Shallow and stale, but just as charming

Rating: 5/10 (19 May 2005)

I had heard many great things about this movie before I saw it, which is probably the reason I didn't like it as much as I feel I should have. My expectations were too high.
In comparison to the first movie, well... the first one was a refreshing kick in the butt for all those kiddie movies out there. This seems to be milking that same genre of adult-and-kid-friendly movies for all it's worth. Much of the witty banter in the first one seems to have been replaced by flat one-liners for the endless-amount of irrelevant characters in the movie and flatulent jokes, and the characters that do matter seem to be simply reading their boring, dull lines. I'm also not sure I quite get the fascination with Cameron Diaz, as she seems to have enough trouble establishing true presence in her roles where she's actually physically on screen, let alone voice-overs.
That isn't to say that the movie lacks all charm. Antonio Banderas and Rupert Everett in their supporting roles offer much-needed non-linear comic relief when compared to the perpetually emo Shrek. I don't understand why the scriptwriters decided to get rid of the wisecracking green ogre that people fell in love with and replace him with a great, depressed, hulking mass of Scottish accent, but I suppose that's their decision. Eddie Murphy tries his best to recapture the Donkey's likability, but his lines come off more as tired and forced. However, I did appreciate many of the pop-culture references (my personal favorites being the Farbucks coffee scene and the "COPS" parody), even if they pushed it a bit too far (giving Pinocchio a thong? Come on, a little dignity please).
I suppose the best thing that can be said for this movie is that it truly embodies one of its characters. Appealing to look at and charming on the outside, shallow and stale on the inside. But for a sequel, it could be worse.