Bridge To Terabithia (merged) - Discussion

Re: Bridge To Terabithia (merged) - Discussion

I'm so pleased to see the favorable critical response to this film - I think it's at 87% fresh over at the Rotten Tomatoes tomatometer, last I saw anyway. This is just one of those fantastic movies that gets better after you see it and think about it a while, does that make sense? Because the more I consider it, the more impressed I am with how they handled the potentially tricky subject matter, and with how they kept true to the spirit of the book within the film. (For example, I loved how they didn't go out of their way to push the fact that Jess's life is difficult because his family is poor, but I liked how it was always a background concern that infused the characters in the family, and their reactions to things.)

On another topic, I also read The Giver for a children's lit class, and I adored that book beyond the telling of it. I wonder if they'd ever make a film adaptation of that? Or if that would even work. I'm not sure.

Re: Bridge To Terabithia (merged) - Discussion

Spoiler, adapting the Giver
Warning Spoiler! Click to show

Adam

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Adam, I interpreted The Giver similarly. However, the author seems to disavow such an interpretation, leaving me further frustrated and perplexed with the ending.

Abby - it's good to hear it's getting good critical press. It also did well on opening weekend. Hopefully it has legs.

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Just saw this tonight and posted my review in that thread.

Wow. Kind of slow at first, which was a good thing. I did read James Berardinelli's review prior to this so I think I went in with reasonable expectations and not expecting nor wanting Narnia or Potter. What I did get was a very thoughtful, meaningful film. Sweet, and such a great message.

But dangit, I didn't see this coming. Going to use spoilers anyway just in case some poor soul accidentally reads this thread who hasn't seen it yet:


Warning Spoiler! Click to show

I kept telling myself, surely some magical event wlll happen or they'll wake up and this won't have ever happened. But it did happen. Blew me away. It actually took me awhile to recover. I was madder than hell, then turned to sadness & some tears.

Powerful film that is honest and brave. A few times the score was somewhat close to Narnia's but that's a good thing. It was effective and pretty. Wouldn't mind owning it...

I scored it a 9/10 in my review but even now as I type I feel I should make it higher. Perhaps a second viewing is in order.

A side note, I really loved Walt Disney's new intro or whatever it's called. A nice change that looked elegant and magical at the same time.

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Re: The Giver ->
Warning Spoiler! Click to show

About Terabithia - What follows is FULL of spoilers, so skip ahead now if you haven't seen it.

Saw the film at 10:30. Still shaking from it. The book destroyed me when I first read it as a kid. I thought for sure, with all the years and experiences and real loss than I have accumulated over the years I'd be better prepared for it this time. I'm just as emotionally frayed, if not worse. That awful clenching in my gut now has all of the relevance of the real deaths that have occupied time there. The religious element, which never really hit me when I read the book as a kid, struck me hard to the core this time. When Jesse's denial finally shatters and he shoves his sister to the ground and takes off into the woods, it further crumbled my already tenuous composure. But when his dad finds him and he asks him whether Leslie's going to hell since she didn't go to church I just lost it. The utter honesty that Robert Patrick brings to his answer just opened the floodgates further. Truly one of the standout performances of Patrick's career, his farmer here is every bit as good as his own in Walk the Line was cruel. He might not shower Jesse with affection, but he expresses his love in quiet but important ways.

If I had any problem with the film (other than the CG which went just a little overboard at times), it was the decision to place the film squarely in the present. I read the book before iPods and blackberries, and it was written before walkmans and gameboys. Including them early on destroyed the timelessness of the setting a bit. I also wish it had been made more clear that Jesse's family was merely one of the poorest of a poorer than average community. It would have better established the childrens' freedom and drive to play in the woods rather than in the living room. A big deal was made of Leslie's family's affluence in the book, and in the movie it feels like Jesse's the exception, not Leslie. I'm also not sure a family like the Aarons would have cable. One of the things that struck me when I read the book was the way that Leslie addressed her parents by their first names instead of mom and dad. It would have been nice to see that carried over to the film, as support for the isolation she feels from them.

I'm a bitter, cynical person by nature. The one area of my soul that hasn't hardened is my affinity toward children. Nothing shakes me more than the death or abuse of a child, and the manner in which Leslie dies here is particularly brutal because of the emotions it leaves behind. How long will Jesse be haunted by his guilt for not inviting her along — or not being there to pull her out? How will the connection between the art museum and Leslie's death blemish what he loves? How will Leslie's parents come to terms with the loss of a child they loved but rarely devoted enough time to really know? My heart aches for every one of them, and they're not even real! There were audible sobs throughout the theater for the last half hour. It a heartwrenching, brutal story but a honest and realistic one as well. Kids put themselves in situations like this all the time, and sometimes shit just happens. The greater good comes in engaging that pain and sadness rather that shuffling it away into the shadows and hoping it never happens to someone close to you.

