drowns, echoes a similar scene in the Disney Channel movie The Thirteenth Year.