Bridge to Terabithia - Comments and spoilers

[Meadmaker]

I just watched “Bridge to Terabithia” for the first time Sunday night. It was a neat movie. I expected something different. I had heard that it was a movie about a boy and a girl who discovered some sort of magical land. It was that, sort of, but not really. What I found interesting was what it said about religion. Our movies reflect our culture. This was a Disney flick, and while Disney is not what it used to be, you can bet that if it bears the Disney imprimatur, there will be nothing grossly offensive to mainstream culture in it, so it was interesting to see how religion was treated in it.

Post number two will contain some major league spoilers, and I’m not going to put them in spoiler bars. I will be describing the plot elements including the ending. The discussion will be for people who have already seen the movie, or are confident they never will. Don’t read the next post if you don’t want to hear too much about the movie.

Capsule review: Very well done movie. There were some things I liked, and some things I hated. The young girl with the female lead was excellent. It was great if you liked that sort of thing, but I’m not exactly sure what that sort of “thing” was. Not intellectually heavy hitting, but with some thought provoking moments. Good kids flick. My 8 year old boy thought it was fantastic.

The rest will discuss how it reflects religious culture in modern America.

[Meadmaker]

OK. Here’s the first part of the plot.

A young boy and young girl meet. She’s the new kid in town. He’s a run of the mill kid from a hardworking family typical of small town America. Dad has a job in the hardware store. Fairly poor, at least after the bills for the five kids are paid, but not poverty stricken. She’s the new girl in town, a child of writers, apparently successful ones based on their house size. They are about 11 years old or so, just young enough that the movie opens when she wins a footrace against him in school, and just young enough that there is obviously romantic interest between the two, but not quite. Not so much as a quick kiss. In fact, he actually seems to have a bit of a crush on a young, pretty, music teacher.

The boy and girl end up playing in some woods on the other side of a stream. The rope they use to swing across the stream is a “magical” rope, transporting them to the magic realm of Terabithia. The squirrels are evil killer squirrels. The birds are fell servants of the Dark Lord. The trees are trolls. Through special effects, these transformations really happen, but you get the feeling that it is just extra vivid imagination. These are pretend games that kids play, not real.

Here’s the religion part:

At one point. The boy invites her, or maybe she invites herself, to go to church with his family. It’s a new thing for her. Afterwards, they are talking. She thinks “the whole Jesus thing” is kind of neat. The boy and his little sister haven’t given it much thought. The little sister mentions that you are damned to Hell if you don’t believe it. The boy seems uneasy with the thought but agrees that yes, that’s the way it is. The girl thinks that’s not right, that God would be far too busy “running all this” to damn people to Hell.

This conversation takes on added significance when one day, the girl dies in an accident.

He heads to “Terabithia”, the woods where they played, looking for her, but doesn’t find her. There is also a great deal of concern that, since she wasn’t a Christian, her soul might be in Hell. His father assures him that God would not do that.

The magic of Terabithia doesn’t work so well. Also, his little sister wants to come along, but he won’t let her. It’s a bit dangerous, for one thing. They used to get across the creek using the rope, but the rope broke. (That’s how the girl dies.) He now crosses a fallen tree that bridges the creek. At one point, the boy thinks he hears the girl’s voice, but it turns out that it’s his little sister stuck in a fork in the fallen log.

He helps her out, and eventually builds a bridge over the log, so his sister can safely come and play in Terabithia. When she does so, the “magic” returns.

So what does this say about the Disney version of religion in America?

First, there’s the depiction of the Christian and the atheist at the church. The church is depicted as “a neat place”, but the judgmental nature of it is condemned. Even the judgmental traditional Christians, represented by the father, would not actually believe that God would send someone to Hell just for not believing.

On a related note, Dawkins would be proud of the movie, because it depicts the anxiety that such beliefs cause in children. After the girl dies, the boy is literally in tears because he has been told that nonbelievers, like the girl, will end up in Hell. It’s bad enough that she is dead, but what really has him shaking is the thought that she is suffering in Hell.

On the other hand, the overall depiction of church is positive. At one point, the atheist girl opens her purse, and let’s in some of the light filtered through the stained glass. This light is “captured”, and used as part of Terabithian magic in a later scene. The magic of Terabithia, although not “real” magic, is viewed in a very positive light, and the sacred atmosphere of the church is viewed just as positively.

