As You Wish – Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride

Cary Elwes and Joe Layden, foreword by Rob Reiner, release by Touchstone

The fantasy / fairy-tale / swashbuckling-adventure connoisseurs among you will immediately recognize that the head title quotes the cult classic “The Princess Bride” (no need for the subtitle)… And those who have no clue, go and watch the movie! Not having seen it at all is an INCONCEIVABLE mistake! Besides being one of those all-time-classics, it was ranked by the American Film Institute as one of the top 100 Greatest Love Stories and by the Writers Guild of America as one of the top 100 screenplays of all time …

Actor Cary Elwes, who played Westley in this movie, was inspired to share his memories and give fans an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look into the creation of this cult classic film while participating in the twenty-fifth anniversary cast reunion. His first-person account of the making of the film comes with exclusive photographs and interviews with co-stars Robin Wright, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Christopher Guest, and Mandy Patinkin, as well as author and screenwriter William Goldman, producer Norman Lear, and director Rob Reiner.

Well, I assume that for everybody who loves the film as much as I do, this book is a must-have in any case. Yet be assured that this volume offers more than just collector´s value: Elwes´ (and Layden´s) style mirrors the movie´s appeal, the use of language reflects the duelants´ virtuosity; recounts of what happened are spiced with a great sense of humour. Which makes this book extremely entertaining to read – I found myself hypnotized by its spell until 5 a.m. , as I simply was unable to put it down … This book will give you surprising insights, many laughing fits and a bit of heartache as well – in other words, an overall heartwarming experience, just like the movie.

And of course afterwards you want to watch the film again, just to view some iconic scenes from the perspective of newly gained background knowledge … For example, I was stunned to learn that none of the duelists had any fencing experience before making this movie; and I had always assumed that they had been cast for their roles due to their expert skills …

http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/As-You-Wish/Cary-Elwes/9781476764023