Could've been better than it was

Rating: 5/10 (2 September 2009)

"Shrek" (voiced by Mike Myers) is an ogre who loves the solitude of the swamp in which he lives. However, that solitude is disrupted when the fairy tale creatures in the area are forced into the swamp by "Lord Farquaad" (voiced by John Lithgow), ruler of the nearby "Duloc." "Shrek," along with a talking donkey named "Donkey" (voiced by Eddie Murphy), goes to complain to "Faarquaad", who sends the two on a quest to save "Princess Fiona" (voiced by Cameron Diaz; singing voice by Renee Sandstrom) lava-protected castle where she is being held against her will by a dragon.
Eventually, the three escape, and it becomes obvious that "Princess Fiona" and "Shrek" are meant to be together. However, "Shrek" wants to live a life of solitude, and "Fiona" is hiding a secret that she is ashamed of.
Now, the two have to learn what destiny has in store for the two, or they will live lives that weren't meant to be.
Let me say first that this movie is far from perfect. First of all, the story presented is pretty weak and rushed. We don't really get to see when "Shrek" and "Donkey" really get to trust one another. It appeared to me that the two became friendly somewhere between a couple of scenes. I also think that there were just too many characters in the supporting cast.
I did like how the performances were handled in this movie. The actors really brought the characters to life. Sometimes, I forgot that the actors were not on camera, and I don't believe that they were in the same room when they recorded their dialog.
The movie is enhanced by the wonderful animation. In fact, the animation is simply amazing. Personally, I think the animation was even better on the silver screen than it was on television. The colors of the animation is simply beautiful, and the scenery really looked three-dimensional. The use of colors was perfect through the entire movie.
Realism, in my opinion, is the only downfall in computer animation. Human skin looks more like rubber than actual skin. And when it comes to realistic looking hair or fur, it misses the mark. "Donkey's" hair just doesn't look real to me.
Another downfall is that much of the humor is not for young children. In fact, there is some language that isn't for children in this movie either. If I remember correctly, the movie was marketed as a family movie. It really isn't thanks to some jokes and language. These jokes would go over younger children's heads, and would make older children laugh when it comes to bodily function jokes. But, some references are certainly targeted to the adults in the audience.
Another fun aspect of this movie is the references to other movies, and numerous fairy tales. Some movie references I didn't notice, but did notice a particular special effect that everybody has seen from a certain sci-fi franchise starring Keanu Reeves.
As for the soundtrack, I can't recall one original song or musical piece in this movie. All the songs are ones you heard before, including a really good cover of a classic Monkees song. I'm not really sure if the songs fit into the scenes, but it was fun hearing them.
I can only say that you should watch this on HBO on a rainy day. It's cute, but not that cute.