Customer Reviews

Bridge to Terabithia (Widescreen)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I remember reading Katherine Paterson's book to my youngest - her brother was way too old and sophisticated for "that sort of thing" (but I suspect he listened in!) Years later, I reread it just for me, and have since passed it along to my grandchildren. There are so many really good messages in there - without being preachy or talking down to children (of any age!)

When I heard that the story was being made into a movie, I wondered what they would do with it and was a bit concerned that the heart of this tender tale would not be well served by Hollywood. Well, I needn't have worried - director Gabor Csupo did a skillful job of driving this one and keeping it faithfully on the road from start to finish. I confess I had not heard of most of the young actors but that turned out to be a definite advantage - for me, they really did become the characters they were portraying. Here is a kid who doesn't fit in at school and, as the only son (with four sisters) at home, doesn't seem to feel any real connection with his father either. Not a happy time of this little guy's life! Then he meets and makes a new friend (Lesley) - and it's magic. I won't ruin the story for anyone here - I really hate that! However, I will say that, together, they find Terabithia and, at the same time, learn to live in and understand more about their real world. (That bullies have often been bullied.....)

There's no getting around this - there is a very sad part of the story and some people may worry about their children being upset. The movie deals with the "bad stuff" realistically but doesn't dwell on it. When reading the book and it came to "that part", my daughter (who has the tenderest heart in the world) was less upset by it than I was!

Some young neighbours have told me that this is their favourite movie EVER - even beating Harry Potter (high praise indeed!). I have to say that it is one of my favourites too - for children or otherwise.

When I was a kid, I wanted the world to work that way. I wanted the trees to talk back, war with imaginary villains, and fly with the birds. I really felt it and so did the main characters of the story.

Josh Hutcherson, who is no stranger to acting already, starring in 15 plus films plays quiet and artistic Jesse Aarons who usually finds himself the [...] of jokes by the loud and obnoxious fellow students at his public school. Hutcherson is terrific and such an amazing lead actor in this film. I think kids will love watching him and really relate to his situation and really respect him and follow him. I hope he continued to get some really great roles. Also really terrific is AnnaSophia Robb who plays unique dreamer Leslie Burke who befriends Jesse and together they have incredible adventures together and form a lasting friendship. AnnaSophia is such a sweetheart and really does bring Leslie to life as this carefree, deep thinking, happy, spirited little girl. She really is the perfect Disney girl and probably has a promising career as such ahead of her. Also terrific is 8 year old Bailee Madison who plays the irrepressible and adorable May Belle Aarons who is really heading towards the same fate that Jesse finds himself in, in the real world. Jesse takes her under his wing and shows her the magic world that him and Leslie have created. Robert Patrick is also just terrific as the Aarons' father, Jesse Sr. Patrick's character is not a bad guy at all!! In fact he is desperately trying to provide for his family, and has simply been worn by the world around him. He wants his children to be raised to be strong providers especially his only son. The supporting cast is also terrific with key performances by Zooey Deschanel, Lauren Clinton, and Cameron Wakefield.

The movie bounced back and fourth between the friend's school life and their imaginary world. The two loved each other more than anyone could love and didn't even show it with a kiss. This movie should of been longer. 90 minutes seems to be the typical time for a movie but this one probably needed 15 minutes more. I wanted to see more of their world as it showed just a fair amount in my opinion (kind of like how Pan's Labyrith was - great film by the way). Movies are marketed different now a days and some viewers may be disappointed. I saw this movie more as drama than an adventure.

I never read the book but I'm hearing Disney kept it very similar to it. I like that a lot as I hear "Eragon" wasn't even close. This isn't a better fantasy film I've seen in years, I just wish they had more but still a movie to see with the kids.

I never had the opportunity to read Katherine Paterson's Newberry Award winning children's book "Bridge to Terabithia" because I was in college by the time it was published, and for some reason that is completely lost in the mists of the past I actually had in my mind that it was a story about the Holocaust, or at least set in Eastern Europe. But if I have had the wrong idea about the story for the past several decades the trailers that were put out for this film version only served to supplant my original erronous idea with a different ones. The trailers made me think that I was going to watch something akin to "The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," but of course now that I have seen this 2007 film the obvious point of reference is "Pan's Labyrinth". Obviously I am not the only one to notice the quantum gap between what we saw in the trailer and what we got in the film, but I have seen my fair share of stupid ad campaigns for pretty good movies and in the final analysis that is what this film is, so forget the stupid trailers.

"Bridge to Terabithia" is not a special effects movie but a movie about a special friendship. Jesse Arons (Josh Hutcherson, "Zathura") is taunted, teased, and bullied at school and takes refuge in his drawing, but his family is oblivious to his artistic talents. Then Leslie (AnnaSophia Robb, "Because of Winn-Dixie") walks into his life as the new girl in class. As extroverted as Jess is introverted, Leslie turns out to be a kindred spirit whose talent is for writing. At first Jess treats her as horribly as everybody else as the new girl assumes the spot at the bottom of the school's pecking order. But they have too much in common and they become friends, doing everything together, including exploring the woods and finding the special place she named Terabithia where parents and chores, bullies and kid sisters, can be left behind.

There is no need to say more because you deserve to discover how this one plays out for yourself. The cast features Robert Patrick as Jesse's overworked father and Zooey Deschanel as the kid's music teacher, Ms. Edmonds, but this film favors the kids over the adults while making it clear they live in the real world, even with the wonders of Terabithia. I especially like the way the plotline regarding the schoolyard bully, Janice Avery (Lauren Clinton), plays out, even more than what Josh and Leslie come up with for Gary Fulcher (Elliot Lawless) and Scott Hoager (Cameron Wakefield) in Terabithia. My understanding is that the screenplay by David L. Paterson and Jeff Stockwell is quite faithful to the book, although obviously those who have read it would know far better than me. But at least now I know what the book is about and why it is one of the most beloved children's books of the last thirty years.

