'The Princess Bride' 30th Anniversary Trailer: The Greatest Bedtime Story

While “The Princess Bride” seems like the kind of movie that couldn’t get made now, it’s a miracle it got made back then. It took nearly two decades for William Goldman‘s 1973 novel (which is pretty damn great on its own) to find its way to the big screen, but when it finally did, the mix of ingredients was absolutely perfect.

Directed by Rob Reiner, and featuring a terrific ensemble cast — Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Wallace Shawn, Andre The Giant,  Christopher Guest, Peter Falk, Fred Savage — who couldn’t be better, the meta and arch bedtime story is endlessly hilarious, charming, and romantic. It’s a movie riffs on the tropes of the fairy tale genre, while also falling knowingly into them too. Here’s the synopsis:

When the beautiful maiden Buttercup (Robin Wright) hears that her true love Westley (Cary Elwes) is dead, she reluctantly agrees to marry the loathsome Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon). After Westley returns to rescue Buttercup, the two begin an epic adventure filled with fencing, ¬fighting, giants, monsters, miracles, true love and hilarity!

“The Princess Bride” will return to cinemas in the U.K. for one night only on Monday, October 23rd. Hopefully some stateside chains get in on the fun too.