Original artwork, not a still
Life is pain, Highness! Anyone who says otherwise is selling something.
— The Princess Bride • 1987
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
Westley, masked as the Dread Pirate Roberts, tells the grieving Buttercup the hard truth in a single breath, then sells it with a swashbuckler's grin. Fans use it as the cheerful, cynical shrug for a bad day: a line that is both a joke at the expense of every self-help seller and a sincere warning that nothing worth having comes free.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for The Princess BrideShow the scene
Having outwitted Vizzini, the masked Man in Black takes Buttercup on the run and stops near a gorge to let her rest. She accuses him of being the Dread Pirate Roberts and of killing her love, a poor farm boy whose ship he attacked; he shrugs that he can't afford to make exceptions, and when she says he mocks her pain, this is his answer. Moments later she shoves him down the ravine, and his cry of "As you wish!" gives him away as Westley.
Sources (2)
- Wikiquote: The Princess Bride (film)Dialogue section, 'Life is pain'Reference checked
- Wikipedia: The Princess Bride (film)Plot sectionReference checked
Context reviewed
