Anybody Want A Peanut?

The Princess Bride, 1987

Did I watch the State of Origin (massive aussie sporting event) on telly last night? Nope I chose to relive my youth, and watch one of my all time favorite movies…

Count Rugen: And remember, this is for posterity so be honest. How do you feel?
Westley: Mmm hmm hmm hmmmm
Count Rugen: Interesting.

The Princess Bride is one of the ultimate childhood favorites for many of us who grew up in the 80s, and has become a family favorite for the generations since.  So what is it about this film that makes it so appealing?  Is it purely nostalgia on the part of those who saw it as children or is there more to it?  I thought I might re-watch it trying to take it in with fresh eyes – a difficult task for me, given I hold anyone who can quote it in high regard! So here we go…

Despite being a film about love, family and fighting for what you believe in, this film never takes itself too seriously. It is deliberately camp and cliché – even the sets look like they’re straight out of a fairytale picture book.  In this story within a story based on the book by William Goldman, we are told exactly what to expect through The Grandfather‘s introduction – ‘fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles!’ – and it doesn’t disappoint.  It has all that plus an amazing cast – Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon, Wallace Shawn, Mandy Patinkin and André the Giant just to name a few.

The Princess Bride boasts a script that is arguably one of the most quotable scripts of all time.  It somehow manages to be witty and deliberately trite at the same time – complete with cliché romance and villainy, the delightfully over complicated but witty speeches by Vizzini, the wit/charm/arrogance of Westley and the ever memorable rhyming battles between Inigo and Fezzik – full of puns and tongue-in-cheek humour.  Certain characters have repeated words or phrases making them more quotable and endearing, or irritating as the case may be.  ‘As you wish’, ‘Inconceivable!’ (‘You keep using this word. I do not think it means what you think it means’), ‘to the pain’, and the most famous – ‘Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die’.

This film also illustrates the importance of passing stories along to children, even though they may resist – ‘Is this a kissing book?’.  As the grandson is drawn in to the story so is the audience. We learn life lessons together, “Who says life is fair? Where is that written? Life isn’t always fair.” This fairytale isn’t as straight forward as most, which makes it even more special and likable.

The Princess Bride also makes use of musical themes – common to films of the 80s and something that too many films lack today. The music combined with the performances of the likes of Mandy Patinkin make for some magical moments (Inigo and Fezzik’s search for the man in black).  It also has beautifully choreographed fight scenes, especially Inigo’s last fight (one of the most memorable scenes in the film) which is not only well choreographed and performed but also builds perfectly with the music.

While none of the special effects or sets are particularly spectacular, they generally stand the test of time.  The main exception being the Rodents Of Unusual Size (ROUS’s) which look like people on all fours in rat suits – interesting fact: they actually were people on all fours in rat suits.

Somehow, despite the gumbyness/campness, the romance is believable, the villains are dastardly, and this somewhat backwards fairytale has you barracking for the heros, just as the grandson does.

There are some fabulous minor roles, such as Billy Crystal as the hilarious Miracle Max, Fred Savage as the Grandson, Peter Falk as the Grandfather, and Christopher Guest as the evil villain Count Rugen.

The nostalgia connected with this film is inescapable – I’ve seen the movie so many times that I can remember where the adds came on our betamax copy that we taped from TV – although I was always somewhat perturbed by the somewhat negative reference to Australia. I see references everywhere – while watching Game of Thrones and the battle between Oberyn Martell and The Mountain – Oberyn was definitely channelling Inigo – and in the season finale there was a moment when The Hound really could have shouted ‘as you wish’. It’s been referred to in films (I Love You, Man), Adam Hills dedicated an entire episode of Adam Hills Tonight to it, and when he performs his live concerts, Mandy Patinkin will still occasionally finish the show with his most famous line.

Whilst there is no denying the nostalgia attached to The Princess Bride, there is also no denying the brilliance of the script or the wonderful performances of the fabulous actors (and non-actors) involved. I still think it delivers on all of those promises The Grandfather makes in the opening scene. For me, this movie is ‘twoo wuv’.