One of my favorite memories of when the VHS format gave way to DVD was when a great list of catalog titles were re-released on DVD, and usually at an extremely attractive price. Not only did it allow the collector to quickly build a collection, it also gave them the benefits of higher quality audio and video of movies they loved.
With the HD-format wars a thing of the past, and a rapidly increasing number of households possessing Blu-ray players or PS3s, we are now similarly seeing more good quality value titles emerge in Blu-ray. One of these is the cinematic classic, Rob Reiner’s “The Princess Bride”.
I first saw this movie at the tender age of 18 and was rather confused by my reaction to it. How could a semi-rebellious, heavy-metal loving teen male possibly enjoy a movie about true love and a Princess? For some reason I did. And now that I am a 39 year-old heavy-metal loving professional, did I still enjoy this movie the same?
Film 
If you have kids, make sure you watch this movie with them. If you don’t have kids, go borrow someone else’s and watch the movie with them. Excepting a very select few other movies, “The Princess Bride” is about as close to a perfect family movie as you can get.
For those who have not seen the movie, it has an interesting narrative framework. “The Princess Bride” is the title of a book that a Grandfather (Peter Falk) is reading to his sick grandson (Fred Savage). Although the movie starts with, has numerous narrative appearances by, and ends with this duo, the majority of the film centers on the story itself.
Starting in the medieval country of Florin, we discover our heroine Buttercup (ably played by Robin Wright-Penn), and her farm boy, Weseley (Cary Elwes in his best role). As happens in fairy tales, the two experience “true love”, and Weseley must set forth on a quest to seek his fortune for the couple’s future.
Unfortunately, Buttercup receives news that Wesley is dead at the hands of the “Dread Pirate Roberts”, and in despair, agrees to marry Prince Humperdink (Chris Sarandon), an impressive looking yet cowardly royal heir. Due to some evil behind-the-scenes machinations, Buttercup is kidnapped shortly thereafter, and spirited off to the country of Guilder, Florin’s enemy. However, Buttercup and her kidnappers are followed by a mysterious man dressed in black who appears to be determined to save Buttercup from both her kidnappers and Prince Humperdink.
Suffice it to say that many adventures follow, including swordfights, dangerous swamps, treachery, and a miraculous reincarnation, performed by Miracle Max (Billy Crystal in a great cameo). By the end of the movie, all the people with truly good hearts are fighting against all the people with truly bad hearts, neatly concluded with a happy ending.
What else is there to state about this movie? That the main actors are perfect, with Robin Wright-Penn displaying a necessary refinement and haughtiness, and Cary Elwes showing a surprising gift for physical comedy? That the supporting cast, including Sarandon, Christopher Guest (as Count Rugen), Mandy Patinkin (Inigo Montoya), Andre the Giant (Fezzik) and the scene-stealing Wallace Shawn (Vizzini) are equally adept in their roles? That the interjection of Savage and Falk ground the story in “our” world, and interject a heartwarming tenderness to the whole proceeding?
It is truly hard to say anything negative about this movie. The mixture of comedy, action, romance and adventure is perfectly balanced, and shows that both the direction and script were of the highest quality. Its runtime is perfect for the material and its target audience. If anything, the intervening twenty-two years have made me appreciate this movie even more.
However, one small word of caution. A few of the scenes could be a bit scary for children six years old and under. If you would like to watch the movie with younger children, I would suggest watching it yourself first and making note of the scenes to skip.
Video 
As a film traditionalist, this is a challenging movie for me to critique. Like most movies of its era, the film has a very natural grain, even in daylight shots. MGM did not appear to do a lot of clean up on this transfer, and has left it very natural and period-correct.
In terms of the film purist in me, I want to give the movie 5 out of 5. However, the Blu-ray aficionado I am can only give it a 3, as this HD transfer is only a moderate improvement over the remastered DVD release. A four is therefore a compromise score.
Certainly some details are much sharper (especially costume adornments) on the Blu-Ray, but this remains one of the softer looking Blu-ray’s I’ve seen.
One additional challenge is that this movie appears to have been made with budget constraints, many of which become apparent with the higher quality of Blu-Ray. Some of the effects and sets do look dated, especially considering the strides that CGI and animatronics have made over the last two decades.
In compensation for this, Rob Reiner does have a flair for making the camera fall in love with its subjects. Through lighting, depth of field, soft focus, and various zooms, the characters become compelling and near hypnotic when given their time alone in front of the camera. Potentially a hyper-real cleanup for the Blu-Ray release may have destroyed some of this magic.
Audio 
Based on its era, I was apprehensive that the soundtrack would have dynamic limitations, as well as less surround information than today’s viewer is normally used to. Sadly enough, this was true, with the quality of the audio being less than seen on today’s movies. Voices were harsher, there was limited surround information, and dynamic levels were not balanced well for dialog.
On one positive note, this was a very “stereo-heavy” mix which gave Mark Knopfler’s guitar music throughout the movie a beautiful rich quality to it. Next time I watch the movie, I may actually opt to watch it in a “truer to the original” stereo mix.
Special Features 
In purchasing a movie of this quality, special features do have limited appeal. And unfortunately, preserving my favourite special feature (deleted scenes) wasn’t a consideration in 1987.
This being stated, the volume of special features is more than adequate for a value title, even though most are not in HD.
Disc one includes is the original trailer; very interesting when seeing how today’s trailers have evolved since 1987. Also included are two commentaries, both Rob Reiner’s, and William Goldman’s (author of the book on which the movie is based, and the screenwriter).
Disc one also contains over 90 minutes of featurettes. Some I enjoyed (such as the all too short “Cary Elwes Diary”, and “The Untold Tales”), and some didn’t really add value (“Love is Like a Storybook” and “Miraculous Make Up”).
The second disc appears to be the 20th Anniversary release of the DVD version of the movie, therefore repeating some of the bonus material located on the Blu-ray disc. However, the DVD also contains the “official” game of the Princess Bride on this disc. Generally, I could not picture anyone over the age of 10 enjoying the games. However, at least it is a free copy for the kids to wreck instead of the Blu-ray.
Final Thoughts
If you don’t own this movie, I have to wonder, “Why not?” This is the type of film that makes movie going so enjoyable; you have a lasting impression of the movie, days, months, and even years after it is over. Not only is it a great family movie, it is a great movie, period. At value pricing, or inclusion in budget packs with other Blu-ray’s, there is no better time to add this movie to your collection.
