The beautiful and fair Buttercup falls in love with her farm boy Westley, but when he departs to seek a fortune for their future together, his boat is attacked by the Dread Pirate Roberts who never leaves any survivors. Though her heart is completely broken, Buttercup’s charm and beauty catches the attention of Prince Humperdinck who is determined to have Buttercup as his wife.
This is the second time that I have rented The Princess Bride from work, and I have to say that I enjoyed it much more this time around. I think that the first time, I didn’t notice the wit of the script, the beauty of the costumes, or the superb mastery of the swordfights. Truth be told, the only thing I think I remember really liking in the film the first time around was the characters, some more memorable than others.
The beautiful and fair Buttercup falls in love with her farm boy Westley who truly loves her back. But when he departs to seek a fortune so that they may have a bright future together, his boat is attacked by the Dread Pirate Roberts who never leaves any survivors. This completely breaks Buttercup’s heart and she vows that she will never love again. Though in a great state of despair, Buttercup’s beauty and charm catches the attention of the relentless Prince Humperdinck, who becomes determined to have Buttercup as his wife. Finding no joy in her engagement to Prince Humperdinck, Buttercup finds peace in afternoon horse rides. But when she is kidnapped by a band of thugs during once such ride, a conspiracy unfolds, turning into the greatest adventure of her lifetime.
Just a bit of trivia now. The original Princess Bride was written by S. Morgenstern, but it is the “good parts” or abridged version by William Goldman that the film is based on. The film is very true to the book in that the story sometimes gets interrupted quite abruptly by the characters of the sick boy and his grandfather who is reading the story to him. You may or may not know that this is a reflection of a real life experience of William Goldman’s.
In terms of film though, it’s simply wonderful. Very visually pleasing and filled with everything from action to romance. Equally as good as any classic Disney fairy tale.
I simply must draw attention to the beautiful costumes. Between Buttercup’s princess outfits and Westley’s black suit, well seeing is believing. You’ll have to watch the film.
And the swordfights, oh my god! I now have to draw attention to the master of swordplay, Bob Anderson, who was responsible for the swordfights in The Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Mask of Zorro, he was in the Darth Vader costume fighting Alec Guinness in the original Star Wars, and he was Errol Flynn’s stunt double. Please everyone, a round of applause for Bob Anderson. I salute you!
Backed by a wonderfully quick-witted script and beautiful performances from Carey Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Robin Wright Christopher Guest, Wallace Shawn, Andre the Giant, Billy Crystal, and Peter Falk, The Princess Bride is a wonderful movie filled with action, adventure, romance, passion, swordfights, fantasy, and a sinister war conspiracy. Perfect for the whole family.
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