A Genuinely Funny Animated Comedy with Ambition

Rating: Null/10 (13 August 2006)

Computer animation was a novelty by the summer of 2001. Pixar films were breaking records left and right. Disney's traditionally animated features after "Tarzan" (1999) were turning disappointing box office returns and mixed critical reviews. Other studios like Warner Bros. were out. DreamWorks had scored a good amount of hits prior to "Shrek". "Shrek" was their first computer animated film since the critically praised "Antz", and it was a film that was remarkable.
Being a huge Disney (and Pixar) fanatic, I think it's nice to see competition. Disney can't always rule the roost. That would be like saying Spielberg should rule the roost at Hollywood, or anyone else. Despite a very troubled production history and the fear that it would be a bust, "Shrek" is an animated classic.
At heart, "Shrek" is a comedic spoof of Disney's adaptations of fairy tales, and it does it well. But, "Shrek" has a strong story and great characters. It was a very competent film for its time (And more competent than any other DreamWorks animated film today) and it was an alternative to Disney and Pixar. Unfortunately, I feel that "Shrek" can't match the sheer genius of the Pixar films. But it outdoes some of the modern Disney animation efforts.
But enough of the Disney comparisons, even though its highly inevitable. The title character is a funny and also grumpy character. He hates being disturbed, especially by mobs. The worst happens when he's accompanied by Donkey. Donkey, being an obnoxious character, is the perfect companion for the grumpy ogre. The duo work perfectly.
Pretty soon, they are sent on a quest to rescue Princess Fiona from the villainous Lord Farquaad. Farquaad was a great villain, who was funny and menacing at the same time. He was basically a little guy with a complex. He was perfect. Aside from the main characters was a hilarious supporting cast. Gingy, the Mirror, the Dragon and the other fairy tales characters were all likable. No uninteresting characters or anything.
The use of songs worked quite fine, and it strengthened the romance between Shrek and Fiona in the second act of the film. The idea of Fiona secretly turning into an ogre at night was also a great subplot, as it is implied throughout the film until we actually see it. The action scenes were great, from the castle scene to the final battle, "Shrek" delivers in that department.
The animation was also very good, and stylized. It still looks fine today. There's a great attention to detail in this film. While the Pixar films have stylized humans (Nothing wrong with that), "Shrek" shows humans that look more realistic. But they don't look "better" than Pixar's humans, as Pixar does caricature with their human characters.
As an animated feature, "Shrek" succeeds. It's funny and heartfelt at the same time. Some minor flaws are the use of pop culture jokes, but they are mostly subtle. Sometimes the film gets a little ahead of itself, but that's only a minor issue I had with the film. Otherwise, it was a fine animated film that was very competent and tried to get more adults into animation. Unfortunately, DreamWorks basically gets cocky about animation because this film was what really launched them in the animation industry. Aside from all of that, "Shrek" will still be an animated classic.
A 9.5 out of 10.