You know you've seen something special when it still makes you smile a week
after you see it. Such is the case with Shrek, the wonderful new animated
comedy that will amuse and delight viewers of all ages. A superb combination
of a hilarious and smart screenplay, a talented voice cast and the best
computer animation to hit the big screen to date, Shrek is going to make a
lot of people happy this summer.
Based on the 1990 book by William Steig, the movie is about an ogre named
Shrek (voiced by Mike Myers), a creature who greatly values his privacy.
When an arrogant little prince by the name of Lord Farquaad (John Lithgow)
banishes the fairy tale inhabitants of his kingdom to Shrek's private swamp,
the ogre goes to protest. Farquaad promises to remove the inhabitants if
Shrek rescues the lovely Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) from a dragon-guarded
tower so Farquaad can marry her and become King. With a talking donkey
(Eddie Murphy) as his sidekick, Shrek heads off on the adventure of his lifetime.
First time directors Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson, along with script
writers Ted Elliott and Terry Russo (Aladdin), Joe Stillman and Roger S.H.
Schulman, use Steig's story as a springboard to launch the multitude of
sight gags and satirical jabs at the fairy tale genre, motion pictures and
rival studio Disney, all to a successful, hilarious effect (film producer
and former Disney exec Jeffrey Katzenberg must have had a field day helping
out on this one). A few jokes fall short simply because they already seem a
bit on the dated side (jokes involving The Matrix, The Riverdance and the
dance the Macarena), but overall this is a film that takes its concept and
fully develops it with style, astuteness, drollness and heart.
Visually, the movie is nothing short of breathtaking. Everything, from the
backgrounds to the skies to the characters, comes to vivid three-dimensional
life thanks to the outstanding work by the folks at PDI (who have made an
extraordinary leap in quality from their first feature, the 1998 comedy
Antz). The folks who did a half-assed job putting the Rock's face on a giant
scorpion's body in The Mummy Returns could have taken a lesson or two from
these people when it came to realistically rendering humans and their facial
expressions. This is truly a visual sight to behold.
Donning a brogue yet again (this one a mix of Scottish and Irish), Mike
Myers gives the character of Shrek solid comic timing while also making him
quite appealing despite his rather repugnant exterior. Eddie Murphy brings
the same type of rapid-fire humor he did to 1998's Mulan, making for an
excellent sidekick. John Lithgow brings just enough menace to Farquaad with
having to go overboard (which is nice to see Lithgow do for once) to make
him truly despicable, while Cameron Diaz plays Fiona with an ideal blend of
liveliness and heart.
The moral of Shrek's story is that beauty lies within. As for Shrek the
movie itself, its beauty is found within its rich screenplay, rock-solid
directing, wonderful voice cast and extraordinary visuals. In a year that
has been so far devoid of quality product, this is a film to seek out,
treasure and enjoy again and again.
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