The Princess Bride - The Perfect Family Film

1987 was a GREAT year for film, and I can already make that statement, still having not seen what many call the year's greatest film The Last Emperor (I really, really need to sit down and watch that epic). The Coen Brothers' Raising Arizona is one of my favourites from the decade, a breathtakingly original and hilarious crime comedy that was probably the first time the Coens ever entirely let loose with their style. Crowd-pleasing comedies with so much hidden depth like Planes, Trains and Automobiles and Broadcast News. Pure, unadulterated balls of parodic fun like Spaceballs and Evil Dead II, and poignant foreign-language masterpieces like Wings of Desire and Au Revoir Les Enfants (which are respectively, great films to watch to uplift the soul and dampen it with sadness). A Steven Speilberg, of course, in the excellent and underrated Empire of the Sun with a young Christian Bale carrying a film all by himself. Guilty pleasures like Dirty Dancing and The Lost Boys. Even flawed films which nevertheless have truly masterful moments like River's Edge, the first half of Full Metal Jacket, and Withnail and I.

Through all the flock of great films that year however, one film reigns supreme over them all: The Princess Bride. In contrast to many of the films above, this is a particularly simple and straightforward film in many regards: it's a film about a literal storybook love, framed through a grandfather (Peter Falk) telling a story to his sick grandson (Fred Savage). The romance at its centre between Buttercup (played by House of Cards' Robin Wright), and her farmhand Westley (Cary Elwes), starts off as simply and sweetly as cinematic romances go. There's no 'meet-cute', no initial confrontations, just a mistress-farmboy relationship in which the farmhand, who's repeated response of 'As you wish' to his mistress' every command, soon springs into true love (so in that sense, kind of like the romantic subplot of Holes between Kate Barlow and Sam). This is playfully lampshaded by the film's narration by Falk and the reactions of grandson Savage; the simplicity of the love between the two is not a fault of the film but one of its most beautiful aspects. There's no need for anything else but an unsaid connection between the two, since Wright and Elwes have such great chemistry from the very outset,

The simplicity of the romance in terms of how it's developed may irk some, but personally I love it. Whenever  they're together, Westley and Buttercup have such an easygoing rapport that despite its lighthearted nature, always suggests the deep passion they have for one another. Their initial romance is cut off by Westley's supposed capture and murder by the Dread Pirate Roberts, and when they reunite in the most unique of circumstances, it makes for some truly beautiful scenes of knight and damsel in distress, with a subversion in that both are in just about equal amount of danger, and neither actor is taking themselves too seriously; even when the stakes are high, Elwes' performance remains romantically playful, and Wright's sweet and constantly endearing.

The storybook love is of course at the very core of the film, but it's not the domineering element for the most of it. In between the lover's first kiss and their reunion, a lot goes on: Buttercup becomes engaged to the Crown Prince Humperdink (a delightfully sleazy Chris Sarandon) of her country, Florin, who has more malevolent intentions in store for this Princess Bride of his. First of all, look at these costumes, aren't they just fabulous?

Sarandon and Christopher Guest as his second-in-command, the devious and far more competent Count Rugen who has an amusingly deadpan interest in death, are two delightful villains as they're quite intimidating in a certain way because of their utter lack of empathy, and in Humperdink's case, brains. The stupidity of our villains are never overplayed to the extent that they become non-threatening entities, but rather used as a way of adding a bit more flavour to their villainous plans. I'll get onto Guest's best scene in a bit, but my personal favourite out of all of Sarandon's excellent comical scenes is his final showdown with Westley (warning: spoilers). In films of this sort the finale is usually some bloody battle to the bitter end, here it's more downplayed in a battle of wit against dim-wittedness as Elwes and Sarandon deliver insult, after confused retort, after insult.

Even better than these devious villains are the anti-heroes of sorts we encounter: a trio of bandits who kidnap Buttercup to kill her, and implicate neighbouring country Guilder as a pretext to war.

