Daddy, why's the hero green? (Shrek (DVD))

Member Name: Pingu

Product:	Shrek (DVD)
Date:	27/09/01 (17 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very funny

Disadvantages: None really

I still can't quite make my mind up about Shrek. It was billed as the greatest adventure ever, and the posters seemed to be up for years in advance. I think, when it came, I was expecting too much. After all it is a children's film.

The eponymous 'hero' is a fairytale green troll who inhabits a swamp. His swamp is overridden by other fairytale creatures when the evil prince banishes them all from his kingdom. Shrek demands his swamp back, and is forced to go on a quest for the prince. He defeats the dragon, gets the girl, wins his swamp, yada yada....Sounds like the typical Disney cartoon. Except that it isn't. Almnost everything is turned on its head. Starting with Shrek himself. Not only is he an ugly green dumpling with hygiene problems, but he has completely the opposite attitude to the typical hero. He doesn't boldly go; more complainingly goes. His companion is a talking donkey who just will not shut up (it is Eddy Murphy after all), and who he tries to get rid of on numerous occasions. But when the chips are down, we all know already that Shrek turns out to be a big softy.

The humour comes mainly from the mismatch between subject and treatment. Given the story we *know* that the film is going to be unadulterated schmaltz, without a hint of cynicism or the grotesque. Right? Take for instance the scene in which the princess sings a duet with a bird. It's early dawn, the princess is up first and goes outside to find a bird merrily singing. She joins in. It could be Snow White or any other of the slushy, genuinely sentimental Disneys. Except when the bird explodes because the princess sings too high! And there's the lampooning of other films, such as the Matrix.

I think my only reservation was that the film couldn't decide quite who it was aimed at. Some of the humour is bordering on adult, but the I think the makers realised that they wanted children to be able to see it, and pulled on the reins a l
ittle. The result is part way between Disney tear-jerker and very clever satire, but not consistently either.

Nevertheless it is a superb film which you must see, and own on video the minute it comes out.

Summary: