Today’s post is Book vs Film focusing on The Princess Bride. On this occasion I will briefly review both film and book before giving my opinion on which is better. Read and let me know if I am correct in my assessment.
Be warned! Spoilers may occur!
The Book:
I love that this is a story within a story, and that there have been add-ons and notes as the story has progressed in time, for example my edition talks a little about the film and its portrayal. Although I did buy into the fact that there is a full S. Morganstern’s version somewhere in the world. And I would really like to read that version 😉
It feels like the story is continuous and timeless. Something that can be read over and over again. It is a classic and one that can be easily read and enjoyed.
I found that despite taking me time reading this book it was easy to pick up and get back into the story, right from the moment I left off. Maybe it is because I had watched the film before reading and so know the story already quite well. Or maybe it is the writing style that means that the book is so easy to get back into?
The Film:
For me this is a film that give me feelings of nostalgia ever time I watch it. I remember the first time I watched this movie, I was 9 and it was the end of term. I remember my classmates and I being a bit outraged about all the fighting, and there was exclamations that the film was the highest rated film, the most violent film we had ever watched. Despite these remarks I think it is safe to say that the film was a hit with us all and now has a place in my heart.
The great thing about the film is that it is adapted by the original novelist, meaning that any changes made are skilled and fit appropriately into the themes already in the book.
This is a film that has the ‘best bits’ tied lovingly together. And takes many of the great one-liners from the book, delivering them with perfection.
For me The Princess Bride is a film that has it all, there is romance (or true love), fighting, fencing, the use of wits, chases and chances, magic and monsters. Basically it is a film that can be enjoyed no matter what you are in the mood for. And when I started watching this film I wasn’t really in the mood, but by the end I was laughing, swooning over Westley’s and Buttercup’s true love declarations and applauding the defeat of any baddie.
This is a film that has become a classic go-to film for me.
Opinion:
For me the film perfects a pretty perfect book. In the film we are spared the long details of background, the roving interpretations to shorten the work. For me this loss of narration makes the film a more enjoyable story.
The film also is lighter than the book, as many dark moments are cut, as are some of the strange background of some of the minor characters, making for a more ‘family friendly film’.
The book took me far to long to read (well over a year), and despite being enjoyable I didn’t feel particularly gripped with it.
Perhaps its the nostalgia of having seen the film first, but for me the film will always hold a special place in my heart.
Winner:
The film wins, probably for those nostalgia feelings…
Leave a Reply