I've been reading the reviews posted here & I can agree with pretty much all of them. There isn't much fantasy in the movie like it portrays on the cover & maybe the actors aren't perfect. Maybe you can't relate to Jess & Leslie and can't 'see' their kingdom. But if you can, if you can tap into the heart of Jess & feel his pain; if you can peer into Leslie's mind and sense her thoughts and struggles; if you close your eyes and keep your mind wide open, then you can enter their kingdom. If you know what it's like to imagine a world where you are the hero and nothing can stop you; if you know what it's like to hide your pain and trudge through life. Then you are a citizen of Terabithia. And the flaws and the imperfections all vanish and you step through a gate that only you can create...

If you haven't read the book, this review is intended for you.

Good story in it's own right.

Very disappointed that the magical creatures shown on the cover had next to nothing to do with the story. This not a "Fantasy" film.

Have some kleenex handy.

Ten-year old Jess, bullied at school and ignored at home, meets new girl Leslie, who's also looked upon as a weirdo and outsider. The two become friends and use their imagination to turn a secret spot in the woods into a beautiful kingdom. In "Terabithia," they rule over the strange but good creatures and battle the Dark Lord. Everything is great, until one day when Jess doesn't come to play.

This movie could have, and should have, been wonderful, with flights of fancy that made me say, "WOW!" and touching moments that left me teary. Unfortunately, it missed the mark. The fantasy land the children created wasn't that big of a deal; we only saw fleeting glimpses of it and never had time to be awed by its wonder and wish it were real. The two young leads, Josh Hutcherson and AnnaSophia Robb, were competent, but not special. Neither of them had the charisma to own the screen and make me care about them. Of course, the big culprit was the script, which tried to include too much, ending up with not enough. We get Jess' poverty, artistic talent, and loneliness, Leslie's quirkiness and pluck, the bullies at school, his crush on his teacher, and the often-annoying cute younger sister, complete with precious lisp; with all this, there wasn't time to make Terabithia seem real or as fantastic as it should have been. The scene that should have elicited tears was abrupt and emotionless, completely lacking in drama and power. So, it's an OK movie if you're stuck watching it on a plane, but not a flick to buy, unless your kids are fans of the book. 2.5 stars.

Basic story of outcast sixth graders bonding, learning and teaching what life is about. The Disney's and Director: Gabor Csupo's version is trying to be more than the book and came up with an artsy film that is better than most of the trash that we feed our kids today. The only problem is that the professional artsy people can do it better and the people that go for mindless graphics and fairy tail endings will not appreciate this film; it is sort of pearls before swine.

Trying to be subtle, we get nether graphics enough to make this a moppet movie or the lack of graphic making this a philological escapist story. The images are not confined to Terabithia but to Jess (Josh Hutcherson) himself. Of course Zooey Deschanel can bring out the graphics in any of us; be sure to see her again in "The Tin Man."

Bottom line a fairly good formula movie but not designed for the mindless. And there is nothing exceptional or surprising. When Val Lawton had to use titles like "I walked with a Zombie" and made it into a physiological thriller, Csupo snuck a physiologic thriller right under Disney's nose.

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Blu-ray does not add or subtract from the movie. Of course you need to watch the extras as they do add value to the story.

Tin Man (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

i was disappointed in this movie.it thought there would be more of a
fantasy element to it,but that was just a very small part of the
movie.most of the movie was nothing spectacular,with very little story
or character development.i just felt they could have done more with the
material.that's not to say that it's bad movie,because it isn't.the
movie takes a dark turn towards the latter half,and becomes
heartbreaking,which doesn't really fit with the earlier tone of the
film.i guess it's marketed for kids,i don't think it would be suitable
for young kids,because there are some pretty serious themes to it and
because it takes such a dark turn.there's nothing really offensive
though,but parents should really use their discretion about letting
their kids watch.for me,though,i give Bridge to Terabithia a 2.5/5

Definately not like the previews. Not much in the way of fantasy characters. More of a story with a moral than a fantasy movie.

Ok. I know it's a touching story about death and bullying. It was a good movie on that part. BUT... the previews made it look soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much cooler!

Alot of people were thinking " I hope there isn't any fantasy stuff in it". I went into the theater hoping the exact opposite love fantasy movies! As long as they have some depth and mythic sense to them what's not to like? And this movie was about kids at school most of the time! There was barley any creatures in it and the ones they did show were ok but not that interesting.

I guess the parts about friendship and deaths were important. I mean I was very sad when the girl dies [sorry if that was a spoiler but a lot of people knew before]. But you can put things like death and love into fantasy stories to!

Also the main character [the boy] isn't that great of actor! I mean come on! Also in the book [which was disappointing as well] the kid was very artistic. In the movie the dude isn't that great. The other actors were ok though.

Overall it was a nice kid friendly movie with powerful messages and emotional parts [I liked that part]. But if you were expecting a really cool fantasy adventure film don't look at this movie. PS: In the movie the kid's music teacher is VERY attractive. Yes very beautiful.

This is a list of actual fantasy movies: Lord Of The Rings, The Dark Crystal, Pans Labyrinth, Dragonheart, Harry Potter, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and Willow. Enjoy!