Joe Barber Reviews “SHREK THE THIRD”

by Joe Barber on May.26, 2007, under Joe Barber's Movie Reviews

MOVIE REVIEW: “SHREK THE THIRD”

After watching “Shrek the Third,” I have come to a conclusion about sequels. Filmmakers should be forced to stop making series after two films. Mosr second films in blockbuster series are usually entertaining, though lacking in the electricity and freshness of that first film. Some second films-”The Empire Strikes Back,” “Godfather, Part ii” and “Terminator 2:Judgment Day”-do stand out as follow-ups that expand upon the plot lines and characters of the first film while retaining the flavor of the first film. Unfortunately, “Shrek the Third,” while keeping the laughs (mostly) is missing the story and losing the audience.

picking up where the second film left off, Shrek and his princess wife Fiona, are still in the the land of Far, Far Away, filling in for her mom and dad, the King and Queen. A pall is cast over things when the king dies and Shrek and Fiona ae next in line for the throne. But Shrek’s not anxious to take over. He’d much rather return with his wife and friends Donkey and Puss In Boots to his beloved swamp.

Before uttering his dying breath, the King lets slip that there is another heir to the throne, a nephew named Arthur. But he’s a teenager in a royal prep school in a nearby kingdom. Shrek, Donkey and Puss venture forth to bring him back. Meanwhile, the handsome but empty headed Prince Charming, still reeling from Fiona’s rejection in favor of Shrek, decides to stage a palace coup.

Enlisting the help of every defeated fairy tale villain in the land, Charming takes over and plans a gruesome-and melodic-end for our great green hero upon his return. If all that isn’t enough, Fiona’s just announced she’s pregnant.

Along with the dazzling computer generated animation that skillfully re-created the look of children’s fairy tale books, down to the bluest of blue skies and oceans, the first two “Shreks” have featured plots that cleverly spoof fairy tale and pop culture conventions while celebrating and commenting on them. This careful balancing act is a large part of what has made these movies so wildly popular with kids and adults-there’s something here for everyone. That combination of wit, brains and heart is what’s missing in movie number three.

Yes, the all star voice cast has returned-Mike Myers (Shrek), Cameron Diaz (Fiona), Eddie Murphy (Donkey) and Antonio Banderas (Puss)-are all here. Along with Julie Andrews and John Cleese as the King and Queen, they’re joined this time by Justin Timberlake as Arthur and Eric Idle as disgraced prep school instructor Mr. Merlin. What’s missing here is the subtext that lived behind the laughs in the other films. Depite plot threads that could have been easily expanded into comic bits, such as Arthur’s outcast status in school, the villains attacks on characters such as Peter Pan and others and Shrek’s final showdown with Charming during a revisionist dinner theatre version of their first battle, he screenwriters never kick things into high comic gear. The movie lacks the antic, rapid fire flow of jokes and commentary that enlivened films one and two.

Also missing are the quiet moments of humanty and real emotion in the storytelling that added a fable-like quality to the previous films. What you’re left with is a familiar set of characters in a setting that yeilds some laughs but not the rich storytelling stew we’re used to and should expect.

With the recent announcement that there will be three more “Shrek” films to come, as welll as a spin off featuring Puss in Boot, one can only hope that Dreamworks Animation will re-discover the magic that made an ogre a leading man and “Shrek” so much fun.

MPAA RATING: PG for mildly gross humor
JOE’S RATING:TWO AND A HALF STARS.