Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Combining dead-on perfect casting, superb direction, an impeccable comedic script and sumptuous visuals, The Princess Bride is a marvellous piece of cinematic storytelling that, thanks to its brilliant combination of childlike wonder and adult sarcasm (that in itself being a great feat), is accessible to viewers of all ages. The enchanting Robin Wright is wonderful in the title role, with her expressive face and aura of melancholy. Her accent is so convincing that for years I actually thought she was English. (she's from California.) Cary Elwes' cocky, eccentric turn as Westley, the dashing swordsman with a smart mouth, is a stereotyped persona that remains with him to this day, but it works beautifully in this film. Mandy Patinkin and Wallace Shawn add their impeccable comic timing as alcoholic swordsman Inigo and the viciously arrogant Vizzini, and Andre the Giant is lovable as "rhyme-loving giant Fezzik". And The Princess Bride sports two great movie villains in Chris Sarandon's Prince Humperdinck and Christopher Guest's Count Rugen, both evil to the core but so charismatically played by the actors that they come off as truly worthy opponents to the chivalric Westley and Inigo. William Goldman is of course a demigod in the world of screenwriting, his lines sharp and his narrative tight and engrossing, while Rob Reiner's comic-book execution fits the tone of the story perfectly without sacrifice moments of tension, drama, or depth. High points: Goldman wrote in his screenplay "one of the two greatest swordfights in modern movies" and Reiner delivers with Westley's duel with Inigo; the encounter with Miracle Max and his wife Valerie (Billy Crystal and Carol Kane in delightful cameos); Fezzik's wrestling match with Westley; the nail-biting entrance of the R.O.U.S.; the hilarious meeting on the castle wall; Westley's showdown with Vizzini. This movie belongs in any collection.