I tried writing my review before coming on her but I just couldn't do it. It's still too raw for me. And how do I rate it? There are obvious and prominent flaws, but no film in the last two years has connected with me like this, stirring both my brain and my heart. The last film that came close was Children of Men, and that was my top film of 2006.

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Spoilers below:


I felt for Jess as well because I didn't want him to live in a world that didn't include Leslie in it. Hell, a world without Leslie was a dimmer one as the impact of her untimely passing rippled throughout the people whose lives she touch in her own special way. The amount of guilt Jess felt for what happened to her had to be a heavy burden to bear for someone so young and without the perspective of age and experience. But when bad things happen, with enough time and compassion, Jess showed enough resilience to rebuild and improve on things important to him and his own corner of the world.

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Excellent, Excellent post Patrick. Wow, that sums it up right there. I really want to get in another viewing of Terabithia.

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Yeah, summed up in a nutshell. It's a great coming-of-age story, but a really really brutal one. I just have always had more trouble with children dying - in fiction or reality - much more so than adults. The ending of both the book and the movie is optimistic, though I think they could have ended it with him taking his sister across the bridge. I like to think that he took a picture of the bridge and mailed it to Leslie's parents as a postcard. Somehow, as writers, I think they'd appreciate both the metaphor and the sentiment.

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Jess would have drawn the bridge, and sent it to her parents.

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I just saw this last weekend with my wife. We both knew nothing about it. We had just seen the trailer and she thought it looked cute.
What a great movie. We were both caught off guard obviously.

First of all I loved the detailed atmosphere they created in school. I have spent years trying to forget my miserable middle school years, but this movie did great job of bringing me back there. The cruelty was a bit too real.

Does anybody else think that AnnaSophia Robb is going to be a huge star? It's tough for child stars to find success as adults, but here's hoping she can follow in the footsteps of, say, Natalie Portman. Robb sure has an energy that lit up the screen (for lack of a better term). She reminded me of Portman in "Beautiful Girls" or "The Professional" with that cool "wise beyond her years" vibe.

I don't watch a lot of movies starring middle schoolers, but this movie had some of the worst and best child acting I've ever seen - both ends of the spectrum. Anybody else notice that?

I think however they missed an opportunity at the end. I really expected to see Leslie as the Queen, when Jess crossed the bridge with May Belle. If Terabithia is in Jess's imagination, then why can't Leslie be there to be his queen? Seeing Leslie one last time, would have left us with an even greater sense of optimism, as it would have been showing how she will always be there with him.

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AnnaSophia was good, but I think the real unsung hero in the film is Josh Hutcherson. So much of what we feel for Leslie is what his performance projects onto her. This is the second film he's starred in that has just barreled through all my defenses, the first being Little Manhattan. The way he internalizes so much of what Jesse experiences is to his very real credit. Everything after Leslie dies is just really masterful work, as Jesse works through the various stages of grief. The way his performance increasingly acknowledges Leslie's death even as he's still in denial is a feat many adult actors would have trouble pulling off.

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Agree 100% Adam. My thoughts exactly. Josh was awesome and we really had to see this film thru his eyes...Wonderful stuff. Can't wait to see this again soon.

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I agree. This actress has the most charisma I've seen in a long time. She has a Dakota Fanning's vibe, without the freakiness. Just look at her smile when she's running against the boys. There's an absolute sense of joy conveyed there that's almost contagious.

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wife and i saw this the other day.
what a devastating film.

i knew someone dies but didnt know who and didnty guess right as to who it would be.

just an amazing film.
all young people should see this as required viewing.

too bad about how it was marketed.
no one knows what this movie really is unless you are familar with the subject beforehand.

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I saw this wednesday and was surprised at just how good it is. I didn't know much about it and never even knew there was a book, so I wasn't prepared for the impact of the death of the character. It hit me more than I expected because I really got to know and care for the characters in the movie, thanks to the performances of the actors. I think I liked this more than Pan's Labyrinth. Great movie, can't wait for the DVD.

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Took the family out 2nite for a movie and saw Bridge to Terabithia. My 2nd viewing and my kids 1st time.

I loved it even more and have raised my initial rating. Still heart wrenching but so well done and a beautiful film. Kids loved it and yes they used the napkins I brought for that moment, as did I.

I think Terabithia will evolve into a family classic.

9.75/10

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Yikes! Didn't see that coming. Jeeze Louise.

