"Shrek 2"
Following their fairytale honeymoon, newly-weds Shrek
(Mike Myers) and Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) return
to his beloved swamp and the contented couple settles
into their happily-ever-after life. That is, until
Fiona's parents, King Harold (John Cleese) and Queen
Lillian (Julie Andrews), invite them for a little
visit to their homey castle. The reluctant ogre agrees
to go but he senses there are in-law troubles brewing
in "Shrek 2."
The makers of the sequel to the incredibly successful
2001 original, "Shrek," have skirted the fairytale
adventure of the first film in favor of a much more
routine situation comedy style story that delves more
into slapstick than imagination. Shrek, a character
noted for his sullen cynicism and caustic wit, has
become domesticated by his marriage to loving Fiona.
Sadly, this taming of the beast causes the edgy, dark
humor of the first to be usurped by a TV-style sitcom
at times I almost expected canned laughter in the
background.
The story, by Joe Stillman, J. David Stem & David N.
Weiss, is father-in-law versus son-in-law battle of
wills that is embellished with intrigue by Fairy
Godmother (Jennifer Saunders), who appears to be a
kindly soul until you understand that the emphasis is
on GOD-mother and not Fairy. Her burly bodyguards are
also a giveaway to her shady hidden agenda as she uses
blackmail to set up her son, Prince Charming (Rupert
Everett), to take over the kingdom of Far Far Away by
marrying Fiona. Fairy Godmother, owner of a huge
potions and spell plant (looking a bit like the scare
factory in "Monsters, Inc."), has ambitious plans and
isn't going to let some ogre stand in her way. There
is also a plot revolving around a hit man, or should I
say hit cat, Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas), hired
by the king to do Shrek in.
"Shrek 2" is a slick production and makes leaps in the
computer-animation field over the original. The nuance
of detail, textures and movement are blended
seamlessly making the CGI palette a further challenge
to traditional 2D animation. The makers couple this
good look with clever spoofing and reference to a
multitude of subjects, films, cultural icons and more
- The Lord of the Rings ring; Spiderman; Hawaii-5-O;
Hollywood and the HOLLYWOOD sign; Disneyland; Fast
food (Friar's Fat Boy); Justin Timberlake; Monsters,
Inc.; Raiders of the Lost Ark; Wizard of Oz; Barney's
of New York; Alien; the punchline to the "A horse goes
into a bar
" joke; old gangster movies; Mission
Impossible (the movie); Rodeo Drive; and, all manner
of fairytales.
The triumvirate of vocal talents, as expected, is back
for this second installment of what may drag on into a
series (I, personally, have had enough of the Ogre
Tales there can be too much of a good thing). Mike
Myers puts his Scottish burr onto the title character
but it feels lackluster when compared to the first.
The story moves away from Shrek and Fiona, reducing
their dimension in the overall story. Cameron Diaz and
Eddie Murphy reprise their characters of the Princess
and Donkey, also without much added from the first,
though Murphy always gives an enthusiastic performance
to his vocal characters.
The vocal talents of the sup****ting cast fit the bill
but the new additions fail to fill the boots of John
Lithgow's outrageously bellicose Lord Farquar. John
Cleese is a disappointment as King Harold, although
this may be a product of his animated stature. I had a
problem with Cleese's long, gangly persona shoehorned
into the diminutive king. Julie Andrews does yeoman's
work but is saddled with being little more than the
understanding mom figure. Rupert Everett is bland as
the charmless Prince Charming. Antonio Banderas does
get some mileage as the suave gunsel, Puss in Boots,
who has a change of heart.
The cleverness of "Shrek 2" carries a manufactured
feel, rather than crafted, missing the spontaneity of
the first. Some might say that this is harsh criticism
of the sequel; that it is near impossible for the
follow up to better the first. This is mostly true but
there are exceptions "Toy Story 2" is, at the very
least, the equal of its source and proved that
imagination can infuse originality into a sequel. I
had hopes that "Shrek 2" would achieve this same level
of excellence but got good instead of great. It is
highly entertaining with some laugh-out-loud moments
and lots of giggles. I give it a B.
For more Reeling reviews visit www.reelingreviews.com
robin@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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X-RT-ReviewID: 1283633
X-RT-TitleID: 1132597
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X-RT-RatingText: B
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