weak at best

Rating: 6/10 (20 May 2004)

this movie is a waste of two acts. The first two thirds of the film start off without any clear direction or story of any kind. The films seems to be everwhere, neither funny nor serious. It slumps along to played out pop music, without really taking any direction or making any choices.
Now that i've vaugely repeated myself enough. The third act is really funny and works incredibly well. Shrek, at it's best is a tounge-in-cheek reference to the intersection of pop-culture and fairy tales. At it's worst, it's cliched and uninteresting. The picture finally picks up in 3rd act with quick with, fast paced (real) humor, and also a little bit of poppy-sugary-sweetness.
Ultimatley, the last act can and should never be able to redeem the rest of the movie, and it certainly doesn't here. So, take it for what it's worth. It'll probably be good for little kids.
peace.