I guess it worked though because I was fighting back the tears the rest of the way.

What a surprising little movie.

Props on the editing which I thought was superb.

The Blu-ray looks quite nice.

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I really enjoyed the movie and was glad it wasnt just another kids in a fantasy world movie.
Great performances by the kids!
I was balling by the end.

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I also enjoyed this movie. I watched it twice. I had completely forgotten, but I started reading this book for a class back when it first was published, when the teacher came in one day, said we weren't allowed to read it for the class anymore and made us all give back our copies. I never knew if it was due to the rather mild religious themes or the tragedy, but some spineless parent went into a fit about it and forced their prejudice on the whole class.

Anyway, for those who enjoyed Terabithia, I suggest seeing The Man in the Moon. It is a bit more mature than this and while there is no literal fantasy, it has definite figurative fantasy to it. Plus, while Terabithia is a nicely made movie, it can't hold a candle to the artfulness of The Man in the Moon. Some of you know what a fan I am of it, but I haven't mentioned it in quite a while and it is highly likely anyone who enjoyed Terabithia will also enjoy it. Just be aware, the characters are a bit older and like I said, it has more mature subject matter.

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MY anniversary present this year was the DVD and an autographed movie poster (by the actors playing Jess & Aaron).

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I hope it was with your wife and the kids were not watching!!!

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Only a hand full of movies have ever choked me up, and this was one of them (I get a little choked up thinking about it now). Not at all what I expected. It turned out to be a really good movie.

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I didn't sense any Christian themes in the movie either, but then again, I wasn't looking for them either. The only sense of religion I got was the church scene and I think that was put in to show that not everyone views the Bible the same way or looks at religion the same way.

While I have no problem with the third act, I wonder if it would have been better if Jess and Leslie had become high school sweethearts, gotten married, had kids and one day took their kids back to the woods and shown them Teribithia.

The acting by all of the actors were uniformly excellent, especially Josh and Anna Sophia. Josh is one of the better up and coming actors today and Anna Sophia is in the vein of Dakota Fanning in that she acts mature beyond her years.

A pleasant surprise from Disney. 3 1/2 stars out of 4.

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Warning Spoiler! Click to show That moral question isn't heavy-handed in the book or the movie, but I daresay it's central to both. And there's no question which side Paterson came down upon.

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that idea never crosssed my mind.
it would not have been a better way to end the movie, that isnt what the movie was about.

changing the ending to be a hapy ending like that makes it a different movie.

so no, not better but a completely different mvie, altogether

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This is my second favorite movie of the year so far. I watched it back when it was in the theater and I never cry at the movie theater but when I finally watched it on Blu-Ray, I let it all out.

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I grew up in England so I never read the book in school like so many others did. Before this was advertised, I was not even remotely aware of its existence and neither was my wife aware of it.

Both my wife and I and our 3 kids are big fantasy film lovers (LOTR, Narnia, Harry Potter etc) so after seeing the trailers on TV and in other movies, this film was on our "to see" list.

When we finally went to see it, it was what none of us expected. I came out of the film loving it... a 10/10 film. My wife was disappointed at first, only because she was expecting a fantasy film. When the blu-ray was coming out, I bought it at the earliest possible moment, days before its release and we all watched it at home. It was only then that my wife saw just how good this film is.

My kids are 12, 10 and 8. They all loved it on second viewing.

Folks, this is not an adventure or fantasy film. This film is a "real life" drama of two kids trying to cope in their worlds. This film deals with so many real and complex issues that children have to deal with these days and since these two kids were in the same class, it was inevitable that they would find each other and become the best of friends.

I can not even read a review of this film without becoming teary eyed. The impact that it had is something that will stick with me for years to come.

The thing that makes this movie brilliant is not just the script. If this amazing script had been left in the hands of lesser child actors/actresses, it would not have been the same, not even close. The supporting cast did an amazing job in their roles including the other kids in the school.

Folks, I have to clap wholeheartedly for the 3 main characters in the film, Jesse Aarons, Leslie Burke, and May Belle Aarons (played by Josh Hutcherson, AnnaSophia Robb, and Bailee Madison respectively). The performances were completely real. I have to give credit to the director of the film. They must have truly been looking for the right kids to play these roles and I can only imagine the audition process involved. The performances make us identify 100% with them . These are all issues that we may have had to deal with at various points in our young (and older) lives and the fact that we identify with them only makes the pain more shocking and harder to deal with.

With 4 months left in 2007, in my mind I can safely bet that this will be the best film of the year, at least for me. As for the disk, both the audio and video are top notch. I am watching it on a 100" screen on a 6.1 setup.