If, somehow, you’re unfamiliar with the plot of the original and iconic The Princess Bride, allow me to fill you in – with spoilers, because the book was published fifty years ago and the film came out in 1987.

However, having read the book (twice!), I think it’s fair to say that The Princess Will Save You may well cause me to revisit my stance on “feminist” adaptations.

The cover art – by Charlie Bowater – is absolutely stunning.

I adore The Princess Bride and will consume it in any format it presents itself to me in.Ģ. With this in mind, it’s a fair question to ask, “But Yumnah, if you hate “feminist” films/tv/books so much, why on earth would you willingly purchase one?”. Of course, the tide seems to be turning against the “strong female character” in favour of “complex female characters”, but (a) corporations are often slow to respond to public demand when its desires are more nuanced, and (b) The Princess Bride is inherently a swashbuckling adventure, so it’s highly unlikely any “feminist” iteration will feature anything less than the princess being the one to wield the sword. Putting a sword (or the narrative’s weapon of choice) in the woman’s hand as opposed to the man’s doesn’t inherently mean feminism or equal rights: often, the female characters who are physically strong are also hypersexualised and visually hyper-feminine, seemingly as a way of compensating for the reduction of lady-points her ability in combat has cost her. I also think that, all too often, corporations interpret the audience’s desire for feminist portrays in the media and “strong female characters” to mean we want strong fighter ladies – which, admittedly, I am not averse to – and leaving it at that. They seem to think they can just make women the main characters, or have more than one woman present, and they are therefore able to pat themselves on the back and say, “That’s my gender diversity and inclusion done for the day” (I’m looking at you, Avengers: Endgame, for that shot in the final battle against Thanos). I think that now that the feminist movement is more mainstream (albeit still – somehow – controversial), companies and corporations and whatnot increasingly see it as a marketing strategy. Rob Reiner), I was averse when I found out that there was a “feminist retelling” of Buttercup and Westley’s story in book form: I loathe “feminist” stories. As a die-hard fan of The Princess Bride (1987, dir.

The princess will save you book