Review of Bridge to Terabithia (2007) by Theduckman — 16 Oct 2013

This was an English Task.

The fantasy film, “The Bridge to Terabithia” is about two young outsiders who use the power of imagination and their unique bond to create a world of their own. Filled with fantastic creatures and free of bullies and the pressures and loneliness of the real world, Terabithia provides a refuge from the sorrows of the real world created by their combined imagination and faith.

Jess dreams of shaking his "loser" image by winning an annual foot race at school. Times are hard on the family farm, and Jess trains for the race in an old pair of sneakers held together by little more than duct tape and faith. But his dream is “dashed” when Leslie, the new girl in school, speeds past him and rest of the pack in the "boys only" race. Despite this rocky start, the two discover they have a lot in common and become fast friends. Both are outsiders, but they are also blessed with rich imaginations and creative talent—Jess for drawing and Leslie for telling stories. Over the course of the school year, they imagine an enchanted world of their own—a magical kingdom in the woods only accessible by swinging across a stream on a rope. They call their land Terabithia, and as king and queen, they fight against the Dark Master and his creatures.

But their fantastical reveries are far from empty daydreaming; they prove to be therapeutic and instructive. Each adventure they complete and every troll or "hairy vulture" they vanquish represents a real life adversary or hurdle. The film explores the power of imagination and fantasy to help us understand and cope with the challenges and complexities of real life. They even learn that more often than not, the best weapon is kindness, and the most effective way to eliminate an enemy is to turn him or her into a friend. The film also explores the positive power of imagination. In order to create a better world, we must first be able to envision one, and more importantly, believe in it. Is it any wonder Jesus extolled the "faith of a child"?

In a particularly lovely scene, Jess’ family takes Leslie to church, something she has never done before. Her "first impressions" of God and Jesus are heart-warming and revelatory. One life lesson that Jess and Leslie's adventures do not prepare them for is how to cope with death. Yet, even in Terabithia, death is part of the cycle of life—even sudden, senseless death. The Author has defended the death as an important and realistic element in the story. Seeing how the characters both cope with and heal from this tragedy is revealing and comforting. Although this may be a story filled with fantasy, it is primarily a story about dealing with real life struggles, including coping with loss.

The problem with “The Bridge to Terabithia” is the aforementioned (a fancy word I found) make-believe. They’re showing us the world through the eyes of these kids, so when they start imagining that they’re in their own fantastical world of Terabithia; we see what they’re imagining in their heads as if it’s real. That means a little bit of CGI. Not a lot, but enough to be annoying. Fantasy beasts just don’t fit a film that’s otherwise so wonderfully rooted in the soil of reality, and those few sequences when they’re forced upon us don’t really grab our attention very much. There’s never any question of whether or not their appearance is merely a product of the kid’s imagination, so watching Jesse fight a giant squirrel isn’t the most interesting part of the film. There’s no sense of danger or doubt about the outcome. It’s just doesn’t grab your attention.

Describing the wonders of scuba diving in a school essay, Leslie writes, "I didn’t have enough air to see everything I wanted to, and that just made it more special." In a way, this line also describes a central message of the film: We should cherish the time we’re given and the people and experiences in our lives, because we never know how long it will last. Bridge to Terabithia is an endlessly imaginative and deeply compassionate film about building bridges between people and forging bonds—with fathers, teachers, neighbours and even bullies. Sometimes, as they say in the film, all you need to do is believe and "keep your mind wide open.