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The third in the series of DreamWorks' Grimm-influenced animated yarns relies heavily on the success of its predecessors, but previous adulation doesn't fully turn to complete copycat revulsion in the ultimately enjoyable 92 minutes. One has to ask whether the directors and production crew should have imitated James Cameron (The Terminator) and not Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather) and reined in the success after a single sequel without the risk of ruining the unique niche they have created - the first two are colossal anomalies in the age of Pixar animation domination, both artistically and commercially. Eventually the box-office will answer this question however as the megabucks come showering into multiplexes around the globe and the "money talks and bullshit walks" catchphrase will have more relevance than ever for the hugely Shrek-orientated and star-magnetic animation studio with a heavy reliance on the jolly green ogre and his chums.
In terms of sheer value in regards to money and time dedicated by the audience, the first two efforts of the franchise are light-years ahead in terms of funny pop culture references, snappy dialogue, and characterisation - Timberlake's Artie is the main new addition but he does nothing to alleviate the average wetted appetite with such a lacklustre character basis. Even Puss in Boots and Donkey are given second-rate witticisms for a change, paving the way for cute little baby dragon-donkeys to grab the limelight and the "Awww!" gasps. Essentially, the magic is lazily still dotted around but in a non-focused manner which at times cries out for injections of more thoughtful discourse. Acclaim is due for experimenting, but straying away from certain successful elements is a shameful exercise. Likewise, revisiting predictable and funny-the-first-time inclusions such as Versarchery, Abercrombie and Witch, and the endearing Puss in Boots stare, make the gorgeous imagery appear to scream out for some inspired invention to create new trademarks for the series. One could argue that the Zorro-like character's iconic look is just as important to the series as the "Bond... James Bond" line is to a certain other franchise, but when another character (Donkey) undertakes the action in such a smug and haughty manner, you will feel as if the self-righteous producers are bringing their marketing superiors a huge fruit basket of sure-fire promotional tricks to engineer assured laughter - an uncomfortable experience the casual filmgoer aware of studio politics and strategies will always baulk at. The bottom line however is that the kiddies will lap these sorts of gags up (remembering of course that this is the target audience) and adults will sigh, eagerly searching for improvement with the next stab at comedy. In other words, the objective of catering for both young and old senses of humour is only half accomplished - a factor which was definitive and then some for previous instalments.
Attempts at making the adults chuckle are still relatively frequent though even if the jokes do not command any sort of consistent quality. Conrad Vernon's Gingerbread Man is still the star of the show with the montage flashback through his life drawing the loudest hoots. He also shares some cracking one-liners with Pinocchio, who incidentally has the pre-eminent monologue of the film with a string of hilarious lawyer-esque half-truths when confronted by the always amusing Prince Charming (Rupert Everett). Strangely, due to the character overload trend which started in Shrek 2, Shrek and Princess Fiona can be seen to take a backseat in proceedings. For this outing, Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, and even Merlin are accommodated, and all do respectable jobs, pushing the narrative forward to an acceptable degree while filling the comic relief slots adequately. This brings us to the plot itself which may seem to simply endeavour to be a gag-fest of sorts but in truth, the foundation is certainly a solid and trustworthy assertion for any film - the producers substitute Shrek worrying about being an ogre in non-ogre society (this time Myers' character is relentlessly fretting about fatherhood) for an old-fashioned yarn containing Merlin, Lancelot, Arthur etc. in a highly polished visual contemporary display. Morality is the primary task of the screenwriters and the intrinsic ethics can be easily seen. Consequently, for animated fodder, humour and wholesome storytelling are the most important ingredients, and Shrek the Third contains both to a watchable extent. A dash of charm just needs to be added to increase the favourable flavour further.
The summary
A threequel with plenty of ideas but just not enough conviction to follow through onto the all-important celluloid to match or surpass earlier efforts.
