“The Princess Bride” directed by Rob Reiner was released on September 25, 1987. It has a total runtime of an hour and thirty-eight minutes.
This fairytale follows Buttercup (Robin Wright) being forced to marry Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon) after the loss of her true love, Westly (Cary Elwes). She ends up being kidnapped by Vizzini (Wallace Shawn), Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) and Fezzik (Andre the Giant) because they want to start a war. A mysterious man dressed in black tricked them and took Buttercup from them; we later find out the mysterious man is actually Westly. We learn that Prince Humperdink is secretly evil and is planning to murder Buttercup. Westly and Buttercup go through many obstacles to fight for their true love.
“The Princess Bride” relied on practical effects and didn’t use digital effects. They had live fire in the Fire Swamp, actors in rodent costumes, undoubled sword fighting. It faces criticism because it feels like a low budget movie because of this. Although there was some backlash about the practical effects, this movie has aged well after many years, and it’s still viewed as a charming movie instead of looking dated.
The sword fighting in this movie is praised but not accurate. The duels focus more about being dramatic and entertaining. They include spins and jumps that wouldn’t happen in real life. This is important because it brings out the fantasy part of the movie. It helps contribute to the story as well because there is important dialogue included in the fighting scenes.
Taking all of this into consideration, this movie is highly recommended for ages 8 and up who enjoy movies with a mix of romance, adventure and fantasy.
