The Princess Bride: More Than Just a Fairy Tale?

Okay, hear me out, guys. I know, I know, The Princess Bride (1987) is like, a universally beloved classic. And yeah, it's funny and charming and quotable as hell. But I've been thinking about it lately and wondering if it's more than just a really good fairy tale parody. Like, is Rob Reiner actually commenting on storytelling itself? The whole framing device with the grandfather reading the book feels meta in a way that probably wasn't super common back then. And the performances! I mean, Mandy Patinkin's Inigo Montoya is iconic, obviously, but even the smaller roles are so perfectly cast. Wallace Shawn as Vizzini is just chef's kiss. Thinking of Reiner's filmography, this one definitely feels like a bit of an outlier. He's done some comedies and some dramas, but nothing quite this... whimsical? I'm not sure if I necessarily see his usual authorial stamp all over it, but maybe that's because he let the sheer joy of the source material speak for itself. One thing that always gets me is the 'mostly dead' scene. It's played for laughs (and it IS hilarious), but it also kinda flips the script on classic fairy tale tropes. Like, death isn't this insurmountable obstacle; it's just a minor inconvenience on the way to true love. Very subversive! Still, I wonder what my fellow director-focused fans think of this one in Reiner's body of work. Is this one a unique film that shows a different side of him? Or is it just a good movie that doesn't fully line up with his directing style and themes? Also, slightly unrelated, but does anyone else think that Cary Elwes and Robin Wright had insane chemistry? Like, it's almost distracting. Okay, rant over. Inconceivable! (Couldn't resist).