I've been away for ages but I'm back with avengence!
I've been away for ages but I'm back with avengence!
Member since:30.11.2005
Reviews:220
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Over the last two weeks my youngest, Kyle has demented his father and I, forcing us to sit through Shrek One and Shrek Two roughly 18 times. Of course a visit to the cinema to watch Shrek the Third was demanded last weekend and a rare trip to McDonalds was called for yesterday simply because they had Shrek toys in the Happy Meals. I really do love the daft green ogre, but feel any further exposure could put my fragile mind at serious risk.
Although the order is a bit loopy, I now give you my final Shrek review, Shrek 2. It feels therapeutic to talk about it and expunge the daft green Ogre from my bones. I think maybe now I will be able to get on with my life, taking it each day at a time.
Directors: Andrew Adamson/Kelly Asbury Release Date: May 2004 Production Team: DreamWorks Classification: U Genre: Animated Family Comedy Run Time: 93 minutes Actors: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Bandaras, Jennifer Saunders, Julie Andrews, John Cleese, Rupert Everett Availability: Still in cinemas
Warning! If you haven’t seen the first one and plan to, don’t read this review as it will give too much away.
>>>General Gist of things<<< Having returned from their honeymoon, Shrek and Fiona are invited to Far Far Away by Fiona’s parents the King and Queen. Unaware that she has married an Ogre and of her own current physical state, the visit goes down like many visits with the in-laws and ends in thrown food and raised voices between Shrek and Daddy dearest.
After rowing, Shrek leaves the castle to figure out how to make his new bride happy. Along their travels they meet Puss in Boots, a failed hit man who joins their journey. A visit to the Fairy God Mother who has a surprising game plan of her own gives Shrek (and Donkey) a chance at a very, very different existence than they are used to, and one that on the surface should make Mrs. Shrek happy.
Little does anyone know that the Fairy Godmother, Prince Charming
and even Fiona’s father are caught up in a more sinister plan that does not involve Shrek and Fiona living happily ever after.
>>>Who are Dreamworks<<< copied from several other of my DreamWorks reviews DreamWorks is the animation production and distribution powerhouse behind a string of box office hits including its biggest success the Shrek series as well as computer games and television programmes.
Originally, the project of Steven Spielberg, Jeff Katzenberg and David Geffen in 1994, DreamWorks was sold to Viacom at the end of 2005. DreamWorks is now the strong competitor of Pixar the before undisputed champion of all things animated.
>>>Characters/Voiceovers<<<(some copy over from Shrek 1) Mike Myers as the green Scottish Ogre from the swamp is brilliant. Oddly considering it is an animated film, this role is surprisingly subdued compared to many of his other films. Shrek is a lovable beast who can really do no wrong. He is also the most sarcastic animated character ever created! Although the star of the film, it often felt that Shrek played the straight man for Eddie Murphy’s Donkey and that worked extremely well after you could get over Myers playing the straight man for anyone!
Eddie Murphy is a chump but as the annoyingly talkative donkey sidekick to Shrek he is brilliant. He is side-splittingly funny with an energy that is fascinating to watch. His quipy one liners come out in a constant stream of what feels like totally improvised nonsense. Eddie Murphy brings Donkey to life and shows himself to be a truly convincing Ass.
Cameron Diaz is fantastic in this although it may because we don’t have to look at her perfect legs, perfect smile and perfect bum for two hours. Without that distraction, she is a bright, funny, caring and likeable character who is more than capable of looking out for herself. – Finally a good role model for young girls these days – as long as they can get past the green skin and trumpet ears…
What a wonderful edition Jennifer Saunders makes to this film as the blackmailing, deceitful, dieting godmother. Saunders couldn’t not be funny if she tried and she helps to wave the British Flag high in this film. Seeing the godmother as a bit of an entrepreneur and business woman as well as a mother with sky-high ambitions for her son is a wonderful twist on the original sugar-coated god mothers we are used to.
Puss in Boots is a fantastic addition to the cast and Antonio Bandaras was a great choice for the manipulative, loyal womanising cat. His thick accent accentuates his eccentricity and devilish flare while equally working to seduce and charm the ladies. I love the use of the kitty eyes when in reality; he is not in the slightest kitten-like.
John Cleese plays the over-protective father of Fiona with a dark secret of his own to keep hidden. Cleese plays the part of the somewhat weak man who loves his daughter but feels powerless to help her. A villain of sorts turned good and Cleese makes him a very amiable character.
Julie Andrews doesn’t feature too heavily in this film but does a good job as Fiona’s long-suffering mother who just wants her family to get along. A quiet and sweet lady, you get only a hint of what she is really capable of in this film but expect more to come in the follow-up film.
