Third Time Not the Charm for "Shrek" by Bill Larson
1.5 Buckets of Popcorn out of 4
Who ever said the third time is the charm? So far, the 2007 summer movie season is lackluster and with "Shrek the Third" we are "treated" to another "threequel" at the multiplex and another huge letdown.
When his new father-in-law, King Harold, falls ill, Shrek is considered an heir to Far, Far Away land. But not one to give up his beloved swamp, Shrek recruits his friends Donkey and Puss in Boots to search for a geeky and awkward kid named Arthur (Artie for short) as a possible new king. In the meantime, Princess Fiona is left to fend off a coup d'etat by the jilted Prince Charming with her band of royal girlfriends.
"Shrek the Third" technically is OK, but has no soul, no excitement and no feeling. It was ho-hum, and it made me sleepy. It was like the folks at Dreamworks decided one day to make a third Shrek with no idea of how to do it. The story is weak and the film has nowhere near the quality of villain that "Shrek 2" had. The film has a couple (and I do mean a couple) of cool moments, like the "Boulevard of Broken Dreams"-like dive bar where all the defeated bad guys and gals hang out. But how sad is it that I felt more for the baddies than the heroes of the film? Pretty sad.
Like "Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" made me hunger for part two, which was exciting, character-driven and really good. I wanted to see it again. Luckily, the best part of "Shrek the Third" is that it's a mere 92 minutes. When the credits started to roll, I was so glad to see that it was...get ready for it...ogre.
Cast:
Mike Myers ... Shrek (voice)
Eddie Murphy ... Donkey (voice)
Cameron Diaz ... Princess Fiona (voice)
Antonio Banderas ... Puss In Boots (voice)
Julie Andrews ... Queen Lillian (voice)
John Cleese ... King Harold (voice)
Rupert Everett ... Prince Charming (voice)
Eric Idle ... Merlin (voice)
Justin Timberlake ... Artie (voice)
MPAA: Rated PG for some crude humor, suggestive content and swashbuckling action.
Runtime: 92 min