Shrek: The Never Ending Story
- ibetyoudidntsee
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Shrek came into the world in 2001 with a whirlwind of praise. It was a fresh, comedic take on the fairy tale genre, taking entertaining swipes at stereotypes, characters and stories.
The protagonist, Shrek the Ogre (Mike Myers), has his swamp used to house evicted fairy tale creatures from the near-ish-by kingdom of DuLoc by the evil Lord Farquaad (John Lithgow). In exchange for his swamp being emptied and his own, Shrek agrees to rescue "the fair Fiona" (Cameron Diaz) from a Dragon guarded castle. And as much as he tries, he can't help being accompanied by Donkey (Eddie Murphy).
Shrek was funny, cheeky and sweet, taking countless fairy tale stories and ideas and added twisted or camped up to entertain both adults and children. We have the infamous "Do you know the Muffin Man" scene with Gingy (Conrad Vernon), the Big Bad Wolf (Aron Warner) wearing a lady's nightie and the Three Little Pigs (Cody Cameron) who are naturally campy Germans. Eddie Murphy as Donkey stole the show as much as Gingy did, with his natural comedic timing and delivery helping land some iconic lines...
And in the morning, I'm making waffles!
Considering Shrek had been in line for production since 1996, and Chris Farley was in the original lead before his untimely passing, I would be interested to know what the original concept was. When Myers was cast in the role, he insisted that the film be completely re-written. It would be interesting to know how different it would have been, had Farley not passed away.
We were excited for the announcement of a sequel which proved, to many and this particular viewer, to be better than the first - a rarity in film. Shrek 2 (2004) introduced us to the villains of the fairy tales, the kingdom of Far, Far Away and new heroes.
Fiona and Shrek, ending the first film together, head to her home to meet her parents, the King and Queen (John Cleese and Julie Andrews). In a very clever commentary on royal standards, the approval of Shrek and Fiona is not given and the King, under the pressure and blackmail of the Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders) and her son Prince Charming (Rupert Everett), hires Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) to "dispose" of Shrek. Shrek and Donkey head off on an adventure with Puss, learning the secrets behind the Fairy Godmother's ambitions, her relationship with the King and real reason for Fiona's imprisonment.
Shrek 2 gave us Puss, for which we all are grateful, and twisted the ideals of Fairy Godmothers and Prince Charmings. Far, Far Away was abundant with modern puns on shops, while classic stories were continually poked fun at. It carried on the spirit of the
first episode.
Shrek the Third (2007) seemed very much planned, making the trilogy run every three years. There was a bit of trepidation about it, along with some hope. Trilogies have a habit of the second film being drab and the third going really well. This wasn't the case for the Shrek series. Shrek the Third tells the story of Shrek trying to avoid being King and finding an alternate king. Who is it? Arthur, of course. After brief appearances by Lancelot and Merlin, Shrek returns to Far Far Away to find Prince Charming has taken over with the other villains and, along with Fiona and the other Princesses, they fight for the kingdom back.
It was not a great way to finish off the series. So Dreamworks didn't finish there.
Shrek Forever After is the series' attempt at time travel. Rumpelstiltskin (Walt Dohrn) (not the same that is mentioned in Shrek 3 apparently) takes advantage of Shrek's desire to be in his swamp on his own again. So he takes him back, he spends a day in his old Swamp. Twists and turns reveal that Ogres are persecuted and Fiona is their rebellion's leader - but she doesn't know Shrek. Rumpelstiltskin has taken over the kingdom and the fight is on for Shrek to get back to where he was originally.
Feels kind of like a waste of time. Like most films with that kind of story.
Shrek 5 hits cinemas in 2027. Already with some issues about the trailer, it has revealed nothing about the plot except that a grizzled Olaf from Frozen-like character lives in the kingdom of Farther Father Away.
A spin-off film about Donkey is expected in 2028, but I don't hold out much hope for either of these. I wasn't too sure about the two Puss In Boots (2011) films, but they were pretty good, particularly Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (2022). I'll cover these another time.
All three films are based on the picture book Shrek! by William Steig
Shrek Shrek 2
Directed by: Andrew Adamson, Vicky Jenson Directed by: Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury, Conrad Vernon
Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy,
Cameron Diaz, John Lithgow Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Jennifer Saunders, Rupert Everett
Release Date: 18 May 2001 Release Date: 19 May 2004
Rating: 6/10 Rating: 7/10
Shrek the Third Shrek Forever After
Directed by: Chris Miller, Raman Hui Directed by: Mike Mitchell
Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy,
Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas,
Rupert Everett, Justin Timberlake Walt Dohrn
Release Date: 18 May 2007 Release Date: 21 May 2010
Rating: 5/10 Rating: 3/10
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