The Princess Bride has to be in the running for the most Jewish American movie of all time. At least among popcorn movies. Written by William Goldman, adapting his own novel, which has autobiographical elements―or at least the framing device does. Directed by the late Rob Reiner, son of Carl. The cast isn't entirely Hebraic―the two leads are quite Aryan―but includes Mandy Patinkin, Peter Falk, Fred Savage, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, and Carol Kane. (I don't think you could get away with casting Irish people as Miracle Max and his wife.)
On the other hand, I only thought of this recently. Watching the movie never gave me the feeling that I was being immersed in someone else's culture. (I'm not Jewish.) In some ways it may have been someone else's culture, but didn't seem that way, which probably makes me something like the typical viewer. And it doesn't demand any a commitment to any particular kind of Jewish politics. One might add that Shawn's political stances haven't endeared him to the Zionist faction.
But I digress, maybe. The point is that regardless of who it's by, it feels like it's for everyone. It's very American that way.
2 comments:
Thinking back about the last time we watched The Princess Bride the part I remember having the most Jewish influence was the scene that featured Billy Crystal and Carol Kane. You're right Irish people wouldn't have worked at all, but the fact is it was also the corniest scene in the film and not the funniest. The funniest bit for me was Inigo's refrain of 'Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.'
(in light of recent events the funniest line might be: You commited one of the all time blunders. The biggest is never get involved in a land war in Asia.)
Otherwise it never occurred to me that I was watching a mostly Jewish movie, instead, I see it as a high production perfectly cast pantomime. And yes, a very warm and old-fashioned American movie with a musical score by Mark Knopfler who happens to be of Jewish ancestry.
Somehow it comes as no surprise the actors you named as stars happen to be Jewish as all of them were successful actors before the film and it's also true that we're used to seeing Hebraic names as the producers of major movies. I hadn't been aware of Wally Shawn's politics but the idea that's become a law that anti-Zionism equates with anti-Semitism is anathema.
I think that as ww2 ended the best option would have been to move the Temple Mount to New Mexico or Arizona and make that the New Israel. It would have saved a lot of trouble.
Certainly is corny, although they seemed to be having fun hamming it up. Inigo had a lot of practice saying that bit. As it turned out he got to use it for real, eventually. Those land wars in Asia seem to be a constant temptation to our leader class. It would be nice if they someday found the willpower to resist.
Thanks for reminding me that Mark Knopfler did the music. It had slipped my mind, but his compositions and musicianship do suit stories like that. He did the score for Local Hero as well. That's a movie with great Scottish scenery and some very funny scenes.
Early Hollywood saw a lot of Jewish names behind the scenes and fewer actually onscreen, although the Marx Brothers and Edward G. Robinson were exceptions. That gradually changed. The people in this movie tended to be quite versatile. Falk, of course, might be best known for playing an Italian-American detective. Shawn has been admirably straightforward and honest about his evolution on that issue.
Temple Mount moved to Arizona or New Mexico? Sounds like it would be a great place to go for Sephardic Mexican food.
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