28 from Glasgow, love films - so you'll probably only ever see me write about them lol
28 from Glasgow, love films - so you'll probably only ever see me write about them lol
Member since:08.03.2004
Reviews:116
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What do you do when you turn the fairy tale on its head and make the potential villain the unlikely hero. And then what do you do when you've matched that success with the tale of Happily Ever After. There doesn't seem any place to go after that really. But just as promised, Dreamworks have delivered Shrek 3 just in time for the kids school holidays.
Lovable ogre Shrek is back, with all his usual backside itches, and groans about everything and everyone around him. After all, all he wants to do is live happily ever after in his swamp, with his wife Princess Fiona, just the two of them. Meanwhile Donkey and the Dragon have gone on to have their own little batch of dragon/donkey's, and Puss In Boots has broken the hearts of the stray kitty kingdom. Back in Far Far Away, King Harold is literally croaking his last, and leaving the kingdom to his next in line - Shrek. But of course, he doesn't want the kingdom, so sets about finding the only other heir to the throne, who just happens to be a wet behind the ear "loser" teenager who has been abandoned at a school in Worcestershire.
Meanwhile the ghastly Prince Charming has whipped up an army of baddies from all of the fairy tales across the land to revolt up against the kingdom and give him his place at the throne. Its left to the ogre then to claim back whats rightfully his, whether he wants it or not.
What follows is a sometimes funny, often empty array of disjointed jokes and idea's. There is very little in the way of cohesive narrative once the film gets underway, and it mostly loses sight of what made Shrek so refreshingly funny the first couple of times. There is also a real lack of heart to it, and its pretty appalling to think that such a likeable cast combined with so many funny moments and so many likeable characters have resulted in such a mish mash of sometimes good and often quite bad sequences.
The animation, and its attention to detail, is once again second to none, and all the progression that CGI etc have made is blatantly obvious. However the cast are just going through their paces here. Mike Myers is always hilarious, but his attempt at a Scottish accent very occassionally fails him. Cameron Diaz is decent, but like Antonia Banderas and Eddie Murphy, she is frightfully underused. She is also criminally upstaged by an army of hiliariously bitchy Princess's, while the makers poke fun at all of the most famous fairy tales (a seventh dwarf joke early on in the film got a well deserved belly laugh). Rupert Everett, despite the ghastliness of his character, is the highlight of the film, as he leads a collection of funny characatures through a wicked and dastardly plan. Julie Andrews is also on board as Queen Lilian, and despite her minimal role, makes the very most of it. But like many good saga's, Shrek has just run out of things to do and say. Its really what happens when most of the good characters are gone, and the rest have been watered down to make it an easier sell for the marketing and merchandising people.
The other problem is that while before the adults and the kids would take away something from many of the jokes because the franchise catered for both, this one will be over the head of both. Aside from the colourful characters, and the good animation, it will largely have the kids frowning in confusion and the adults wishing for something a little more sophisticated.
The soundtrack is also largely disappointing. Whereas the first two films boasted some great tracks, and even a few from the cast, there is nearly nothing memorable here. A couple of very early funny sequences involving Charming will get a laugh or two though.
Lets hope that Shrek and his family are allowed to live quietly in their swamp now, and we aren't subjected to a "Shrek becomes the Corporation King of Dreamworks" sequel. Its been done to death, its time to make way for some new ideas.
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Jul 2nd, 2007
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