Shrek the Third
I know, I know. There’s some sort of unwritten law in Hollywood that says the sequels can never be as good as the original and the third installment in a film franchise can most certainly never exceed the original. However, in the case of the Shrek series, Shrek the Third is, in my view, the best of the bunch. Packed with comedic energy and a vibrant, gentle spirit, this film is an enjoyable treat that successfully lampoons many of the favourite fairy tale characters along with modern conventions. The animation is slicker and more colourful than any of the film’s predecessors and it offers a host of comedic vocal talents that keep things moving through its 92-minute runtime.
Shrek the Third opens as King Harold (John Cleese) has fallen sick. Shrek (Mike Myers) and Fiona (Cameron Diaz) are next in line to become king and queen of the land, but Shrek is reluctant to do so and wants to return to his simple life in the swamp. King Harold tells Shrek that there is another heir who can become king, so Shrek sets out with Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) to locate this heir. This new king of Far-Far-Away is Artie (Justin Timberlake) – or King Arthur – and he attends a high school at an academy. Shrek and the gang get Artie from the high school and return to Far-Far-Away, where all hell is breaking loose thanks to a plot from Prince Charming (Rupert Everett). Oh, and Fiona is pregnant. Shrek encounters the nervousness and discomfort from this announcement along the voyage to find Artie.
Prince Charming, in his evil plot, has gathered all of the “villains” of fairy tale lore together. He tells them, in a rousing and highly entertaining scene at the Poison Apple Bar, that they must seize their own happiness and get over their typecasting as villains by, of course, seizing power by force in Far-Far-Away. Prince Charming, along with Captain Hook (Ian McShane), the Wicked Queen (Susanne Blakeslee), Mable the Ugly Stepsister (Regis Philbin), Cyclops, and many other villains all head to Far-Far-Away to wreak havoc and take over by force. This forces Fiona, Sleeping Beauty (Cheri Oteri), Snow White (Amy Poehler), Cinderella (Amy Sedaris), and Doris the Ugly Stepsister (Larry King) to head into hiding and hope to save the day. The film also features the vocal talents of the wonderful Eric Idle in a hilarious turn as the reckless wizard Merlin.
There really is no question about the comedic pedigree of Shrek the Third – even Seth Rogan shows up to play a ship captain. This is a stacked-to-the-rafters comedic treat in many ways, kind of like the Ocean’s Eleven of animated comedies. Each comedian’s timing and vocal talents are very good, with all of the voices and expressions of the characters providing top-notch entertainment and exceeding that of the previous films in the series and, quite frankly, the majority of modern animated films. This, coupled with some immensely hilarious moments, make Shrek the Third a surprisingly entertaining treat.
I’ll be the first to admit that I went into Shrek the Third as one of those people waiting to be impressed. I didn’t really care to see it, as I had not been the biggest fan of the first two Shrek films and am usually not the biggest fan of computer animation on the whole. I was impressed by Shrek the Third, however, and was highly entertained throughout the film. The lampooning of fairy tales really gave this film an edge that the others toyed with, without a doubt, but none of the other films seemed to capture the notions of the villains with such cleverness and wit. Some of the lines and scenes within Shrek the Third are rooted deep within fairy tale culture, especially those of the Brothers Grimm and really require a deeper knowledge of the thematic elements of those fairly tales. The satire here is, typically at least, not that of the Disney variety of fairy tales that we are all more accustomed to and that, I think, helps vault Shrek the Third into another level.
Another aspect that makes Shrek the Third a good piece of entertainment is the use of various cultural references. This film, directed by Chris Miller, really taps a lot of cultural references that many may miss. The opening sequence at the dinner theatre involving Prince Charming using coconuts as hoof beats, much in the same way as Eric Idle and John Cleese’s Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Of course, the bad news is that Idle claims to be suing Dreamworks over the “unauthorized inclusion” of the gag, but it is present nonetheless and Dreamworks has claimed it to be an homage to Idle and Cleese.
Other great cultural references in Shrek the Third that may be less controversial off-screen include Snow White’s “Dopey” tattoo, Snow White’s version of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song,” the use of the tune “That’s What Friends Are For” before Shrek and Artie’s heart-to-heart, the Gingerbread Man’s reference to “The Six Million Dollar Man” and the first Superman movie in the same montage, the changing of the “Bootery” store to a “Hooters” as several cheering men enter, the trees are dressed like characters out of A Chorus Line, a handful of references to Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, rabbits from Watership Down are used in the Snow White sequence, and a scene from Fast Times at Ridgemont High is used during the high school sequence.
With these cultural references and a depth to the story that invokes many memories of childhood fairy tales, Shrek the Third turns these conventions on their heads and mimics them. It is this sort of comedy that has made the Shrek films successful for adults and children alike, as they exemplify the “something for everyone” genre of animated modern films. With Shrek the Third, the story isn’t trying so hard to be clever and is, instead, successfully entertaining its audience with colourful humour, intelligent jokes, toilet humour, slapstick, and an assortment of wondrous comedic talents serving as these characters. It’s the best of the series and an entertaining, although flawed, animated comedy.
Trailer:
