I have trouble grasping the fact that there are people in the world who don’t love The Princess Bride. Even though I nearly have the ninety minutes memorized, I could watch the film any day and be delighted by the humor, the romance, the adventure, and the sheer joy overflowing from this treasure of a story.
At this point, it’s hard to tell whether The Princess Bride was written perfectly for my sense of humor or whether it’s been part of my life for so long that it has molded my taste. Either way, it’s one of the wittiest films I’ve ever seen. Dozens of lines from the film have become iconic for my generation–it’s almost impossible to make it through a wedding weekend without delivering the “mawwage” speech. The dialogue throughout the film is delightfully written and impeccably delivered, especially by Wallace Shawn and Billy Crystal. I know the punch line to every joke but still find them hilarious every time.
The Princess Bride is funny, but it’s also so much more. It’s a romance, with Westley and Buttercup’s love story at its heart. Unlike many modern romantic comedies, the film’s belief in the power and beauty of love is always earnest, never ironic. When Westley declares that even death cannot stop true love, only delay it for a while, we believe him. And as we watch him and Buttercup defeat every obstacle that stands between the two of them and happily ever after, we’re convinced that they’ve got it right.
While the hopeless romantics among us (me) are enthralled by the love story, The Princess Bride is just as much a swashbuckling adventure as it is “a kissing book.” Inigo Montoya’s quest to avenge his father’s honor is thrilling, and his riveting duel with Westley is one of the best sword fights I’ve ever seen on screen: perfectly choreographed, perfectly scored, and perfectly filled with surprise reveals. Throw in pirates, shrieking eels, cliffs of insanity, giants, poison, fire swamps, and rodents of unusual size, and the story is bursting at the seams with excitement. Plus, the ideas behind some of the slightly-dated effects are genuinely scary. A machine that could suck away years of your life? Absolutely terrifying.
For me, at least, I think the movie owes much of its success to the frame narrative: a grandpa reading a story to his sick grandson. Even the most cynical, uninterested viewer finds their reluctant counterpart in the grumpy child, but they can’t help being entranced along with him. But, more importantly, this frame immediately lets us know what kind of story to expect. The film is a fairy tale, and it never pretends to be anything else. So we aren’t surprised by the elements of fantasy–we know what kind of world we’re entering as the story begins. And, though it may be cheesy and over-the-top at times, it’s a world I love visiting. It’s a world where the heroes overcome every obstacle. Where the villains are defeated. Where true love is not only a reality but an unstoppable force.