Tuesday, August 4, 2009

"Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father, prepare to die."

Welcome to August, the month of the Princess Bride!

I haven't finished reading the book yet but I have seen the movie a zillion times. Played and replayed on the good old VHS (CDs were non existent) my Dad "copied" for us. He even photocopied the cover and we had a proper case for it, that's how much we loved this movie at my house!

SO, what I was wondering to start with, have you seen the movie? Have you read the book? What do you think is the best line/monologue in the book or movie?

And did you know that S. Morgenstern is also a "fictional character" in Goldman's novel??

Feel free to make any suggestions/comments as I have no idea what I'm doing :D

22 comments:

detecktive said...

I've seen the movie dozens of times but never read the book (which I plan to).

The danger this month will be that we'll just descend into Princess Bride quoting as it has some of the best lines of any movie ever!

Some tidbits include:

'I am not left handed either!'
'Get used to disappointment'
'Iocane powder...I bet my life on it'
'Never go against a Sicilian when death is on the line'
'Never fight a land war in Asia'
'Inconceivable!'
'Death cannot stop true love...only delay it a bit'
'Why do you where a mask? Were you burned by acid or something?'
'Oh no, I just think masks are incredibly comfortable and everyone will be wearing them in the future.'
'Is this a kissing book?'


Case in point. Sorry, got a bit carried away there.

The Princess Bride is one of the funniest, wittiest movies I've ever seen and I find it just as awesome today as when I first saw it. Hope the book is the same.

Lauviah said...

"As you wish" (how could you forget that one?!)

I absolutely adore this movie. This is when I fell in love with Cary Elwes (before Men In Tights).

I was pleasantly surprised when one of my friends told me that Goldman made up the original author (and the biography of himself, actually). Here I am reading the 'abridged' version and all about Goldman's shrink wife, etc and it wasn't even true!

I have only started reading it, but endeavour to actually finish it by the end of the month (making this my first bookclub participation of the year! Woohoo!).

I can almost quote the entire movie (but hey, the same goes for Wayne's World and Men In Tights... so...'nough said).

Would you call S. Morgenstern a fictional character or more a pseudonym that he wrote under? I wonder why he chose to do this? I suppose it appealed better to an audience of non-readers (as he claims he was as a child) by acting as though he really was picking out the best bits of a book.

There's a charm about the movie in its story, casting and acting that makes it a classic for anyone who's seen it.

:)

Lauviah said...

Actually, does anyone know how successful it was upon its release in 1973?

Nic said...

Hmm... I don't know.

Did you know the movie was nominated for an oscar? Best Original Song for Storybook Love which is kind of disappointing because it has to be at the absolute bottom of the "good things about this movie" list. But it did win a Hugo award for Best Dramatic Presentation, so I guess that makes up for it :)

I love this movie so much that I also have a copy of the soundtrack...on cassette. And so much that I actually wasn't fussed with the book, but I've only read it once and will read it again this month to see if I am just predjudiced, since Goldman wrote the screenplay as well as the book. I think the whole "Morgenstern" thing really jarred with me in the book and I would have preferred it as a straight story.

I think EVERY line is good in the movie, there's not a bad one in it - so I'm going to add "Anyone want a peanut?"

Hettie Betty said...

'Sleep well, and dream of large women.'

I also cherish this story from my childhood. As I mentioned once before, my family watched a copy of this film that we taped during the Barcelona Olympics (Channel 7 had its Olympic logo show after every ad break)for a great many years, before we finally upgraded to a real video in about 2002 (this was after dvds but before they were standard)and now I have it on dvd too.
I also borrowed a copy of the book from Woy Woy library in probably 1998 to read at school and I have raved about how funny the book is to anyone who will listen ever since. I have my own copy which I am reading now and will try getting through quickly to pass on to anyone else who wants a look.
I quite like the biographical inserts between the narrative, it's as if Goldman is working us up to a passion and excitement about the story of Buttercup to the same level as him as the author. Which obviously works judging my all the fans in this book club to start with.

Sometimes, when I'm writing emails that introduce myself and I start them with 'Hello, my name is....' I really want to continue with 'Inigo Montoya' and send it, just to see what the recipient would do.

Hettie Betty said...

'Do you want me to send you back to where you were? Unemployed... in GREENLAND?!'

Oh man, I this could be the entire blog this month. Quotes and quotes.

