If you love Katherine Paterson’s Bridge to Terabithia as much as I do and you’re afraid to see the movie because you’re afraid it won’t live up to the book, GO!!!! Seriously!!!! The movie truly captured the spirit of the book…and it’s not often that I say that about a movie that’s based on a beloved children’s book. Of course, I’m sure it helped that the Paterson’s son was one of the screenwriters…and this story meant as much to him as it did to his mother.
It’s also not often that I say the special effects really enhanced the movie…usually I think they’re overdone. But not in this case. I loved how the special effects brought Jess and Leslie’s Terabithia to life. It was magic!
I was thrilled when Preteen said he wanted to go see this movie. And no, I didn’t trick him into going with me. First of all, it was HIS idea, not mine. And he’s read the book. He knew how the story ended. But still…considering I am the mother of two boys (one of whom refuses to see any movie that claims to be “heartwarming”…though this story is probably more “heartBREAKING” than “heartWARMING”), I figured we better go before the kid changed his mind. So since there was no school today, I took him to the very first showing in our area. We both loved it!
I don’t know what the men’s room looked like after the movie, but the ladies room was full of puffy eyed, sniffly women and girls. Two movies had gotten out at the same time when I was in there…there was absolutely no question which women had just seen Bridge to Terabithia and which had seen the other movie.
I was dead set against it but now you’ve moved me up to a maybe. The last movie adaptation I went to was The Polar Express. What a horrible movie. Dreadful. (Actually, I guess the last movie was Night at the Museum but I hadn’t read the book.)
Glad you enjoyed it!
I never saw Polar Express. And I didn’t realize Night at the Museum was based on a book! My youngest wants to see that one, too. I gave him a choice at the box office…the two movies were showing pretty close to the same time. I sure was glad he stuck with the original plan and chose Terabithia.
movie
Hey! We went to see it last night, too and loved it! I thought the special effects were a tad overdone, but not by much.
dP
Re: movie
Maybe at the end they were a little overdone…but by then I was so impressed by how close the movie stuck to the book that I didn’t care. The movie really brought the book to life for me.