Second, there’s the afterlife. I kept waiting for some sign of her to appear. I expected him to go to Terabithia, and hear her voice, or even see her appear, as a sign that her spirit lived on, or that the magic was real and that his belief was strong enough to keep her alive in some other place. That never happened. In fact, when he thought he heard her voice, it was really his younger sister. That sister in a way took the girl’s place, continuing the game. That’s a very modern view of looking at death. We honor the dead not by pretending they are still around, but by continuing to live our lives as they would have wished. We remember them, and carry on with our lives in the here and now, instead of looking forward to meeting them again in some other world. The “afterlife” for the girl was the younger child’s life.

All in all, an interesting view of what is seen today as the official version of religion in America. Religion is respected, but not truly believed. The judgmental aspects, and particularly the threat of Hell for nonbelievers, are dismissed, even by believers. More than that, those beliefs are shown as being the source of suffering. Meanwhile, the afterlife is either non-existent or irrelevant. What matters is how to lead your own life, and the only way to “keep people alive” is to remember them and, even more importantly, keep doing this as they would have wanted them done. Religiously, I’d have to say it was my kind of movie.

[slingblade]

The way you describe it, it sounds like a "take" on religion I could accept without too much vomiting. :D

[Correa Neto]

OK, its a derail, I know, but please excuse me...

After reading Dawkins' "The God Delusion", I got a completely different impression than what can be inferred from the quote below:
the official version of religion in America. Religion is respected, but not truly believed. The judgmental aspects, and particularly the threat of Hell for nonbelievers, are dismissed, even by believers. More than that, those beliefs are shown as being the source of suffering. Meanwhile, the afterlife is either non-existent or irrelevant. What matters is how to lead your own life, and the only way to “keep people alive” is to remember them and, even more importantly, keep doing this as they would have wanted them done.

Dawkins writes that the dominant religious positions are much more intolerant. Positions closer to evangelic fundamentalism, from what I could understand, are more disseminated than Meadmaker's tolerant views.

So, American posters, this alien (that does not travel aboard UFOs) asks: Where lies the truth?
OK, somewhere among the two positions, tending towards where?

[thaiboxerken]

The girl was not atheist, she had her own version of a god that was clearly not Christian. The movie does accurately show how people will tailor fit their god to fit in with their own particular morality. "God won't send her to hell, even though she doesn't believe in Jesus."

The movie pissed me off. I was expecting some kind of fantasy, action adventure. I didn't really want to see a tear jerker.

[drkitten]

So, American posters, this alien (that does not travel aboard UFOs) asks: Where lies the truth?

Um, you do know that the USA is a nation of over 300 million people -- and regionally diverse at that, right? That's not the sort of question that admits an easy or accurate answer.

In general, fifty or so years ago, Meadmaker's presented vision of US religion would have been much closer to the norm and more common than it is today. Even the people who made a living out of practing religion had a tendency to be quieter about it and more ecumenical about it. On the other hand, the number of outright and vocally non-religious was also much smaller, esp since "atheism" was viewed as a sign of Communism, but belief in a (Christian) God so abstract as to be meaningless was acceptable.

The "born-again" Christian fundamentalists have captured a lot of the political and media attention, but they're still a relatively small group/. Some recent surveys suggest that "born-again" are as much as 30% of the population, but of course, not all "born-agains" are fundamentalist (although most fundamentalists describe themselves as born-again). Compare that to the 35-40% or so who are Catholic.

There's also the question of how doctrine interacts with personal belief (one of the points of Terabithia, according to Meadmaker). Just because preacher says something on Sunday doesn't mean that you'll believe it on Tuesday -- "cafeteria Catholics," who pick and choose among doctrinal beliefs, are a cliche, but the cafeteria phenomenon isn't confined just to Catholicism. That's one reason that Fred Phelps is so universally reviled, even among wingnut Christians. He puts into practice what they only say should be done....

[Correa Neto]

Yep, I know there are lots of people and a great cultural diversity in USA and how hard it is to probe positions.

As an outsider, my impression is that fundamentalist and/or intolerant positions are growing. It seems you are confirming this.

