“As you wish.”
I can only imagine that it must have been hard to take a story such as The Princess Bride and make it come alive on screen without letting the material fall flat on its face. But Rob Reiner persevered and made what remains one of the most beloved live action fairy tales of all time.
The Princess Bride is the story of Buttercup, a princess who has been kidnapped by her would-be husband, the smarmy Prince Humperdinck. Enter the peasant: Westley. Having bound himself to Buttercup, he assumes the disguise of Dread Pirate Roberts in an attempt to rescue his love.
What might seem like an everyday fairy tale, however, has a comedic edge as the story introduces a colorful cast of characters that refuse to be forgotten. After all, who can forget the now famous line, “My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.”
As with any well crafted story, those who once seemed to be enemies and/or monsters soon become friends and The Princess Bride rides the edges of both comedy and romance making it an all around fun film to watch. This is a film that ages well due in part to not only a fun story, but fantastic performances as well. After all, how often do you get a fully realized film that combines romance, comedy and swordfighting?
Younger viewers will no doubt enjoy the lush fantasy of The Princess Bride and, of course, adults won’t mind it so much, either. The Princess Bride is a must own in any film library that will, no doubt, receive its share of repeat viewings.
You can find The Princess Bride on DVD at Amazon.com in either the Dread Pirate Roberts Edition (my favorite) or Buttercup Edition.