Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles...

Rating: 8/10 (24 April 2005)

Yes, you can find those in a common fairy tale. And we do get all those elements in this movie I'm going to talk about, The Princess Bride. Usually fairy tales have many similarities, whether the story, the characters, the sequences, the romance. The Princess Bride is a no exception. In fact, the whole plot of this movie is more simple, compared to those common fairy tales. To sum it up, this movie is only about rescuing a princess from an evil prince.
Okay, here are the longer words: there was a girl, named Buttercup. She and a farm boy named Westley were lovers. But then Westley had to go somewhere, and was reported dead. Buttercup was so sad, and adding to her sorrow, she was forced to marry an evil prince, Prince Humperdinck. But, as you have guessed, Westley actually was not dead, and he must save princess Buttercup from evil Humperdinck.
Then what's so special about The Princess Bride? Well, first of all, I was personally impressed by the script, written by William Goldman. The dialog was smartly written, full of funny, witty and memorable lines. Furthermore, although this movie can be simply categorized as a comedy, it does have a very powerful love story. One thing that's amazing about fairy tales is the emphasis on love. They speak about true love, which I think is getting harder to find in this modern world.
Oh, I forgot to mention that this Princess Bride story is actually read by a grandpa to his grandson in the movie. I like this kind of take. Sometimes the story has to be paused and pushed back and forth because of the grandson's interruption. This slight variation is quite effective. OK, let's continue. Next, what good is a fairy tale without some good versus evil fights and some adventure? Don't worry, you'll find them in this movie. And they were impressive. I particularly love the fencing sequence between Westley and Inigo Montoya. It was really entertaining to watch. Cary Elwes, who played Westley, and Mandy Patinkin, who played Inigo, actually received extensive training in sword-fighting prior to filming this movie. And yes, they performed the sword-fights all by themselves.
Finally, this is a suitable movie for all ages. I mean, it's suitable for lovers, because of the love story; for kids, because of the adventure and good versus evil theme; and for adults who will be captivated by the memorable dialog.