Entertainment Weekly recently dedicated an entire issue to the "New Classics", films released within the last twenty-five years that have resonated within American culture and are sure to be the lasting films of the future. The biggest omission in their list of 100, in my mind, was 1987's THE PRINCESS BRIDE, which aired on Reel 13 last night. It's cinematic quality notwithstanding, it seems to me that THE PRINCESS BRIDE is easily one of the most beloved, admired and quotable films ("Inconceivable", "My name is Inigo Montoya…" etc.) of the last twenty-five years. I am heartily disappointed that films like Brian DePalma's SCARFACE and THE SIXTH SENSE are considered to be more well-remembered on EW's list.
With that out of the way, suffice it to say that I am among those that consider THE PRINCESS BRIDE to be an outstanding and perhaps more importantly, very fun film. It features a tight, clever script from one of the all-time great screenwriters, William Goldman, who made sure the film's tongue was firmly planted in its cheek throughout. The performances are all outstanding, from top-to-bottom. Even Andre the Giant is endearing, though his performance I think was carefully molded and manipulated by director Rob Reiner, which is fine. While watching the film, I was trying to decide if this was Reiner's best film – there are many moments that are staged and shot with wonderfully comic precision – but I decided to bestow that honor on WHEN HARRY MET SALLY. If anything, THE PRINCESS BRIDE does have occasional moments that drag (the torture stuff, for example, goes on a little long) and at times, is almost too kitschy for its own good. Part of the fun of the film is that it doesn't take itself seriously, but that might also be its main drawback because it's this very quality that prevents the film from having any significant emotional impact. WHEN HARRY MET SALLY, on the other hand, is both fun and honest. It feels very real.
Perhaps my primary issue with seeing THE PRINCESS BRIDE last night is that it was on Reel 13 Classics at all. Earlier in the year, Reel 13 set a precedent with their airing of THE PAPER CHASE (1973) for its 35th anniversary. It was supposed to be the most recent film they showed the entire year. Now, we have THE PRINCESS BRIDE, BIG next week and THE LAST EMPEROR in August, all of which were released within my lifetime. As much as I love some of these films, I take issue when the classic and the indie were made within 12 years of each other. It defeats the purpose of what my understanding of what Reel 13 was supposed to be – a celebration of the art of cinema by the airing and linking of films of yesteryear and the low-budget, lower profile films of recent years. The best part about these films was that they were films that modern audiences generally don't have the opportunity to experience or at least, they are films that they either aren't aware of or wouldn't think to seek out on their own. THE PRINCESS BRIDE, et al remains a large part of our modern cultural consciousness and is consistently available on cable, etc. As good a film as it is, it's no great unearthing by the Reel 13 curators. My assumption is that they broke their own rules in an effort for better ratings, which for a public television station, is an unfortunate disappointment. At one point, I held Reel 13 on an artistic pedestal. Now, it looks like they sold out.