Shrek The Third

Since 2004 we’ve waited for the smelly green Shrek franchise to return our big screens and finally Mike Myers’ small-tempered, big-hearted ogre is back. True to past winning form he’s joined by Cameron Diaz as his bride Fiona, Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots and, of course, Eddie Murphy’s Donkey, looking to steal the show again.

All present and correct then and with DreamWorks taking more than three years to hone another savvy screenplay surely we’re looking at another happy-ever-after for all concerned.

Sadly, this disappointing mix is a sprinkle short of the magic dust.

You’re on your guard from the very beginning, unfortunately. The first two films both set their scenes and characters in masterly flawless fashion, but here our catching up with Shrek and co feels rushed, desperately predictable and lacking in the spot-on comic timing we have come to expect. From this point on the film forever struggles to retrieve its idiosyncratic and lovable tone.

Shrek’s only just getting used to marriage when Fiona’s froggy king father (John Cleese) croaks it and bequeaths the throne of Far, Far Away to him. Desperate to avoid the responsibility he seeks out the only other heir, Fiona’s long-lost, goofy teenage cousin Artie (Justin Timberlake), just when Fiona reveals that Shrek is going to be a father himself.

With ogre and pets off on another adventure, the dastardly Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) plots to steal back the throne for himself, with the aid of the land’s darker and less salubrious fairy tale characters. The stage is then set easily enough for another climatic showdown between good and evil. Shame the less than sprightly pace takes its time getting there.

The Shrek canon has always had a ‘message’ as straight as a lance and in the third instalment it’s all about responsibility. Shrek is on a personal quest to embrace his paternal fears and responsibilities, and Artie is seeking his confidence and destiny. It’s all very meaningful, wholesome, white picket-fenced and no particular surprise. The greatest flaw is the dearth of decent comedy to balance out the more worthy themes.

Shrek the Third simply feels tired in its writing. The once playful and canny use of fairytale stalwarts to riff off contemporary society is now running a little thin, which is a serious concern since it is the franchise’s whole conceit. Where once every other line of dialogue was pinging with intelligence and double-edged wit, now too many words are devoted to emotional exposition and movement of the plain plot – leaving the animators to resort to characters holding fruit in Austin Powers-ish poses to try to keep the adults’ interest.

A few more characters are added to the ever-increasing tapestry. Timberlake’s take on Artie is perfectly satisfactory given the material he has to work with. Eric Idle’s new-age Merlin the Wizard, on the other hand, is just plain dreadful. A waste of talent and pixels all round. With more time given to the newbies, the favourites have been muscled out of their screen time. Banderas charms whenever he can but Eddie Murphy’s Donkey is criminally underused. This is a genuine disappointment considering that he’s the real comedic star and still gets the biggest laughs.

DreamWorks’ 3D animation is pretty much flawless. They raised the bar with Shrek 2 and have lifted it further still this time around. So much attention to detail and realism, such a face’s bristling pores or the textured patterns on clothing, has been added throughout that there’s a danger of taking the pristine depiction of Shrek’s world for granted. But it can’t make up for the lack of a sharp script to bring things truly alive.

Overall, there’s still enough colour, noise, simple story and repetitive fart gags to keep the kids amused. It’s the adults, though, who have enjoyed Shrek as much as any one else and shelled out the pounds for the tickets and DVDs, who will feel decidedly let down by the end. This is not a bad film by any means, but it could have been, should have been, so much better.

At this rate, the summer is going to belong to Homer Simpson.