Been Green!!! (Shrek (DVD))

Member Name: Pulsebeat

Product:	Shrek (DVD)
Date:	08/07/01 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great fun, good cast, man in papier mache head running away

Disadvantages: Tries a bit too hard for that nudge, nudge, wink, wink, parents in the audience humour, Mike Myer's scottish accent

'Shrek' is the tale of an ogre, coincidentally also called Shrek, whose beloved solitude is invaded when his swamp is overtaken by 'fairytail things' (seven dwarves, pinnochio etc). He does not like this. So he goes to a big castle and informs the midget crazed ruler with a long name who makes him rescue a princess, so he can marry her and become king. blah blah blah, Eddie Murphy, donkey, blah blah nenenen.

The story of 'Shrek' is by the by, it is simply a good kids film. 'Toy Story' and its sequel were great films in their own right, whereas Shrek, is simply good...and for kids. Its main fault is that it tries too hard to make that adult crossover, by making pseudo-rude, but not really rude, asides amongst the dialogue and all under a U certificate. Ooooooh the subversion. This film found greatest resonance amongst the under nines in the audience because at one particularly moving scene I heard at least two children crying behind me. Whereas I was feeling all cold hearted and cynical. However, this does not mean that I didn't enjoy the film, I just kinda wish I was about 10 years younger and I think I would have got the most out of it.

Despite this, there is one moment of truly great satire, when Shrek and Donkey enter the grounds of the castle which bears an uncanny resemblance to Disney World. The funniest bit in the whole film is when a man with an outside papiermache head tries to run away from Shrek around and around those rope barriers, I hate peole who say 'you had to have been there' but you really do have to see at least this much of the film. There are obvious digs at Disney throughout the film, and it should be noted that whereas 'Toy Story' was a joint production between Dreamworks and Disney, this film is made solely by Dreamworks. Thus the sanitised element of Disney takes a bashing right from the word go as Shrek wipes his arse with a page from a fairytale story.

Despite
this presence of subversive rhetoric, the moral of the story is startlingly simple for a film that masquerades itself as a sophisticated fairytale (and why shouldn't it be?). The basic message is 'be yourself' a worthy, if boring message. The animation is, of course, fantastic, and Dreamworks have more than succeeded in making the animated genre bearable again. I was never once bored throughout this whole film. Yet I never fell off my seat with laughter (the papier mache head bit is very good though). The trailers that preceeded the film, for various forthcoming cartoons all looked rubbish (especially the one where some kids are turned into fish. I mean fish. Why?). This basically shows you that 'Shrek' is pretty damned good in comparison with other kids films.

The cast is good too, the midget baddie is that old bloke from 'Third Rock from the Sun', who is excellent. Cameron Diaz is also great as the princess, and Eddie Murphy as Donkey, turns in his best performance since Beverly Hills Cop II. Shrek, himself, voiced by Mike Myers is competent, but why, oh why must he put on some British accent in every single film he does (I don't care if his parents are from Liverpool, what has that got to do with Scotland?). Ultimately, see 'Shrek', its fun, nothing more, I just advise you to take your kids or little brother or sister, because for them it will be one of the best things they've seen.

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