Sunday, April 17, 2011

INCONCEIVABLE - The Princess Bride (1987)







[Vizzini has just cut the rope The Dread Pirate Roberts is climbing up]
Vizzini: HE DIDN'T FALL? INCONCEIVABLE.
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. 





***

So, confession. I had never seen The Princess Bride until this past weekend when one of my friends said that she felt like watching it. Having not watched a movie in forever, meaning approximately since spring break, I decided to give it a go, since she claimed it to be one of her favorite movies. "You'll love it, Mady, I promise," she told me in so many words. 

Settling down onto her comfy couch, I grabbed some candy, set up a word document to attempt to do a little homework while watching (and I actually did write a few paragraphs of a journal entry), and we began. If anything, I enjoyed being able to sit on someone else's couch, which by the way, is way more comfortable than my futon.  Surprisingly, however, I actually found myself laughing at the movie. In a good way.

I knew that I wanted to use something from this movie in my blog, partly because when I originally conceived this blog, I had wanted to watch some movies I hadn't seen before, giving me a "fresh" perspective. However, I found that I don't have a lot of free time, at least at the end of the semester. Thus, I was really excited when I sat down to watch The Princess Bride.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), I didn't find a profound moment in the movie. I mostly thought that much of what the characters said was silly or satirical, but I suppose that's the point of the movie. It reminded me of Monty Python (which I really don't like...sorry Monty Python fans!) mixed with something that I just still can't put my finger on.

Anyways, I chose these lines from the movie because I just about rolled off the couch in laughter at the words. INCONCEIVABLE. I mean, come on, we all have that friend that has the one-word catch phrase. That guy who constantly says one word in retort to everything everyone says. Maybe it's as obnoxious as "presh" or "perf." The shortening of words is a popular trend these days. Or maybe you know people who respond with "ridiculous" to everything that couldn't possibly be positive. Either way, I'm sure you know your "inconceivable" person.

On a serious note, this selection got me thinking about the overuse of words. Sometimes when we use the same words, I wonder if they somehow evaporate their meanings. It's kind of like using "love" or "hate," two words that we hear so much. Sometimes I think if we use them too much, they don't mean anything anymore.  This goes for other words, but I know we're all a little guilty of saying "I love this" and "I love that" all the time. Love seems like a word that's lost it's weight.

Is this a bad thing? You tell me.

3 comments:

  1. I didn't see Princess Bride until HS and it took me 1 or 2 viewings to really appreciate it the way I do now. It also REALLY surprises me that you're not into Monty Pyton!

    I. LOVE. MONTY PYTHON. haha But I'm not offended that you don't- just curious more than anything.

    But getting back to the use of words: I definitely think that we overuse words! I know that I say "I love that!" quite often, but it's funny: once Carl and I got together, I rarely used the world "love" in front of him, even if it was about something totally unrelated to him or our relationship. Isn't is so strange how we adjust our vocab or at least become more aware of it depending on who we're around?

    Anyways, great post Madalyn! And I'm glad that you finally got to see such a class movie! :)

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  2. People overuse so many words and phrases. Literally. To be honest. I know, right. Like. The list goes on...it's depressing.

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  3. I love Monty Python and The Princess Bride. Whenever people quote these movies, I never tire of their hilarious catchphrases. However, I see what you mean when people overuse certain words.

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