30% of a population is a lot of people. OK, not all of them are fundamentalists, but I think (as an outsider) that most of these people probably are not exactly great fans of cultural diversity. I would consider a similar line when it comes to the Catholics. That's a lot of influence when it comes to decide a country's future. This brings us closer to Dawkins' views?

[tkingdoll]

The book deals with the religion question, way before the movie was made.

[JetLeg]

It is a good book. Not deep on religion\irreligion issue, but touching.

[tkingdoll]

It is a good book. Not deep on religion\irreligion issue, but touching.

I agree. I re-read it recently and the religion part doesn't affect anything. I would say it's mildly necessary as the book is aimed at kids and that's a handy shortcut to dealing with grief. I believe there is research to disprove the notion that religious people get over grief more quickly than atheists, but it's a widely-held notion regardless and I can see why it's in the novel.

[fuelair]

The girl was not atheist, she had her own version of a god that was clearly not Christian. The movie does accurately show how people will tailor fit their god to fit in with their own particular morality. "God won't send her to hell, even though she doesn't believe in Jesus."

The movie pissed me off. I was expecting some kind of fantasy, action adventure. I didn't really want to see a tear jerker.
Friendly suggestion. NEVER trust the trailer. It's purpose is to get your money.
You could have simply gone to Amazon, looked up reviews of the book or the original (massively more correct) version of the movie. You were taken in by ads meant to imply it was a version of Narnia. (Of course, Narnia was just a hyped up version of Narnia!.

[Meadmaker]

Yep, I know there are lots of people and a great cultural diversity in USA and how hard it is to probe positions.

As an outsider, my impression is that fundamentalist and/or intolerant positions are growing. It seems you are confirming this.

30% of a population is a lot of people. OK, not all of them are fundamentalists, but I think (as an outsider) that most of these people probably are not exactly great fans of cultural diversity. I would consider a similar line when it comes to the Catholics. That's a lot of influence when it comes to decide a country's future. This brings us closer to Dawkins' views?

To read postings here, and to some extent in the media at large, you would think America was being overrun by hordes of fundamentalists who would turn the US into a theocracy.

If so, I missed it. They failed to re-elect the school board in Dover, Pennsylvania. They make a lot of noise, but it would be more accurate to say that the battles are making a lot of noise. The bottom line is the religious are losing almost every battle. Fifty years ago, the things pointed to by atheists as proof that the fundies are tyring to take over our country would have been normal, mainstream, positions, held without question by the majority of Americans.

I think "Bridge to Terabithia" is much closer to representative of American culture than, for example, "Left Behind".

[Meadmaker]

The girl was not atheist, she had her own version of a god that was clearly not Christian. The movie does accurately show how people will tailor fit their god to fit in with their own particular morality. "God won't send her to hell, even though she doesn't believe in Jesus."

It's true that the movie didn't identify her as an atheist. She had no identifiable religion, other than specifically not being a Bible-believer.

The movie pissed me off. I was expecting some kind of fantasy, action adventure. I didn't really want to see a tear jerker.

I had the same expectation, and reaction, especially when the girl died. By that point, I had given up on a fantasy adventure, but I was still expecting a light hearted growing up, taking on the schoolyard bullies, and probably first kiss sort of movie.

[Checkmite]

I disagree Meadmaker. The impression I was left with, was that the boy was so tearful because he fancied himself responsible, in a way, for the girl's death.

Great movie, I'll add. The movie's producers disowned the advertising campaign, though - it was somewhat misleading.

[Meadmaker]

I disagree Meadmaker. The impression I was left with, was that the boy was so tearful because he fancied himself responsible, in a way, for the girl's death.

Great movie, I'll add. The movie's producers disowned the advertising campaign, though - it was somewhat misleading.

That was definitely part of his motivation. I was focusing on his comments about whether or not Leslie was in Hell.

For those who haven't seen it, it is not an extremely religious movie. You could watch it and barely notice the religion. I happened to notice it, or perhaps read into it something that wasn't intended, because it;s something I'm interested in.

[alfaniner]

Friendly suggestion. NEVER trust the trailer. It's purpose is to get your money.
You could have simply gone to Amazon, looked up reviews of the book or the original (massively more correct) version of the movie. You were taken in by ads meant to imply it was a version of Narnia. (Of course, Narnia was just a hyped up version of Narnia!.

I had the same reaction as a couple others. Totally thrown for a loop, and angry because of it.

