WhiteLizard
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So much has already been said here, all my thoughts have been laid out, that there is nothing to add. I can only say that the film strongly reminds me of my childhood. The same romance, the same emotions. The ending surprised me a lot; I expected a kind story with a happy ending. My heart felt very heavy after watching it; I didn't want to part with the characters, with the atmosphere of the film. But after analyzing the whole story, I realized that the ending is actually good. Remember what Jess was like at the beginning: a withdrawn but unusual boy who drew well and was in love with his teacher, who didn't have a single truly close person in the whole world to whom he could open his soul, share all his worries. And suddenly a new girl, Leslie, comes to the class—just as unusual as he was. At first, he feels a dislike for her; she beats him in a competition where he was the clear leader. But in the course of the film, the sympathy between them grows. And they create their own secret world, their own kingdom. In their world, everything was analogous to the real one. I mean that in Terabithia there were the same enemies (if you remember, the name of one of the monsters consisted of the names of two bullies from their class, and the scary troll, who became their friend toward the end of the film, was an analogue of Janice—the school bully). The stories of the real and fictional worlds intersected. The only thing that differed was that they were king and queen. They could solve all their problems in this world, defeat all their enemies, and subsequently defeat their enemies in real life.
Their sympathy would have grown into true love if not for a stupid death. After all, Jess could have taken Leslie with him on the excursion. Here, it seems to me, the author wanted to show how we sometimes do not value our happiness; this senseless death, which could have been avoided, is the ultimate punishment for neglect. And it is in vain that Jess later blames himself for her death, for he is not to blame; he would have done everything to change that fateful day, to save her, but he cannot...
And the snapped rope... The rope leading them to the secret world, only for the two of them. It didn't become the cause of Leslie's death by chance. It seems to me that this shows that what leads us to something good, to happiness, to salvation, can at any moment change its direction to the opposite. What was salvation for Leslie and Jess from people who didn't understand them, from a world that didn't understand them, brought death to Leslie and, in a way, shook Jess to the very depths of his soul. Or perhaps there was no place for Leslie in our world? Leslie was so unlike other people, so extraordinary and magical. Maybe the rope really became a road to salvation from an uncomprehending world to something better? I don't know for sure; these are all my guesses, which may be absolutely wrong.
Let's return to Jess. If you compare him at the beginning of the film and at the end, there is a very significant difference. In such a short time, Leslie was able to change a person and his outlook on the world so much. All his life Jess will remember that girl named Leslie, who taught him to feel again, taught him to live. Perhaps this is the main point of the story? Again, I don't know.
And if you recall, Jess was not the only one Leslie changed. There was also Janice, the bully who gave the younger students no peace. Who would have thought that some "snot-nosed kid" could reason with this "bad girl." But Leslie could. This again shows how unusual she was. To connect with people like that, whether enemy or friend, to understand their sorrows and joys in such a way, is simply a TALENT and MAGIC.
Maybe Leslie was needed just to change Jess? Was she sent from above for this, and then taken back? I can only guess, see many ideas in this picture; such deep meaning is embedded in this story full of drama.
The only thing I can say for sure is that this film touched me to the depths of my soul and fundamentally changed my perceptions of the things that truly matter.
I liked this review by a simple %username% the most... nothing can be crossed out here, because I realized this when I wanted to highlight the most important part in bold blue font :))
This film is a tale of the heavy socio-psychological tragedy of Jesse, hidden under a light fantasy shell... the film weaves a parallel between the real world and the fantasy one that he and Leslie dreamed up...
Two dreamers... and Jess is also burdened by the problems imposed on him by poverty... But Leslie thinks freely, her fantasy flies like a brightly colored bird in Jesse's gray everyday sky... He finds himself, finds... strength...
He and Leslie were made for each other... and it is very hard to imagine how the icy blade of death cuts away half your heart...
Leslie herself is like a little angel... (repeating the thought from the review :)) although she doesn't believe in God... she was entirely in the dream...
I didn't quite figure out the ending of the film; I have too many ideas regarding the meaning of the film... I might format them later... But this is truly the kind of cinema that turns everything upside down in your soul and plays on feelings like strings, I don't know—it's as if I trusted this sweet fairy tale! And then... Leslie... it's hard for me to write now :))
P.S. I can add nothing, absolutely nothing, these words are perfect...
The only thing I can say for sure is that this film touched me to the depths of my soul and fundamentally changed my perceptions of the things that truly matter.
За всем следят машины благодати и любви.