The Princess Bride Movie And Book Comparison

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Both the movie and the book for The Princess Bride are favourites of mine. They both describe the story of Westley, Buttercup, and their unlikely comrades. However, are these two different takes on the story as similar as they seem? Let’s take at the themes, characterization, and moods of these two genres and see if they hold up to each other as much as we think. First, we will be looking at the theme. In the book, the main theme would be the everlasting power of love. This is proven time and time again as Westley relentlessly pursues Buttercup, despite the obstacles he faces, as Buttercup prepares to die rather than be away from the one she loves, and as Westley overcomes even death itself. Buttercup even says that true love “cannot be tracked, not with a thousand bloodhounds, and you cannot break it, not with a thousand swords.” The movie lays claim to the same theme as well, as the characters do amazing things in the name of love. So, when it comes to theme, The Princess Bride movie holds up …show more content…
In the book, William Goldman dives deep into the minds of each character. Not only does the perspective change frequently, but we are also shown the backstories of many characters, whether it be watching Inigo train to beat the man who killed his father, or seeing Fezzik grow up as an outcast, doomed to always be too strong to fit in. All of this brings us closer to the characters as we start to understand their motives through understanding who they are. However, the movie cuts much of this out. While we know that Inigo’s father was killed, and that he trained to get revenge, we don’t get to see the pain Inigo went through. We learn next to nothing about Fezzik’s journey, and even Buttercup’s realization of love isn’t shown. We still love the characters, but it isn’t in the same, intimate way we learn to love the book’s