D'Angelo and I decided to head over to the movie theater this weekend to watch "
Shrek Forever After". I was hesitant to see it after
Shrek the Third. Frankly, that third chapter in the
Shrek movies should have killed the franchise. It was flat and unimaginative and the only thing I truly remember from it was that Shrek and Fiona had some babies. I almost didn't go, and that resistance was apparently
felt by other movie-watchers this weekend. That's truly a shame, as
Shrek Forever After does a wonderful job of polishing up Shrek's tarnished image.
The movie begins with the before-mentioned babies' first birthday. Fed up with the monotony of family life and missing the excitement of his bachelor days, Shrek makes a foolish bargain with a devilish foe. He gives away a day of his life and receives one day of ogrish freedom. Unfortunately, that missing day was the day of his birth. Shrek gets his freedom, but alters the world around him into a dystopian vision where Fiona's a freedom fighter, Rumpelstiltskin rules the land with an iron fist, witches hunt ogres, and Puss 'n Boots is a tubby house cat. Shades of
It's a Wonderful Life, I know, but it works. Shrek has one day to get kissed by his true love or else he will fade away into oblivion. Will he make it? I'm not telling, though this is supposedly the last of the
Shrek movies, so nothing's guaranteed.
Speaking of Rumpelstiltskin, he was an excellent choice as this film's antagonist. The original fairy tale version of this dwarf-like villain had him spinning straw into gold in exchange for the future queen's firstborn child.
Shrek's version of Rumpelstiltskin has a magic contract for every occasion, each one filled with enough fine print to twist even the most benign request with malignant results.
I asked D' what he thought of the film. He really enjoyed the movie and highly recommends it for kids and parents alike. His favorite part was when the creepy little kid continually harassed Shrek with his endless request: "Do the roar!" I enjoyed the alternative version of the Gingerbread Man, whose lives an impoverish existence on the streets of Far, Far Away battling animal crackers to the death. I also laughed at Donkey's Nero-like attempts at enjoying a forbidden plate of waffles.
Do yourself a favor and check out
Shrek Forever After. It boasts an engaging plot, maintains a comfortable pace, and does an excellent job of redeeming this originally inventive concept.
2 comments:
Glad to read the positive review!
Thanks Brian! I vaguely remember hearing you mention Shrek during your sermon yesterday (I stepped out of the sanctuary to help out those two kids that stopped by) so I didn't actually hear if you'd seen it or not. Did you get a chance to see it? What'd you think?
BTW, we splurged for 3D this weekend, which we normally don't do. I figured if the plot sucked, at least it'd be visually appealing.
Speaking of 3D, D' and I went to Sycamore's 3D theater for the first time. D' decided to put on his glasses early, which turned out to be a good thing. He couldn't get his glasses on over his regular glasses and I quickly learned that I couldn't either. After a bit of panic, I discovered that they gave us kid-sized glasses. Fortunately, the adult-sized glasses fit over both of our glasses.
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