The Princess Bride
The Princess Bride is a 1987 American fantasy adventure comedy film directed and co-produced by Rob Reiner and starring Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Christopher Guest, Wallace Shawn, André the Giant, and Robin Wright. Adapted by William Goldman from his 1973 novel, it tells the story of a swashbuckling farmhand named Westley, accompanied by companions befriended along the way, who must rescue his true love Princess Buttercup from the odious Prince Humperdinck. The film preserves the novel's metafictional narrative style by presenting the story as a book being read by a grandfather to his sick grandson. The film was first released in the United States on September 25, 1987, and was well received by critics at the time. After only having modest initial box-office success, it has over time become a cult film and gained recognition as one of the best films of the 1980s as well as one of Reiner's best works. The film is number 50 on the Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies", number 88 on The American Film Institute's (AFI) "AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions" list of the 100 greatest film love stories, and 46 in Channel 4's 50 Greatest Comedy Films list. The film also won the 1988 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation. In 2016, the film was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant".
This will all soon be but a happy memory because Roberts' ship, Revenge, is anchored at the far end. And I, as you know, am Roberts. But how is that possible since he's been marauding 20 years and you only left me five years ago? I, myself, am often surprised at life's little quirks.
The Princess Bride
Three years he said that. "Good night, Westley. Good work. Sleep well. I'll most likely kill you in the morning." It was a fine time for me. I was learning to fence, to fight. Anything anyone would teach me. And Roberts and I eventually became friends. - And then it happened. - What?
The Princess Bride
Go on. Well, Roberts had grown so rich he wanted to retire, so he took me to his cabin and told me his secret. "I am not the Dread Pirate Roberts," he said. "My name is Ryan. I inherited the ship from the previous Dread Pirate Roberts, just as you will inherit it from me. The man I inherited it from was not the real Dread Pirate Roberts either. His name was Cumberbund. The real Roberts has been retired 15 years and living like a king in Patagonia." Thank you. Then he explained the name was the important thing for inspiring the necessary fear. You see, no one would surrender to the Dread Pirate Westley.
The Princess Bride
We'll never succeed. We may as well die here. No. No. We have already succeeded. I mean, what are the three terrors of the Fire Swamp? One, the flame spurt. No problem. There's a popping sound preceding each. We can avoid that. Two, the lightning sand. But you were clever enough to discover what that looks like. So in the future we can avoid that too. Westley, what about the ROUS's? Rodents of Unusual Size? I don't think they exist. Westley!
The Princess Bride