Movie Review: The Princess Bride (1987)

The movie stars Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon and Andre the Giant.

I took my daughters to the book store on Saturday and, when my oldest daughter picked out "The Princess Bride" as her book, I realized I had yet to follow through on my promise to watch the movie with her. So, we did just that yesterday evening.

This is a movie I have seen more times than I care to even try to count and I've lost track of the number of times my wife and I have quoted something from this film (usually at least once or twice each week). Yet, each time I watch it, I enjoy it as much (and sometimes more) as I did the first time I saw it. And, yesterday's viewing was no exception.

I think the thing I like most about this movie (and something my daughter, I'm glad to say, enjoyed too), is it has a little something for everyone. There's comedy and drama. There's romance and swordplay. Plus, there are so many little plot twists and memorable minor characters throughout the film, it never has a chance to get boring.

The fictional land they live in, Florin, is equally as interesting. As I told my daughter, with places like the Cliffs of Insanity and the Fire Swamp, it sounds like a place you wouldn't really want to live in. And, of course, the filmmakers took full advantage of that.

I think my only real dislike of this movie is the casting of Fred Savage in the role of the sick grandson who is hearing the story from his grandfather (Peter Falk). Savage always comes off as a bit too whiny for me and isn't very believable as a sick child. Fortunately, Falk does an outstanding job as the grandfather and makes up for it, otherwise this movie could have skipped that part completely.

This film remains one of my favorites nearly 30 years after I first saw it and only gets better every time I see it. I'm glad my daughter had a chance to watch it with me and enjoyed it just as much.

My Grade: A