This Could Change the World

Rating: Null/10 (26 April 2004)

I'm not kidding. This is one of the very few fairy tale movies to actually practice the themes that it preaches. At the end of the movie, the story establishes that people don't need to be "beautiful" in the traditional sense of the word, but whereas other fairy tales fall short, and give some excuse to turn them both into rich supermodels, instead, Fiona continues to be an ogre, and the story ends on a "happily ever after" note with them still living in a swamp.
Now, let's take a Disney movie as a contrasting example. Like, Aladdin. So at the end, the moral of the story is that Aladdin was a diamond in the rough despite being at the bottom of the social class barrel. But to live happily ever after, he needs to become a Prince.
Shrek is of course renowned for its amazing visuals, which it certainly has in large supply. While the animation is superb with every character, I was especially impressed with Fiona, who was the most life-like among them, and certainly would give Aki Ross a run for her money. But along with all the visuals is an interesting story, dynamic and original character who manage to fit into the loose, generic roles associated with the genre (hero, damsel, sidekick) while defying the archetypes that usually tie such characters down. I was especially delighted to see the guardian dragon actually become a character and not just a story vehicle.
As the result, we end up with an interesting, visually stunning, and wholly entertaining twist on the stereotypical fairy tale. One of the best movies of the year, and I fully believe that it should've been nominated for best picture. Unfortunately, the Academy, being so terrified of computer animation as they are, created the "Best Animated Feature" sub award so that they could take all animated films out of the running for best picture.