By Cary Elwes, with Joe Layden
Touchstone, 2014. 259 pages. Nonfiction.
The Princess Bride was first released in 1987, but it wasn't until it came out on VHS a year later that the lines "As you wish!", "Inconceivable", and "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die" became household staples for lovers of the cult classic movie. Now, 25 years after its initial release, Cary Elwes (the Man in Black himself) recounts the many stories that went on behind the scenes of the four-month filming of this beloved movie, with assists from the rest of the cast.
Even though I haven't watched The Princess Bride in years, I can still recite most of the movie. (You know you can, too.) What has made it timeless is the way it has something for everyone: action, adventure, love, romance, revenge, remorse, drama, humor. And hearing about how it was made just made the movie itself even more endearing. Did you ever want to know how they made the R.O.U.S.? How Andre the Giant climbed the Cliffs of Insanity? How Westley and Inigo staged the Greatest Swordfight of All Times without stunt doubles? If so, this is the book for you. The writing is light and humorous and gives an entertaining account of how the movie came to be, a story which is just as heartwarming as the movie itself.
JH
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