THE BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA is easily one of the most beautiful films of this year. A paean to the transcendent power of imagination, it is a story about children coming to terms with not fitting in with their peers as well as the shortcomings of the adults in their lives, but it is anything but a children’s story. Or at least a story just for children, to be more accurate. The DVD release allows for more than just the opportunity to find out how director Gabor Csupo pronounces his name, it is the opportunity to more fully explore the film and, even better, the classic book on which it is based.
There are two commentary tracks. The first features Csupo, and co-screenwriter Jeff Stockwell, who makes more than a few perceptive comments about the correspondences between characters that might not be apparent on first viewing, while also giving the usual behind-the-scenes tales, and the dynamics of telling the story visually. There are also tales of the pleasures and perils of shooting a story set in the United States on the other side of the world in New Zealand. Entertaining all, but the best feature is the intelligent but unpretentious way Stockwell parses the story.
Which brings up the the outstanding extra on the DVD is an extended look at the themes of the film and the book on which it’s based. Not recommended if you haven’t seen the film, as it gives away a major plot point, it is, nonetheless an intelligent, cogent, and eye-opening appraisal of the story’s place in literature. It makes the point, an excellent one, that it is great literature, not just children’s literature, and then goes on to explain why with commentary from the actors, educators, and the author herself, Katherine Paterson, who shares the origins of the story. And it’s anything but didactic.
The other commentary track features the lead actors, AnaSophia Robb and Josh Hutcherson and producer Lauren Levine. Levine plays gentle adult supervision to the youngsters, who bubble their enthusiasm as they relive making the film. It’s sweet rather than erudite, but the giggly reminiscences reflect the chemistry that the two actors share on screen, particularly when discussing how dramatically Josh’s voice has deepened since shooting the film.
In the featurette about bringing the fantasy land of Terabithia to life, we learn that Csupo told the artists that he didn’t want anything cutesy. And cutesy is the last thing the creatures of that imaginary land could be called. Created by WETA, the same folks who did the effects for the LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy, they are shown from first concept through the animation that appears in the film. The secret of how a bully can become a scraggly bird is revealed in such a way that the wonder of the process takes nothing away from the wonder of the result. Part of that is meeting the effects folks and seeing their giddiness over their creations.
The music video, “Keep Your Mind Open” is what it is. Nice but not the DVD’s selling point.
BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA is a classic, in both its book and cinema incarnations. It deserves much more than one viewing, because as with all classics, every return visit reveals something new, something fresh, and something magical.
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