Shrek Forever After

Shrek Forever After

By Jonathan Fisher, July 2nd, 2010

Shrek Forever After (or Shrek 4, which is what it really is) borrows liberally from Frank Capra's classic parable It's a Wonderful Life, as it posits the question: what would have happened if Shrek didn't rescue Fiona from her curse way back in the first film. Indeed, what would have happened if Shrek had never been born at all?

From a film buff's perspective this is what would have happened: we would have all missed out on one of the best of modern family films in the first Shrek, but we also would have avoided the horrendous third installment. Swings and roundabouts.


Shrek Forever After is no classic. The series has been declining steadily ever since Dreamworks' unsurprising decision to come back for a sequel in 2004. Shrek Forever After does, however, avoid becoming a total disaster, thanks in part to some funny writing and a whole lot of previously concocted good will on the part of the audience.

Shrek Forever begins with a prologue, set around the time of the first movie, in which Fiona's parents approach the vile Rumpelstiltskin (Walt Dohrn), who has the means to cure Fiona of her curse. Rumpelstiltskin is a crafty salesman, the sort who always finds a way to twist a seemingly benign contract in his favour. He forces Fiona's parents to surrender the kingdom of Far, Far, Away in exchange for their daughter's rescue. Just as the monarchs are about to sign the contract, word comes through that Shrek has saved Fiona, eliminating the need to Rumpelstiltskin's contract. Rumpelstiltskin is, of course, furious, and pledges to gain revenge on Shrek, if it's the last thing he does, yada yada yada.

This coda is, in a sense, shameless cheating, as it creates a long-standing villain from thin air.  Oh sure, we've never seen Rumpelstiltskin before in this series, but apparently he's been planning his big move since before the first film.

Meanwhile, jumping back in the franchise's timeline, Shrek and Fiona have settled down to a life of domestic bliss with three small children. Shrek begins to get bored by the monotony and repetition in his life, and after he has a big blow-up with Fiona, Rumpelstiltskin arranges a 'chance' encounter with the ogre. He promises Shrek the chance to live, for a day, as the fearsome ogre he once was. In exchange, all Shrek has to do is give up a day of his earlier life. Rumpelstiltskin tricks Shrek into giving up the day he was born, thus sending Shrek into a world in which he never existed. The only way to rectify things for Shrek is to find Fiona and give her (you guessed it) True Love's Kiss.

Shrek Forever After is no revelatory experience. It certainly isn't, for instance, the touching masterpiece that Toy Story 3 is. The soul of Shrek has taken a battering over the last two movies, with each incarnation feeling more and more like the last paling of a dissipating well. This one is much the same, but the writing is marginally funnier, the story slightly more touching and less irritating. The voice acting is, as usual, ably delivered by Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz and company, and the animation, while not soaring to the level of recent Pixar films, is competently delivered.

In a world without movies like Up and Ponyo are the competition, franchises like Shrek pale in comparison a bit. There just isn't the same level of emotional depth or multi-layered comedy in the Dreamworks vehicle. Shrek Forever After is passable entertainment, and will probably keep kids quiet and entertained for 90 minutes. Adults, though, will probably shift in their seats with more discomfort than they would in a screening of Toy Story 3.

Shrek Forever After trailer: