Originally Posted By sun-n-fun I had never heard of the book either, but my 11 year old read it in school in the fall. His class is thrilled about the movie and are all going to see it on Sat. Since we will be at WDW,I told him we'd see it when we get home.
Originally Posted By HyperTyper I read the book when I was around 10, am reading it again (aloud) to my school class of sixth graders, and just saw it this afternoon. I thought both the book and the move were okay. --- SPOILERS AHEAD. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. --- I remember, even as a ten-year-old, feeling incredibly manipulated by the ending. It's just one more story where a cared-about character dies suddenly in a tear-jerker ending. It may be unusual in big-screen movies, but it's been done endlessly in storybooks, novels, songs and after-school specials. Katherine Patterson is a skilled writer, but this book is nothing really remarkable. It is one more in a long list of books with a pouty, introverted boy as a main character. Sorry ... I work with boys this age every day, and not one of them can be described as sullen. The movie is well-made. The acting is fine. The girl who plays Leslie is especially great at brightening-up any scene she's in. Some of the events (particularly at school) are somewhat interesting, though the bullies in the school are so over-the-top cartoonish that it strains believeability. The "imagined" events and characters of Terabithia, however, seemed like a distraction to me. I actually fell asleep during these segments. Really. Fans of the book will be glad to know that the movie basically holds to the story, though the setting is updated to a modern, Internet-age time. But again, that's the problem, because sure enough, something terrible happens and the remainder of the movie is about dealing with grief. There is something odd too about Jess's (the boy's) "field trip" ... alone ... with his school's music teacher. In today's world, this sort of escapade would not be considered in any way appropriate. It doesn't ruin the movie, but it goes unaddressed, and would (or at least should) leave many parents in a position of having to explain to their children that such personal, unsupervised relationships with unrelated adults is not a good idea. You know ... stranger danger, and all of that. Sad, but real. "Terabithia" is not an awful movie. It just isn't remarkable, and struck me as too contrived. Go if you're in the mood for a movie orchestrated to be emotional. If you're looking for a fun, rollicking night at the movies, this isn't your ticket. And if you're looking for a poignant story about dealing with death and loss, there are much better ones out there ... many of them based on someone's ACTUAL loss.
Originally Posted By TALL Disney Guy <It is one more in a long list of books with a pouty, introverted boy as a main character. Sorry ... I work with boys this age every day, and not one of them can be described as sullen.> Yeah, but when was the book written? The 70s? Not that that makes a huge difference, but still, the era could be noteworthy. And there are all sorts of different personality types out there. But I'm glad there are no "sullen" boys in your class---that doesn't seem like it would be a fun way to be.
Originally Posted By Ryuki Am I the only one who thought it sucked? As the first post said, they act like it's another Narnia movie, so maybe that's why I was disappointed. Hardly anything happened in the imaginary world. Sure, they dealt with emotion there through fantasy, but I wanted to see them fight the dark master and free the dark master's slaves. Maybe the point is that there will always be a "dark master" in your life, but they never even faced him or had any desire to. They would mention stuff like the dark master, but never build on it. They kept bringing up useless info that would have really developed the plot and characters, only to drop it and forget about it. You know when you leave the theater in the middle of the movie to go to the bathroom or something, and come back only to realize that you had just missed the most important part? Well, I watched the entire movie and still felt like I had missed something.
Originally Posted By kennect Well misleading marketing is one thing but the film seemed to recieve rather decent reviews from the critics...Box office for the weekend was somewhat decent...Does the film have potential legs? Not being familiar with the book I am more interested in seeing it now that I know it isn't a full blown fantasy storyline....
Originally Posted By ToonKirby I agree with the mis-marketing, but liked the film regardless. See my review: <a href="http://www.laughingplace.com/News-ID511200.asp" target="_blank">http://www.laughingplace.com/N ews-ID511200.asp</a>
Originally Posted By DlandDug >>And if you're looking for a poignant story about dealing with death and loss, there are much better ones out there ... many of them based on someone's ACTUAL loss.<< This struck me as a bit harsh, particularly in light of the genesis of Bridge to Terebithia. Katherine Paterson wrote it after a young girl who had befriended her son David was unexpectedly killed. In real life, she was struck by lightning. I suppose that some would have considered that too contrived in a fictional plot. David, the son, wrote the screenplay and spent 17 years trying to get this on the screen the way he and his mother envisioned it. I have never read the book, but do agree that the characters and plot line would make more sense in the 70s. That said, I think the present film is very well done. Our 11 year old ds can't wait to see it again!
Originally Posted By DlandJB Good review, Kirby -- I couldn't get the link to the discussion boards to work though.
Originally Posted By BlueDevilSF I liked it. I kept my expectations low, considering what I was hearing and seeing during production. I wonder if I saw the same movie as HyperTyper. I don't think this was more emotionally manipulative than a number of Disney films I could name. I can only speak for myself, but having read the book when it first came out, I can say I saw a lot of myself in Jess. And yes, I was a sullen child. I got picked on and tormented much of the time, so it sure didn't make me a happy child. As with Jess' art, my refuge was reading and writing. My "Miss Edmunds" was an advanced placement writing teacher I had in grade school. The kid actors were all excellent, especially AnnaSophia Robb. Robert Patrick was a perfect choice for Mr. Aarons, though the relationship he had with his kids was just a bit closer than I remember from the book. I'm ambivalent about the action sequences. They are very well done, and I'm sure they hold the kids' attention, but I think I would have preferred something a lot less high-tech. But...high-tech is what sells these days. * S P O I L E R A L E R T * Further.... A little further.... Even further... When the "tragedy" strikes, there was an audible gasp in the audience. Honestly, I was glad there was still the element of surprise for so many of the people in the theatre.
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORGOCH: Well, my big fat sister, Orwen, conjured up this film in the ol' crystal ball the other night an' after watchin' the dang thing, it set her back more 'n either Orddu er me woulda believed. She's havin' ta see her shrink ev'ry dang day, now!!! An' we cain't keep a box a kleenex in stock fer NOTHIN'!!!!
Originally Posted By threeundertwo >>Oh and do they have the story set in the 70s at least?? Just wondered. I don't know how the "no tv" storyline would work in any other decade beyond that.>> LOL, my daughter loved this part, as we have no tv in our house. She liked that she shared that characteristic with the character. I wrote my thoughts on the movie on another topic. I'm glad I didn't see any of the trailers. My daughter did, and didn't want to see the movie at first because she thought they messed it up. She absolutely loved it.
