If you come to Shrek looking for a squeaky-clean film for your
five-year-old to enjoy, you've picked the wrong movie. That isn't to say
that he won't enjoy it, but you won't enjoy it when he spends the
remainder of the day trying to prove that his belching powers exceed
that of an ogre. Just pray the imitation stops there. This is, after
all, Mike Myers, the man who brought us Austin Powers. The level
of crudeness is taken down a notch for this film marketed towards
youngsters, but most of the humor is definitely aimed at adults who
haven't quite grown up.
If belching were the only part of this
movie that is somewhat uncouth, I'd go ahead and give it a hearty
recommendation. But belching doesn't begin to cover the wide array of
bodily functions seen here. Young children still in the "doorknob" stage
of their lives will, no doubt, find it hilarious when Shrek's
flatulence kills a fish, but the smelly jokes get a little old after a
while. Beyond physical humor, there is quite a bit of dialogue riddled
with profanity and innuendo. Most of this comes from our heroes, Shrek
(Myers) and Donkey (Eddie Murphy).
That isn't to say, however, that the film relies solely upon potty humor. Shrek
is genuinely funny in many places, tipping a hat to dozens of Disney
movies and nursery rhymes. Prince Farquaad (John Lithgow) tortures the
gingerbread man during interrogation by dipping his leg in milk and
eating it. His magic mirror is frightened into talking when he sees a
guard smash a hand mirror. Donkey is lifted off the ground with pixie
dust and proclaims, "You ain't never seen a donkey fly!" The princess
(Cameron Diaz) sings alternately with a bluebird, but her voice grows
too high and the bird explodes trying to imitate it. There's even an
allusion towards the end to The Princess Bride.
Most
amusing, however, is the frantically friendly Donkey, who could possibly
talk the ear of the Micro Machine Man. Okay, so he doesn't talk that
fast, but he certainly talks that much. Nonstop. Simultaneously lovable
and annoying, Donkey is my favorite character in the film.
Shrek, meanwhile, is a green grouch with a Scottish accent and
unpleasant odour. Tired of being judged by his appearance, he agrees to
journey with Donkey, partly because the four-legged chatterbox doesn't
seem to mind his alarming appearance. But what will happen when he finds
himself falling in love with the princess he was sent to rescue, in
exchange for the evacuation of his swamp? Could the fairest lady in the
land ever see anything in this hideous beast? And what deep dark secret
is the princess hiding from her traveling companions?
The animation in this film is breathtaking. Top-notch. The premise is basically another take on Beauty and the Beast,
though this film resolves itself much differently than that Disney film
did. I certainly wouldn't call this a musical, but there is some
singing. Donkey's humming, some background rock and roll, and a couple
of incredibly annoying tunes, one welcoming visitors to Farquaad's
kingdom and one sung by a dorky French Robin Hood and his merry men. I
got a lot of laughs out of this film, but I also got a lot of groans. I
would definitely classify it as a film for teens, despite the way Burger
King has been saturated with it for the past two months. Enjoy, but be
on your guard. Disney this is not.
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