The bandits here are not exactly the stooges you'd expect a film like this to have; they're not just employed as stupid comic relief, they're great characters in their own right. Let's start off with the only one of the three who could technically be called, 'villainous', the pseudo-intellectual Sicilian criminal Vizzini, played by renowned real-life intellectual and respected character actor Wallace Shawn. You may recognize Shawn's distinctive voice from the Toy Story films where he voices Rex the Dinosaur, and where it worked so well there in making the cowardly T-Rex toy so adorable, here it works just as well for the abrasive, arrogant mastermind Vizzini thinks he is. The best modern-day equivalent to this performance I think is probably Jason Schwartzman in Scott Pilgrim v.s. the World as there's something inherently funny about the well-spoken and likable Shawn playing a stupid villanous mastermind, and his repeated use of 'inconceivable' and attempts to outwit the Dread Pirate Roberts make for some of the most hilarious scenes of the film.

The other two bandits aren't really the criminal sorts; they're my favourite sort of characters in these stories, the social misfits who turn to crime not out of evil, but more out of necessity, and there's not a hint of a mean bone in either the swordsman Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) and the friendly giant Fezzick (Andre the Giant). Andre the Giant is the figure most fondly remembered by the cast members whenever I read anecdotes about the film, every bit the kind and friendly soul he was onscreen who had nothing but joy and enthusiasm to bring to the screen, and who felt the filming environment of The Princess Bride was the only place he never felt judged by other people. His is an infectious and charming performance that never fails to soften my heart.

The two have a cute little chemistry in their share loved of rhymes and complete lack of malice. I love their buddy dynamic, it generates laughs consistently throughout the film, with Fezzick's gentle nature and Inigo's clever wit making for some classic comedy moments. 

Inigo is probably the highlight of the film for me. There's an excellent, in-depth review of his performance here by fellow blogger Louis Morgan (http://actoroscar.blogspot.hk/2013/09/alternate-best-supporting-actor-1987_28.html), and my own thoughts essentially mirror his. He's charismatic, deeply moving, extremely funny, and his quest for vengeance leads to one of the best scenes of the film, the climactic swordfight against the treacherous Rugen.

It should be said that though Inigo is great on his own, and Inigo and Fezzik make a great pair, the best scene of the film (in my opinion) is probably when they finally meet with Westley to plan out a rescue plan for Buttercup. Elwes' excellent physical performance, merges so well with the duo's comedic banter, and the wonderful script, making this one scene I can watch over and over again. 

Finally, it should be noted that despite being the 'damsel in distress' for most of the film, Wright's performance should not be diminished in any way. The writing behind her character may be thin for the most part, but the character of Buttercup is never entirely defined by her love for Westley. Buttercup is a simple character, but Wright hits each emotional beat perfectly, and moreover beyond her great chemistry with Elwes makes her character memorable beyond just the beautiful costumes by her naturally luminous onscreen presence. 

So why my sudden desire to write about this film? Well the fact I haven't even gotten to some of the other best bits of the film is a big reason why I think everyone should watch this film. I've come to realise that sometimes the films I recommend on my blog might only appeal to certain persons, depending on age, demographic, tastes etc. The Princess Bride is one of those films which alongside E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, The Shawshank Redemption, and Yojimbo, to name but a few, which can be appreciated by just about anyone. It's a family film of the best possible sort as it's family-friendly but thrilling, has a youthful exuberance for the kids but also a cheekier side for the adults (see: Billy Crystal's Miracle Max), is a rousing adventure story but also a poignant sweet little fantasy romance. There's a bit of something in it for everyone which is why I highly recommend The Princess Bride for you, reader, regardless of taste.

By the way (I'm leaving off Fezzick because I can't think of anyone):

1940's The Princess Bride (directed by William Wyler)

Westley: Montgomery Clift

Buttercup: Jean Simmons

Humperdinck: Roger Livesey

Rugen: Ralph Richardson

Vizzini: Frank Morgan

Inigo: Alec Guinness

Grandfather: Edmund Gwenn

Grandson: Dean Stockwell