Most of the time I don't want to know too much about a movie, and trust the previews to at least give me enough info to know what to expect (comedy,sci-fi, chick flick, light fantasy, etc.) For what it was worth, it was a well-done and moving film.

[Kopji]

If there were a religious message in the movie, it could be that there are experiences that can bind us together more closely than religion.

If within children's imagination we can find such a place - where atheists and fundamentalists play together, - and in grief weep together - does that not call into question our 'adult' values that tend to place barriers between us?

The call to a more childlike state is very ancient and perhaps a good reminder to all 'sides' that we tend to become part of as we get older.

[Meadmaker]

Did anyone else find the lack of afterlife significant? I thought the writers were deliberately trying to make a statement, based on the following things:

After Leslie died, Jess tried to find her in Terabithia, but she wasn't there. A lot of movies would have had some sort of sign. He would think of her, and the trees would shake. Maybe a flower would bloom where there was none before. I was perhaps even expecting that he would die and they would meet again in Terabithia, perhaps after a long life, a la Titanic.

He did try to find her, and once even heard her voice (I'm pretty sure they used Leslie's voice in the scene) but it turned out to be his little sister.

After he built the bridge, the first thing she did was ask for purple flowers. Leslie had never had purple flowers. It's a bit like the second wife changing the carpet as soon as she moved into the man's house.

These were all ways that they seemed to be saying, "No, Jess. She's not there. Move on." That's a rather modern approach to a children's movie. Not one that Disney of fifty years would have chosen. Or am I reading something into it?

[IllegalArgument]

The friend I saw the movie with, referred to it as a wrist slitting good time.

She found it very depressing.

I found it refreshing that they didn't pull their punches, for instance not Leslie appearing from the afterlife at the end, as has been mentioned.

I would have not classified Leslie as secular, just hadn't made her mind up on the subject.

The trailer was misleading, quickly figured out it was all in their heads. Though, I would say that the troll was really that bully girl from school, not the trees.

[gnome]

After "charlotte's web" I was afraid they weren't going to have the girl die.

I read the book as a child, and the biggest message I took from it was an important lesson about handling death and guilt.

[Kopji]

Having lost my best friend in a similar tragedy at a similar age, I struggled with the movie for a few days. It was something of an unexpected assault.

Note to self - read the reviews instead of just going along with the kids.

The part of the movie that I thought was 'like life' was when he returned to a house filled with the unexplainable emotions and reactions of his family. His friend was dead and he was alive, and until that moment they'd thought they were both dead. There is something difficult in grief that they managed to capture in those few seconds of film. A sort of 'wait! I did not even say good bye' feeling.

My observation would be that as we grow older we not only learn from our experiences, our experiences become a part of us, and are inseparable. The Kopji of 50 is much the same as at 14, but with all these experiences now part of me.

Likewise, there is a message that the girl lives on in the boy due to their shared time together, and 'is there an afterlife or not?' is not really relevant to the story.

I thought the movie generally did well with what it focused on - if a character changed their religious views it would have made the story less credible. There's a humble equality about death that shuts people who want to preach about it up - or should.

One scene that I thought did not really ring true: At the end where he punches the guy in class. The effect on me for a long time was like part of you being scorched or just shut down - just nothing left there that felt anything. Maybe the boy could have pulled up the emotions to react like he did, but it just seemed not like my experience.

[Meadmaker]

Likewise, there is a message that the girl lives on in the boy due to their shared time together, and 'is there an afterlife or not?' is not really relevant to the story.


I'm having a hard time expressing why I found it relevant. It doesn't actually affect the story, directly. However, I think in a similar movie fifty years ago, there would have been a message of, "Don't worry about her, she's with God now." or "You'll meet her again someday." or possibly, "She's still with us in spirit." In this case, there was none of that.

One scene that I thought did not really ring true: At the end where he punches the guy in class.

That scene rang true for me. I was 30 before a truly comparable event happened in my life, but I definitely experienced comparable emotions in certain cases. I was 30, so able to control myself and not punch anyone, but there were definitely things that could be said about the deceased that provoked very strong reactions for me. I can remember turning and walking away suddenly without a word from someone who made a joke about the deceased not being there.

As soon as the kid said the line, I knew that Jess was going to punch him.