Directed by: Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury, Conrad Vernon
Written by: Andrew Adamson, Joe Stillman, J. David Stem, David N. Weiss
Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Julie Andrews, Antonio Banderas, John Cleese
Rating: [4.5/5]
Visiting the parents of your significant other can elicit anxiety with the fear of whether or not they will like you and approve of the relationship. That alone will cause fear but then imagine the first time this interaction occurs after your marriage to their child and you’re a literal ogre. Well, Shrek 2 explores this anxiety for this particular ogre in crafting an equally hilarious and even stronger thematic sequel to an already exemplary film.
Following their honeymoon, Shrek (Mike Myers) and Fiona (Cameron Diaz) receive word from the latter’s parents to visit and honor them. Reluctant to go, Fiona drags Shrek along as he fears they will not react kindly to him and Fiona existing as ogres.
Following the smash hit success of the first film filled with references and irreverent humor, it would take quite some effort in order to match it but luckily with Shrek 2, we get something even more impactful, comedic, and enjoyable if you can believe it. In regard to Shrek and Fiona, we get beyond the initial stage of their infatuation with each other and move into where they begin a life where compromise needs to exist and one of those testing scenarios comes very quickly with their visit to her parents. A lesson for Shrek about everything that comes with marrying another person, which takes us to the grand kingdom of Far Far Away.
On top of the great name this kingdom receives, this feature takes the fact the pop culture references in the first film went over well and decided to double and triple down on it. In Far Far Away you get a medieval version of Los Angeles from the palm trees to a mock Hollywood sign on the hills. In this town all of the celebrity fairy tale characters live like Cinderella and Snow White. It represents everything Shrek has no interest in partaking but he must at least show face and do his duty.
The interactions Shrek and Fiona have with her parents make for some awkward moments where you have parents expecting their human daughter to arrive with her prince charming and instead, they appear as ogres. Tension exists on all sides making for the moments of confrontation quite explosive. This adds enough tension to the story all before the introduction of the villain and how she will manage to wreck things up for this lovely couple.
When watching Cinderella you see the appearance of the fairy godmother as such a positive force in the story as she helps the young woman achieve her dream and attend the ball to meet her prince. Her job works similarly here where she seeks to grant everyone their happily ever after, but as gets displayed in the film, she only works within the classic approach of who gets this happy ending and those typically do not include ogres marrying princesses. In a sense, she then represents the antithesis to Shrek’s overall story of upending fairy tale tropes and operates as the establishment taking back how a happily ever after looks. Jennifer Saunders comes in and delivers an absolute dynamite voice performance with the wily fairy godmother and that’s before mentioning her absolutely out-of-this-world memorable performance of “Holding Out for a Hero” during one of the better action sequences this film employs.
While Donkey (Eddie Murphy) takes more of a backseat in this feature we get the introduction of Puss in Boots voiced by none other than Antonio Banderas. Adding his silky voice to the cast brings in this elusive little cat who adds this sense of honor to the story allowing him to stand out amongst the other fairy tale creatures ushered into the narrative. No one will ever forget his tactic of using those kitten eyes to disarm everyone around him while also operating as a conniving hitman. Quite the combination to have in just one kitten but he makes quite the mighty addition to the team and contributes in his own ways.
On a thematic level, this feature gets into a touching discussion about what it means to love your partner to the point of trying to mold and change to what would make them the happiest. Logically, someone should not have to fundamentally change when dating someone because it defies the individuality the person possesses. This narrative provides Shrek the opportunity to change himself into something he believes Fiona has always sought and would truly become her happily ever after. I’m sure others will watch this film and understand exactly where Shrek sits on an emotional level, especially when this sense of inadequacy begins to creep up in his mind. This allows a level of emotional introspection we did not experience in the first film other than the feelings of love developing between the pair. It becomes something much deeper, which makes the eventual resolution to the story all the more impactful.
Animated sequels have the tendency to fail in recreating what their predecessor accomplished, but Shrek 2 certainly stands out as quite the exception. It significantly raises the stakes for the characters in both a physical and emotional sense pushing Shrek and Fiona to worry about themselves and how their relationship exists in the context of their lives, which for better or worse includes in-laws. This intimate story sits quite nicely within an extremely entertaining referential marathon making incessant jokes that all land incredibly well and never turn stale. A complete and utter knockout.
Films with Josh 
