Shrek Forever After

Review by Anthony Morris

As far as the Shrek movies go, enough already: we get the joke. It wasn't a bad joke at the time, but that time was a long time ago.

Even Shrek Forever After seems to have figured it out - sure, it's yet another instalment in the increasingly tired franchise, but the title has a much welcomed sense of finality to it and the story itself is so obviously the last gasp that if Shrek does somehow come back for a fifth big-screen adventure they're pretty much going to have to re-create him from the ground up.

That's because the entire point of this story is that Shrek's story is over: he's happily married, he's got a happy family, everybody loves him, and all he has left to do now is settle into a nice warm cosy rut.

Problem is, Shrek (still voiced by Mike Myers) hasn't fully left his old life behind: he might love his family and friends, but a part of him still wishes he was on his own scaring passers-by.

It's at this point where Rumplestiltskin (Walt Dhorn) comes in and make him an offer: one day where he's a single ogre and everyone is scared of him, in exchange for one day of his life he won't even miss.

Shrek signs the contract, had a good old time reliving his glory days, then discovers that Rumplestiltskin's deals always work out best for Rumplestiltskin: he's the kingdom's new ruler, none of Shrek's friends know who he is, Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) is the leader of the ogre underground, and at the end of the day Shrek himself - the only person apart from Rumplestiltskin who remembers the way things used to be - will cease to exist.

Like all these kind of "what if" stories, much of the fun comes from seeing familiar characters in different settings, and there's just enough spark left in the Shrek cast to make it work.

The slick humour that's been a strong point of all the Shrek films feels a little more focused here, thanks to there actually being a point in the early scenes: making Shrek's "happily ever after" look like a painful grind.

But all the jokes here are the kind of thing you can only do once; if this is the end of Shrek (and it sure feels like it), he's going out on a relative high.

3.5 out of 5

Shrek Forever After
Australian release: 17th June, 2010
Official Site: Shrek Forever After
Cast: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Julie Andrews, Justin Timberlake
Director: Mike Mitchell