The Princess Bride

• Title:  The Princess Bride
• Director:  Rob Reiner
• Date:  1987
• Studio:  MGM
• Genre:  Adventure, Romance, Comedy
• Cast:  Cary Elwes, Robin Wright,  Fred Savage, Peter Falk, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Christopher Guest, Billy Crystal, Peter Cook, Andre-the-Giant
• Format:  Color, Widescreen
• DVD Format:  R1, NTSC

"You fell victim to one of the classic blunders.  The most famous is never get involved in a land war in Asia.  But slightly less well known is this - never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line."  -- Vizzini


"We'll never survive [in the Fire Swamp]."  --  Buttercup, the Princess Bride
"Nonsense, you're only saying that because no one ever has." -- Westley


"You know how much I love watching  you work - but I've got my country's five hundredth anniversary to plan, my wedding to arrange, my wife to murder and Gilder to frame for it.  I'm swamped." -- Prince Humperdinck

The Princess Bride is one of  my favorite films of  all time.  It's a film I actually owned a copy of on VHS, then replaced with a DVD.  I absolutely adore this film -- it's smart, fun, intelligent and chock full of fun and quotable lines.  The film actually has two storylines -- the frame story of a grandfather (Peter Falk) reading the story of  The Princess Bride to his grandson (Fred Savage) who is home sick.  The growing relationship between grandson and grandfather adds a sweetness to the film, as does the young boy's growing interest in the story.  The main storyline, though, is the story of  Westley and Buttercup, two young lovers separated by fate who simply must end-up together.  However, what prevents the story from sinking into typical romantic comedy is the intelligent, witty dialogue and the simply gorgeous cinematography.  The film pulls itself together in such a way that it just works incredibly well.  It's also shot in a very storybook style, which ranges from castles with interiors that obviously look like sets, to some simply wonderful sunsets, and some great scenery when Buttercup and Westley first meet again. (The wide shots of  the castles are no doubt real ones in Ireland and England where parts of  the film were shot).

This film also has some wonderful sword fights.  The fight between Westley and Inigo Montoya is wonderful! I really enjoy it every time I watch the film.  But there's also some wonderful fight scenes between Montoya and the evil Count Rugen.

Overall, the film is just enjoyable.  Simply enjoyable.  It's funny, it's sweet, it's romantic.  The good guys are good because they treat other people nicely and well, and the bad guys - Vizzini, Count Rugen, and Prince Humperdinck are bad guys in part because they treat other people terribly.  Humperdinck's motivation is also to start a war between Florin (his country and home to Buttercup) and neighboring Guilder.  And a bit of wordplay with the names of  the country as well - Florin and Guilder are two coins in a former Netherlands currency.  Florin is also the name of  an old two-shilling coin in the UK that's no longer in use.

If  by some chance you haven't seen this movie, it's an absolutely must-see.

Recommendation:  See it!  Also good for all ages without being overly sweet.
Rating:  5 of 5 Stars
Next Film:  The Producers