爱书 said...

ummmm...............

please don't throw anything at me but I have to admit I have never actually watched the movie *she ducks*

I kinda remember it being on in the backgroud once so I have vague picture snapshots in my brain but when you actually dig around ... nothing there

I promise to make up for it this month by READING the book and WATCHING the film

Actually, I will do an experiment and read it first - this will show if Nicole was unduly influenced by the moving people or if the film is in deed better than the print

Nic said...

While I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'VE NEVER SEEN THE PRINCESS BRIDE, I applaud your scientific theorising and will be very interested to hear the results!

detecktive said...

You know, you keep using that word.

I do not think it means what you think it means.

detecktive said...

True love is the greatest things of all.

Unless you have a MLT where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomatoes are ripe...those are so perky, I love that.

Gem said...

I'm loving this quote thing, I think apart from "As you wish", my favourite is the dialogue between Wesley (oh my sweet Westley) and Humperdinck near the end of the movie, "I'll explain and I'll use small words so that you'll be sure to understand, you warthog faced buffoon" and especially the bit at the end... "It's possible Pig, I might be bluffing. It's conceivable you miserable, vomitous mass, that I'm only lying here beacause I lack the strength to stand. But, then again, perhaps I have the strength after all (cue loud stirring triumphant music)Drop. Your. Sword."

I have always wanted to call someone a miserable, vomitous mass (to their face)

detecktive said...

I'm surprised you haven't had a chance yet given you're in public service...(maybe inner monologue?)

One of the best things about the story I thought is that it has a believeable and touching love story, while still being witty and downright hilarious. You really believe that Buttercup and Wesley have true love and that nothing can stand in its way. [WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD] You even feel genuine hurt, anger and betrayal that Wesley communicates to Buttercup as the man in black when he tells her of 'Wesley's fate'.

However - it does make me wonder what he would have done if she told him she really had betrayed him...

Lauviah said...

I must say, my sister and I use Fizzik's quote of "Hello lady!" (at the end with the four white steeds) quite a bit.

As I'm reading this, I don't know if I'm getting annoyed or amused that Goldman keeps butting in not only as Morgenstern claiming that Adam was the first hairdresser and such, but as himself, doing us a favour by summing up 56 and a half pages in a few words and then adding his own thoughts and fictional biography.

I think everyone loved Westley, he's hell better than any Prince Charming - he's actually got personality and wit ;p

爱书 said...

I have finished the book and I await the chance to watch the movie...let the experiment continue

I didn't mind Goldman butting in, it was a part of the whole for me, a part of the satire of the work, plus I like witty asides like that. I think it adds to the novel rather than just interrupting it.

Hettie Betty said...

I don't remember this happening last time I read the book, but this time I had real trouble reading the story without seeing the movie in my head.
I'd get to a bit I knew off by heart and have to stop reading as the movie scene played out in my head and then continue whilst being keenly aware of any differences between book and film.

Any other movie fans had this experience?

The book parts that weren't in the film however, such as the personal histories of the characters had me imagining different people to the characters from the movie that I imagined during familiar scenes. Does that make sense?

Did everyone elses copy have the Buttercup's Baby bit at the end? What did you think of that?

detecktive said...

Just watched the movie again.

Ever heard of Plato, Aristotle, Socrates?

Morons.

爱书 said...

Do you mean her dream sequence Hettie? When she was going through the dire consequences of choosing to marry the Prince

detecktive said...

For those who haven't got an edition that includes the Buttercups Baby epilogue, see

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Princess_Bride#Buttercup.27s_Baby

Nic said...

I remembered being slightly disappointed to get the history of the characters as it interfered with my mental image of them, but i think this is a "seen the movie first" issue. I'm actually quite looking forward to rereading the book to see what I make of it now!

Nic said...

My brother's "minister" used the below as his sermon-starter at his second wedding (the fake, drunken aussie one after the serious, legal American one)

Mawage. Mawage is wot bwings us togeder tooday. Mawage, that bwessed awangment, that dweam wifin a dweam...
And wuv, tru wuv, will fowow you foweva...
so tweasure your wuv.

detecktive said...

Aahhh Peter Cook.

We miss you buddy.

detecktive said...

I have just started reading the book - am a couple of chapters in.

Its funny, I'm strangely absorbed in the narrative despite having seen the movie first.

HOWEVER

I am finding as I read that a) as Hettie Bettie said, Goldman's input is a little distracting and b) I keep wanting to rush to the parts of dialogue I recognise so I can replay it in my head (with of course, the cast from the movie).

Weird.

It is good though to get a bit more background on the characters (like Count Rugen and Humperdinck for example).