The Princess Bride (1987)

While home sick in bed, a young boy's grandfather reads him a story called The Princess Bride.

Director:

Rob Reiner

Writers:

William Goldman (book), William Goldman (screenplay)

Stars:

Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Robin Wright

Top Rated Movies #213 | Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 7 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cary Elwes	...	Westley
Mandy Patinkin	...	Inigo Montoya
Chris Sarandon	...	Prince Humperdinck
Christopher Guest	...	Count Rugen
Wallace Shawn	...	Vizzini
André the Giant	...	Fezzik (as Andre the Giant)
Fred Savage	...	The Grandson
Robin Wright	...	The Princess Bride
Peter Falk	...	The Grandfather
Peter Cook	...	The Impressive Clergyman
Mel Smith	...	The Albino
Carol Kane	...	Valerie
Billy Crystal	...	Miracle Max
Anne Dyson	...	The Queen
Margery Mason	...	The Ancient Booer

Storyline

An elderly man reads the book "The Princess Bride" to his sick and thus currently bedridden adolescent grandson, the reading of the book which has been passed down within the family for generations. The grandson is sure he won't like the story, with a romance at its core, he preferring something with lots of action and "no kissing". But the grandson is powerless to stop his grandfather, whose feelings he doesn't want to hurt. The story centers on Buttercup, a former farm girl who has been chosen as the princess bride to Prince Humperdinck of Florian. Buttercup does not love him, she who still laments the death of her one true love, Westley, five years ago. Westley was a hired hand on the farm, his stock answer of "as you wish" to any request she made of him which she came to understand was his way of saying that he loved her. But Westley went away to sea, only to be killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts. On a horse ride to clear her mind of her upcoming predicament of marriage, Buttercup...

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Plot Keywords:

true love | giant | fairy tale | pirate | princess | 

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Taglines:

Heroes. Giants. Villains. Wizards. True Love. - Not just your basic, average, everyday, ordinary, run-of-the-mill, ho-hum fairy tale.

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 October 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Princess Bride

Filming Locations:

Penshurst Place, Penshurst, Kent, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$16,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$206,243, 27 September 1987, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$30,857,814

Company Credits

Production Co:

Act III Communications,Buttercup Films Ltd.,The Princess Bride Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 'Dread Pirate Roberts' costume was modeled after that of infamous vigilante Zorro, only leaving out the cape as it was felt it was unnecessary and the hat as it does not suit the character.

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Goofs

Prince Humperdinck tells Buttercup his "entire armada will escort them on their honeymoon". She questions this, as he had promised to send his four fastest ships after Westley. Yellin, the captain of the guard, excuses himself from the room, bowing and saying "Your majesty". Humperdinck is still only a prince a this time, as it's before his father's death and would be referred to as "your highness". Majesty is only for Kings, Queens, Emperors and Empresses.

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Quotes

Count Rugen: Your princess is quite a winning creature. A trifle simple, perhaps. Her appeal is undeniable.
Prince Humperdinck: I know, the people are quite taken with her. It's odd, but when I hired Vizzini to have her murdered on our engagement day, I thought that was clever. But it's going to be so much more moving when I strangle her on our wedding night. Once Guilder is blamed, the nation will truly be outraged - they'll demand we go to war.
Count Rugen: [snickers, then examines a huge tree] Now where is that secret knot? It's ...
[...]

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Alternate Versions

In the edited TV version of "The Princess Bride" the word, "Bitch" said by Inigo Montoya is muted out.

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Connections

Referenced in Mirrormask (2005)

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Soundtracks

Florin Dance
Written by Mark Knopfler

User Reviews

Fantastic and funny fairy tale

I love this movie! It's sweet, but with satirical humor. The dialogue is great and the adventure scenes are fun. Rob Reiner shows an excellent touch once again with comedy and a childlike point of view. It manages to be whimsical romantic while laughing at the conventions of the fairy tale genre. I would recommend it to just about anyone. I've seen it several times, and I'm always happy to see it again whenever I have a friend who hasn't seen it yet. I haven't watched it with any kids, but I think it has lots for them too. There are wonderful quotes throughout. I think Mandy Patinkin absolutely steals the scenes he is in as the Spaniard Inigo Montoya, bent on avenging his father's death. I gave it 8 out of 10 mainly because it feels very light, but I may go back and change to 9 thinking of how happy this movie makes me and it's rewatchability.