Family Movie Night: Bridge to Terabithia

Title: Bridge to Terabithia
Director: Gábor Csupó
Original Release: 2007
Choice: Purple Penguin's
My Overall Rating: 3 stars out of 5

via Wikipedia

Bridge to Terabithia is based on Katherine Paterson's novel of the same name.  Jess Aarons (Josh Hutcherson) is a talented but socially awkward 12-year-old boy who becomes friends with the new girl Leslie (AnnaSophia Robb), just moved in next door.  Neither makes easy connections with the kids at school but they are drawn to each other.  Together, they create a fantasy world in the woods called Terabithia, one that becomes vividly alive on screen.  Jess's younger sister May Belle (Bailee Madison) tries to tag along but Jess is eager to keep this part of his life to himself so he pushes her away.

In time, tragedy strikes and it hits hard.  What began as a story about a search for belonging becomes one about coping with loss.  The change is quite abrupt, in some ways a little too abrupt.  But then, life is like that, isn't it?

Obviously, the story relies heavily on child actors: always a risk.  Fortunately, Robb and Madison are both delightful.  Hutcherson is a bit stiff, though maybe that's not so inappropriate for the character.  Somebody liked what they saw.  Terabithia was the first big role for Hutcherson on the path that eventually saw him cast as Peeta Mellark in the Hunger Games series.

The visual elements of the fantasy world are fun, though really Terabithia ends up being a relatively minor part of the story.  Ultimately, the path we follow is Jess's emotional journey and it's a compelling one.