Worlds within worlds

When the promos for Bridge to Terabithia appeared, director G?bor Csup? and others repudiated them for making the film look too fantastical and relegating the realism behind the story. Not that other fantasies don't deal with real issues. Surrealists like Luis Bu?uel have even argued that fantasy is, in effect, simply a state of hyperreality. But harping on the realism of Terabithia has a particular legacy.

The film is adapted from Margaret Paterson's controversial masterpiece. The American Library Association listed it the ninth most frequently challenged book of 1990-2000. Censors have called for it to be banned from public schools and libraries, not so much for its imaginations as for its real-life preoccupations. Death, child sexuality, and agnosticism are the main charges prigs have made against the book.

The story is simple enough, but its emotions and ramifications are complex. Rural boy Jess (Hutcherson) is a miserable outcast until a spunky, free-spirited girl, Leslie (Robb), befriends him. Through Jess's drawings and Leslie's words, together they create the imaginary world of Terabithia, where they rule and where their daily predicaments are magically resolved. Until, that is, a tragedy shatters their world.

The fantasy part is the easy bit. The actual challenge for the filmmakers was to translate the nuances of Paterson's writing into cinema. It was inevitable that final judgment would be made not on how vividly Jess's and Leslie's imaginations are interpreted, but on how sincerely the film portrays the heart-wrenching poignancy of the book without seeming alarming.

It is right for the filmmakers to be concerned about making Terabithia overbearingly fantastical. After all, unlike other children's tales that have captured Hollywood in recent years, Terabithia does not exist in a concrete, alternative world. It exists only in the minds of its characters, who live and act in the 'real world'. This may also explain why, in the age of Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings, the special effects appear relatively slapdash, while much attention is bestowed upon minute details of the characters.

Csup? is lucky that he could find so much talent in his young actors. Hutcherson, Robb, and even little Bailey Madison (as Jess's youngest sister) are hugely responsible for keeping the film honest. Terabithia demands that the actors maintain their childhood sensibility but also bring to their roles the maturity and experience of an adult. And they have gloriously risen to the challenge.

Terabithia stands out, not only because it honours imagination and creativity, but also because it puts them in context. Paterson seamlessly blends the complex realms of thought and action, of fantasy and reality, and to a degree that is preserved in the film. And perhaps this commingling will bother those critics who doubt the ability of children to meaningfully grapple with strong ideas and emotions.

Director: G?bor Csup?.
Cast: Josh Hutcherson, Anna Sophia Robb, Zooey Deschanel, Bailey Madison. 2007. PG. 95 min.