Ponderings after having watched The Princess Bride for the thirty-seventh time:
- The next time I stumble across the old "the book is always better" argument, I'll have to remember to add this film to the counter examples along with The Wizard of Oz, Gone With the Wind, and The Shawshank Redemption. I always forget how much better the film was than the book; I'll even go so far as to say I disliked Goldman's book, while I love the film.
- Why didn't Cary Elwes become a bigger star? Leading man looks, great voice, better than average acting range. I mean, it's not like he hasn't worked since 1987, to the contrary, he's had amazingly steady work since then. But it's almost always been in supporting roles, which he's excelled at (his turn as Det. Nick Ruskin in Kiss the Girls even overshadowed the always excellent Morgan Freeman). But few leads. In 92/93 it kinda looked like he was going to get his shot with Crush and Robin Hood: Men In Tights, but neither film really worked out in a way that helped his career (though I still maintain that Men in Tights is one of Brooks' better films). I don't know. Maybe it's the English thing or his odd choice to stay away from dramatic roles. I just wish Cary had been given (or taken) a chance to be a bigger star.
- Oddly enough, I didn't enjoy the sword fights quite as much as I had when I was younger. I remember that I was amazed at how effortless it seemed for the actors to fence. This time I noticed a bit of effort and the sequences weren't quite as complex as I'd originally thought. Which is not to say that the fights are not amazing (they are). It makes me wish Bob Anderson would get more opportunity to create those kinds of sequences. When given time, the results are stunning (as in this and The Mask of Zorro).
- I positively love how Count Rugen runs after Inigo slays four guards in seconds. It so perfectly fit the character. Not just the running but also the look on his face and the use he puts his escape to. Rugen is a coward, but he's a crafty coward.
- If there's one weak link in the entire movie it's Robin Wright (Penn). Everyone else in the film seems to fully embody their characters and fill almost every action with nuance that hints at interesting quirks below the surface. Buttercup is simply there; all surface. And that might be the point. She's a beautiful girl who is more than a little naive and doesn't give much thought to the world around her. And yet, I've never seen Robin Wright in a role that wasn't like that. Granted, I haven't seen her in all that much (not to mention that good roles for women are rare), but I've been less than impressed with her. Couldn't you have slotted virtually any young, attractive actress into the Buttercup role and got the same performance? Or let's say you put Helen Slater in the role (The Secret of My Succe$$ came out the same year, and I think Robin Wright could've played the Christy role just fine), wouldn't Buttercup have been just a little more interesting?
- The next time I stumble across the old "the book is always better" argument, I'll have to remember to add this film to the counter examples along with The Wizard of Oz, Gone With the Wind, and The Shawshank Redemption. I always forget how much better the film was than the book; I'll even go so far as to say I disliked Goldman's book, while I love the film.
- Why didn't Cary Elwes become a bigger star? Leading man looks, great voice, better than average acting range. I mean, it's not like he hasn't worked since 1987, to the contrary, he's had amazingly steady work since then. But it's almost always been in supporting roles, which he's excelled at (his turn as Det. Nick Ruskin in Kiss the Girls even overshadowed the always excellent Morgan Freeman). But few leads. In 92/93 it kinda looked like he was going to get his shot with Crush and Robin Hood: Men In Tights, but neither film really worked out in a way that helped his career (though I still maintain that Men in Tights is one of Brooks' better films). I don't know. Maybe it's the English thing or his odd choice to stay away from dramatic roles. I just wish Cary had been given (or taken) a chance to be a bigger star.
- Oddly enough, I didn't enjoy the sword fights quite as much as I had when I was younger. I remember that I was amazed at how effortless it seemed for the actors to fence. This time I noticed a bit of effort and the sequences weren't quite as complex as I'd originally thought. Which is not to say that the fights are not amazing (they are). It makes me wish Bob Anderson would get more opportunity to create those kinds of sequences. When given time, the results are stunning (as in this and The Mask of Zorro).
- I positively love how Count Rugen runs after Inigo slays four guards in seconds. It so perfectly fit the character. Not just the running but also the look on his face and the use he puts his escape to. Rugen is a coward, but he's a crafty coward.
- If there's one weak link in the entire movie it's Robin Wright (Penn). Everyone else in the film seems to fully embody their characters and fill almost every action with nuance that hints at interesting quirks below the surface. Buttercup is simply there; all surface. And that might be the point. She's a beautiful girl who is more than a little naive and doesn't give much thought to the world around her. And yet, I've never seen Robin Wright in a role that wasn't like that. Granted, I haven't seen her in all that much (not to mention that good roles for women are rare), but I've been less than impressed with her. Couldn't you have slotted virtually any young, attractive actress into the Buttercup role and got the same performance? Or let's say you put Helen Slater in the role (The Secret of My Succe$$ came out the same year, and I think Robin Wright could've played the Christy role just fine), wouldn't Buttercup have been just a little more interesting?
VIEW 22 of 22 COMMENTS
what's happenin, man.
A sequel to the book is in the works, so who knows, maybe a sequel to the movie as well?
Personally, Ive got to go with book over movie, almost every time. Perhaps for no other reason than the method which they are delivered, laying in bed vs. sticky floors and crying babies. Though, there are a few exceptions.