Shrek the Third

Thanks to the critical and commercial success of the first two “Shrek” movies, DreamWorks worked on a third installment of the series known as, “Shrek the Third.” Following the announcements of big threequels “Spider-Man 3,” “The Bourne Ultimatum” & “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,” Jeffrey Katzenberg ordered the Cast and Crew to work on the project. Chris Miller takes over Andrew Adamson’s duty as director. The latter was busy making “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio were busy writing Pirates 3. Jeffrey Prince & Peter S. Seaman replaced them.

Released in 2007, (same year The Simpsons Movie came out) unlike the previous two movies, the third one earned mixed reviews from critics. It managed to generate money at the box office. May 2007 was an epic box office battle between threequels Spider-Man 3, Ocean’s 13, The Bourne Ultimatum, Shrek the Third & Pirates 3. My friend, Iain and had a lengthy yet interesting discussion about Sony, WB, Universal & DreamWorks gambling their money on big budget threequels.

Three Years Later, “Shrek Forever After” got the series back on track. Antonio Banderas reprised his role as “Puss in Boots” in a prequel spin-off and sequel titled, “The Last Wish.” A fifth Shrek movie is in development. Plus, a Donkey spin-off is in the works. As of mid-2024, no release dates have been announced. Anyway, I wanna share my thoughts on the weakest Shrek movie.

It doesn’t matter if SPOILERS are listed. We’ve all seen the Shrek movies countless times.

Good & Bad Qualities

Good: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Antonio Banderas, Cameron Diaz, Rupert Everett, Julie Andrews, John Cleese and the late Larry King reprise their roles. They all did a decent job for their respective voiceover performances.

Newcomers such as Justin Timberlake, Amy Poehler, (one of my favorite actresses) Maya Rudolph, Amy Sedaris, Cheri Oteri & Eric Idle all did a solid job for their respective voiceover performances.

Animation retains the look of the first two movies.

Jokes are a hit and miss.

There’s several pop culture references listed below.

• Donkey sings “Good Morning” from “Singing in the Rain.”
• Shrek getting his toenails trimmed spoofs the makeover montage from “Dumb and Dumber.”
• Shrek’s nightmare is a parody of “The Exorcist,” “Rosemary’s Baby” and the nightmare scene from “Bring It On.”
• Merlin’s holographic floating head is an obvious reference to “The Wizard of Oz.” Plus, tree guards.
• Puss & Donkey swap bodies like Goku & Captain Ginyu from “Dragon Ball Z” or any other body swap related movie like “Freaky Friday.”
• Dwarfs change a bar’s sign from “Ye Olde Bootery” to “Ye Olde Hooters.”
• Lilian hums “Just a Spoonful of Sugar” & “My Favorite Things” from “Mary Poppins” & “The Sound of Music.”
• During the End Credits, Puss & Donkey sing and dance to Sly and the Family Stone’s “Thank You, For Letting Me Be Myself.” DreamWorks is notorious for dance party endings.

Regis Philbin (may he Rest in Peace) voices Mabel the Ugly Stepsister.

Ian McShane voices Captain Hook.

John Krasinski has a brief role as Lancelot.

Wolfmother’s “Joker and the Thief” is played during Prince Charming’s invasion of Far Far Away. Speaking of which, Wolfmother’s other song “Pleased to Meet You” was used in another big threequel Spider-Man 3 before Spidey rescues Gwen Stacy.

Seth Rogen also has a brief role as a drunk ship captain. He later voiced Mantis from the “Kung-Fu Panda” movies.

Revenge was a trend back in 2007. Here’s a list of works that share a similar plotline.

• Hannibal Rising
• Shooter
• Spider-Man 3
• Ocean’s Thirteen
• Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
• War
• Death Sentence
• Balls of Fury
• We Own the Night
• The Brave One
• Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Bad: Chris Miller didn’t do a good job directing.

Jeffrey Price & Peter S. Seaman wrote hit and miss jokes. However, they failed to craft a compelling story. The same guys who wrote “Wild Wild West” & “Last Holiday” butchered Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio’s beloved scripts from the first two entries.

After Harold dies in his deathbed, his funeral’s ruined when a frog choir perform “Live and Let Die.” That reminds me of a similar scene from “Beverly Hills Cop III.” When one of Axel Foley’s allies dies, the scene cuts to Al Green singing at his funeral. Ruins the mood. The funeral scene from “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues” was ten times funnier.

After an argument on a boat which causes it to shipwreck, Shrek tries to reconcile with Arthur. What does he do? Tries to speak like a hipster. I know, Mike speaking like a hipster worked in all three Austin Powers movies, but the way he tries to apologize to Arthur gave me “The Cat in the Hat” flashbacks. Remember that one line? “Honey, it was ruined when she bought it.” Mike Myers’ career was in turmoil. Oh, how the mighty have fallen!

• Strike 1 – The Cat in the Hat
• Strike 2 – Shrek the Third
• Stike 3 – The Love Guru

When our heroes battle Captain Hook and his men, Merlin plays the piano with the former. Shouldn’t he use his magic to help Shrek, Donkey & Arthur?

Shrek never tells Arthur the truth. He used him so he can take over his duty as king. Followed by a temporary break-up mostly shown in rom-coms and buddy cop movies. DreamWorks has a habit for making the main character a liar.

• Jason Nesmith – Galaxy Quest
• Rocky the Rooster – Chicken Run
• Oscar the Fish – SharkTale
• RJ the Raccoon – Over the Hedge
• Hiccup – How to Train Your Dragon

The Climax takes place in a stage play organizing by Prince Charming. It pales in comparison to Shrek 2’s “I Need a Hero” scene. Shrek and his friends fight their way through Fairy Godmother’s forces before Fiona drinks a magic potion and kisses Charming.

The Final Verdict: C, FOR CLUSTER FUDGE!

Shrek the Third lacks a compelling story, jokes are sometimes cringeworthy and an underwhelming climax. I consider the third movie as the weakest of the series. I hope Shrek 5 and Donkey’s spin-off will do justice. Only time will tell.