Book Signing: Cary Elwes and The Princess Bride

On Monday, I made the trek through traffic laden LA to reach Book Soup, which is an iconic bookstore in West Hollywood, that I've sadly never been to before.  The fact that I've finally been was a great occasion for me, but even better that I went because Cary Elwes was signing copies of his new book "As You Wish" which I reviewed on Wednesday.  And really loved.  It made me see The Princess Bride in a new light and appreciate it more.  It's astonishing to find out that it didn't really do well when it was first released!

The bookstore was packed (it was also a bit small, so that didn't help) but I got a standing spot in the back and I could pretty much see Cary for most of the Q&A.  The moderator asked him many specific questions on the stories that Cary writes about in his book, which I was pretty much familiar with since I had read it already.  But it was fun to hear Cary do his version of the voices of William Goldman, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal and Andre the Giant when he referred to them.  And it was also so heartwarming to see and hear him talk about the movie because of how much he loved being a part of it.

After the moderator asked his questions, he opened the floor to the audience and there were some great questions - one that I always like to know is if he had kept any props from the filming - and Cary said he was given his sword, but he made a present of it to the director Rob Reiner because he felt that was the right thing to do.  I should think he would keep it though after all the work he put into the sword fight!  I uploaded an audio clip of a couple other questions below - someone asked him how many times he's seen The Princess Bride (surprisingly not that many times!) and then they followed up with if his daughter had seen the film.  Which led to a really inevitable comment on Frozen.

The bookstore only allowed photos from the signing line, so I only snapped the one above as Cary was signing my book.  I wish I had snapped another when he was looking up, because he made a point to look at everyone, shake their hand, and address them personally.  And of course all I could think of was how good looking he is! :D  Because, wow. /shallow  But I'm really so grateful when celebrities/authors try to give a moment to their fans like that, by making eye contact.  I appreciate that they are trying to engage everyone for a short time at least.  And how cool that he signed every book with 'As you wish'!!  That means 'I love you' right?? :D

Since reading the book I've watched The Princess Bride three times now - just to see some of the things Cary mentions about certain scenes and also because I'm finding I'm even more in love with this movie.  There's so much to it, and so much happens but it all feels cohesive and paces just right. And the humor of it is perfection.  Cary was asked at the Q&A what his favorite line in the film was and he said "Anybody want a peanut" which always gets him for some reason.  And I identified with that, because when I did my first re-watch of the movie recently, that line got me too.  It's so understated and unexpected!

Like I said in my review of the book, if you are a fan of the film you will enjoy this book, and I'm so happy that Cary decided to write it!

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

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride
by Cary Elwes
Memoir
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

From actor Cary Elwes, who played the iconic role of Westley in The Princess Bride, comes a first-person account and behind-the-scenes look at the making of the cult classic film filled with never-before-told stories, exclusive photographs, and interviews with costars 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.

The Princess Bride has been a family favorite for close to three decades. 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, The Princess Bride will continue to resonate with audiences for years to come.

Cary Elwes was inspired to share his memories and give fans an unprecedented look into the creation of the film while participating in the twenty-fifth anniversary cast reunion. In As You Wish he has created an enchanting experience; in addition to never-before seen photos and interviews with his fellow cast mates, there are plenty of set secrets, backstage stories, and answers to lingering questions about off-screen romances that have plagued fans for years!

With a foreword by Rob Reiner and a limited edition original poster by acclaimed artist Shepard Fairey, As You Wish is a must-have for all fans of this beloved film.

Review:

The Princess Bride is a magical film.  I loved it when I first saw it and continue to find so much to delight in with every rewatch.  But even though I love the film, I never really delved into how it got made or what the costars thought of the film.  Thankfully though, this book supplies all that knowledge and more.

I listened to this on audiobook which I highly recommend.  Actually I think it's best to get this book in both formats - because the audiobook is read by Cary Elwes and for all the interviews the individual people involved with the production read it, so it's a great experience listening to everyone recount their own stories.  But the physical book has photos which I missed out on! (Although I now own a copy of the book too.)  The audiobook is very entertaining to listen to on-the-go because Cary has a way of making you feel like he is conversationally sharing this great history of the movie with you.  His personable reading and writing make for a fantastic listening experience.  And bonus that in the audiobook Cary does the voices of the different people he's talking about.

What I loved the most about this book was how detailed it was about the whole process of making a film.  It's a long and involved undertaking that I think must apply to the inception of most films (except for the part where the script is excellently written and conceived) and it's interesting to understand how much work went into the production.  And the book details the process in a way that showed how each piece of the puzzle fit together.  From securing the script, to finding the right actors, to learning difficult skills to portray on the screen - it all was set out as this great journey with the end result being this wonderful film.  I especially loved how Cary teased out the experience of learning to sword fight in preparation to filming the greatest sword fight sequence on film.

This is a marvelous read, and truly touching in some parts as stories are shared about Andre the Giant, who seemed like a truly remarkable and warm-hearted person, and as the people involved with the film share how much it has meant to them over the years.  If you love the film, you will definitely love this book!