*** Official SHREK 2 Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Todd Terwilliger]

I think that part of the problem (and I fully admit to being afflicted) is that the Shrek films will be eternally compared to the Pixar products. The Pixar films raised the bar to a high level that the Shrek films can't quite reach so that whatever failings the Shrek films may have become magnified in the comparison to Toy Story, et al.

 

[Tony_Ramos]

Blown potential, but the intricate CG and catchy comedic movie references give it some depth.

From the beginning it felt like the writers were completely uninspired while the voice actors and animators were fired up.

 

[Ernest Rister]

You guys know the Flintstones, right? You remember how that show often took something modern, and then tweaked the name to insert some sort of "rock" or "stone" or prehistoric reference into it, while the laugh track howled? Frank Sinatrock? Steven Stoneberg? I never found stuff like that funny. There's a lot of that kind of humour in Shrek 2, and even more of the obvious movie reference variety.

What was cool about Shrek was that the story itself was funny. I think that's the missing ingredient. The hideous ogre rescues the Princess, and wins her heart because he's a prince on the inside. Been done a million times, but it was still warm, and worked as a send-up of the animated feature format that Mel Brooks would have been proud to call his own.

Shrek 2 suffers from sequel-itis. It might be the most unsatisfying follow up to a famous comedy (for me) since Airplane 2.

The notion that DreamWorks CGI Animation looks substandard compared to Pixar is one I agree with, because it is a fact of life. But I don't agree that this is why I didn't care for Shrek 2. Sealab 2021 has pathetic animation and production values, but that's part of the joke. Ditto South Park. Those cost relative pennies to produce, yet many of the episodes are howlingly funny. By contrast, Disney-Florida's Brother Bear has top-drawer production values, but the screenplay for the film is so poor as to render it unwatchable for me and my best friends. Home on the Range has great songs, but it too suffers from lame jokes and juvenile storytelling, and is sadly somehat forgettable.

At the end of the day, its not the budget, its not even the craftsmanship of the animation. The film has to be judged on its own merits as a film, not as an animation showcase. Shrek 2 felt like a movie trying to cover up the fact that it doesn't have much of a story. Beyond that, I just didn't find the film funny.

I was also trapped on a couch forced to watch the entire thing as part of a family "quality time watching a movie together" Thanksgiving moment...and if you want to know how I felt by the end of it, think of Henry (Father Bear) trapped in that chair, forced to watch Mama Bear and Junior put on that pageant for him on Father's Day in Chuck Jones "Bear for Punishment".

 

[TheLongshot]

Yeah, I was watching the first one the other night as well. I still think it is classic.

As for the second, there is a reason why I haven't been quick in picking it up. While I enjoyed watching the film in the theater, and wouldn't mind seeing it again, I don't think it will hold up in the long term. Mainly because they do the "cram it full of jokes and some will stick" thing, which will get you some laughs, but a lot of groaners.

Actually, I didn't think the plot was bad. Basically, they wanted to do the reverse of the original story, making Shrek feel uncomfortable about the position he has put Fiona, and maybe show a willingness to change for her, since she changed for him. (Tho, to be honest, it wasn't that much of a change for her.)

Unfortunatly, they muddied it up a bit. The makers suffered a bit from sequalitis: they thought that they needed to "top" themselves, which wasn't going to happen. The ending is a prime example of that. Time to bring everyone out and do musical numbers again. Rolling out "La Vita Loca" didn't help. (Tho, I kinda see where they were going with that, considering it is typical at weddings to pull out crap like that. Unfortunatly, the joke wasn't strong enough.)

Sure, PDI (or Dreamworks Animation) is probably going to be Warner Bros to Pixar's Disney. They probably won't be all that great that often, but I can see them being solid, and that's fine with me.

Jason