There are more fairy tale characters introduced or focused on in this film. Pinocchio, the marvelous three blind mice and Gingy the Gingerbread man make more prominent appearances while a surprising role for Larry King as the singing transvestite ugly sister is superbly entertaining.
>>>Script/Story<<< There was a great deal of speculation that the second film wouldn’t live up to the first but Shrek two easily matched the first. The same humour was littered throughout the film with more fantastic dialogue between Shrek and Donkey. I particularly enjoyed the developing friendship between Donkey and Puss in Boots and thought their love/hate relationship was written incredibly well.
I love how original fairy tales are updated for the film, again giving the viewer a chance to identify and relate to stories we all grew up with. It is clear that the script writers feel passionately not only about the film, but about the individual characters as they are all really given their own individual personalities and a platform on which to display them.
Of course, humour alone couldn’t carry Shrek entirely. A certain amount of action is needed and this film has it in spades. At no point does it lag and every scene seems critical to the story
>>>Animation<<< some copying from Shrek the Third Review As I have said before, you can’t really fault DreamWorks when it comes to animation. Whereas Pixzar tends to be more in tune with modern day graphic art, DreamWorks leans more towards the fairytale style, with brighter colours and less precision but more character and sentiment shining through. The facial expressions make these films what they are for me.
The scale of the scene setting in this film is impressive and the attention to detail is wonderful. Part of the joy of this film is noticing different things in a scene each time you watch it. I love the designer inspired shops in Far Far Away like Baskins & Robinhood, Saxon Fifth Avenue and Burger Prince that pop up with a medieval twist to them. One of the funniest scenes for me was when Gingy stops for a cappuccino at a Farbucks and all the customers run outside in terror across the road to another Farbucks. The message was clear but subtle. I loved the Far Far Away take on the Hollywood sign as well and one of the three pigs reading Pork Illustrated is great. The animation is busy but not over crowded and the addition of different fairy tale characters like the Little Red Ridinghood or the Gingerbread man endears the viewer even more to the film.
>>>Soundtrack<<< Like the script, the characters and the animation, the soundtrack plays an integral part in this film. For me there is a nostalgic beginning as The Counting Crows, a band I followed closely as a teenager got things started with a sort of supped up love song.
There was a great mix of original music written to fit the scene necessary and older catchy upbeat classics like Holding Out for a Hero which was performed by the Fairy God Mother, Funky Town and Le Freak and snippets of soppy ballads (most of which were performed by the consistently singing Donkey like All by myself and One.
All the Shrek films end with a bit of a do and we get a chance to see the characters perform more. Keep your eyes open for Pinocchio’s Michael Jackson impression!
>>>What we thought of it<<< After seeing this many, many, many times, I can still say it makes me laugh. Each time I watch it I pick up on new things whether it be images hidden in the animation or short one-liners I had previously missed.
This film is a rare case – a sequel that almost outdid the original. Apart from Lord of The Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean, I can’t think of production that has carried that off, particularly not a children’s film. It is a bright, funny, action-filled film that all ages can and should enjoy. >>>Trivia<<< >This was the first sequel ever nominated for an Oscar >Shrek 2 is the highest grossing animated film of all time >Shrek's animated face has 218 working muscles in it >The producers decided to put a Sir Justin (Timberlake) poster above Princess Fiona's before they knew he was dating Cameron Diaz >Scored the biggest opening ever for an animated film, topping Finding Nemo (2003)'s $70.2 million opening >William Steig, writer of the original book, died during production. This film is dedicated to him.
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Production Year: 2002 - Family - Original Language: English - Classification: Universal - Starring: Marisa Tomei, Lacey Chabert, Lynn Redgrave, Flea, Tim Curry, Rupert Everett
Full of verve and witShrekis a computer-animated adaptation of William Steig's ... more
delightfully fractured fairy tale. Our title character (voiced by Mike Myers) is an agreeable enough ogre who wants to live his days in peace. When the diminutive Lord Farqu...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Full of verve and witShrekis a computer-animated adaptation of William Steig's ... more
delightfully fractured fairy tale. Our title character (voiced by Mike Myers) is an agreeable enough ogre who wants to live his days in peace. When the diminutive Lord Farqu...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
They're back for more! Princess Fiona's parents invite their daughter and her new husband ... more
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Lord Farquaad (John Lithgow) is searching for a wife. Because of a complicated situation ... more
he needs a mate so he can qualify as king of the land. The 3-foot-tall despot has already banished all the fairy tale characters from his land resulting in a dias...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
![Shrek [DVD] [2001]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78533830.jpg "Shrek [DVD] [2001]")
Jul 6th, 2007
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