The Princess Bride Blu-ray and DVD
Cary Elwes, Robin Wright Penn, Mandy Patinkin
Wallace Shawn, Andre the Giant, Peter Falk
Directed by Rob Reiner
Widescreen 1:85:1
Originally released 1987
MGM Home Entertainment 2009
Rob Reiner’s The Princess Bride is a great comedy. It is also a superb action movie, a wonderful romantic film, a thrilling adventure movie, and a very funny spoof of princess in distress movies. Very few movies manage to be everything they wanted to be, this is the exception. If you have seen family comedy, you will be very pleased to learn The Princess Bride Blu-ray also includes the 20th Anniversary DVD of the movie. Here’s hoping this is a marketing trend that will become a must.
Here, the Blu-ray is visibly better than the DVD version and worth the extra few bucks if you are a true fan of this movie.
For those who vaguely remember The Princess Bride it is the story of Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright Penn) and her undying love for a farm boy (Cary Elwes) and the story of Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) a Spanish swashbuckler out to avenge his father’s death. Add a pirate, a giant, a Prince, an evil underling, and a few other strange characters and you get a great, great story and movie.
Buttercup has been sad ever since her true love was killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts. She is scheduled to marry the Prince but is kidnapped by a short man (Wallace Shawn) and his two associates; a giant and Inigo Montoya, a Spanish swordfighter. She is rescued by a mysterious man, finds true love, only to lose it again because of the Prince’s machinations. The giant and Inigo Montoya become good guys and help rescue the princess.
Throw in a great supporting cast including Billy Crystal and Carol Kane as the old sorcerer and his nagging wife, a very imaginative script, some great sight gags, fun adventures and action, and everything else a movie should be and you get The Princess Brfide.
Do not forget, “My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.”
The easter egg on The Princess Bride Blu-ray is hidded in the set-up: scroll down until you highlight the fleur-de-lys for a make-up featurette.
The 20th Anniversary Princess Bride DVD included in this release includes these extra features:Untold Tales, Art of Fencing, Fairy Tales and Folklore, and a neat screen game for the kiddies.
Blu-Ray Disc Special Features:
The Princess Bride Blu-Ray Disc is presented in widescreen with English 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio, Spanish Mono and French Dolby Surround, along with English, French and Spanish subtitles. Bonus features include: Audio Commentary by Rob Reiner Audio Commentary by William Goldman (Reiner’s commentary is better) As You Wish: The Story of The Princess Bride Cary Elwes Video Diary Miraculous Makeup The Dread Pirate Roberts: Greatest Pirate of the Seven Seas Love is Like a Storybook The Princess Bride The Untold Tales featurette The Art of Fencing featurette Fairytales and Folklore featurette Original theatrical trailer Easter Eggs
The 20th Anniversary Princess Bride DVD comes with the Untold Tales, Art of Fencing, and Fairy Tales and Folklore plus a fairly decent screen game for the kids.