Joe Layden

4.5 stars rounded up.

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of 'The Princess Bride' by Cary Elwes with Joe Layden is a wonderful and funny book of anecdotes and other tales of happenings on the set during the making of 'The Princess Bride', a cult-classic movie from the 1980s.

Cary Elwes has a very humble and self-depreciating manner in his narration. He talks about feeling like he is this "nobody" versus Rob Reiner and all the other "Hollywood greats" who worked on the film; not that they ever made him feel that way, it was his own lack of self-confidence. He tells most of the story through his own point of view, but there are parts where the other major actors from the film add their own memories and stories.

Even though he has passed on from this world, Elwes and the other actors do a great job remembering Andre the Giant - sharing stories about him and their interactions with him.

I couldn't stop laughing while reading all the anecdotes. For me, the best part was that even tho' I knew some of the stories and the trivia about the movie, it didn't detract from this book at all. Some stories I knew and some were new to me. Together they made a magical retelling of the making of the movie.

Come live the making of one of the biggest cult-classic movies ever through the eyes of its cast! You won't regret it!… (meer)

What a great book! Cary Elwes is a wonderful writer. Pair that with the subject being a "behind the scenes" look at one of my favorite movies of all time, and this book is a treat to read. It's a great blend of learning a little about Elwes, learning a little about the filming process, and learning a lot about the making of The Princess Bride. Elwes also peppers the book with quotes and excerpts from other cast and crew members, so you get a complete story of certain events.

For sure I'm going to watch the movie again to see if I can catch some of the things he mentions!… (meer)