Review By John Barker:
- Better than a cheese royale: buy one while its hot

Despite some journalist’s claims that the title character Shrek looks very similar to England footballer Wayne Rooney, this sequel has none of the problems that plagued England’s finest performer during the quarter-final of the European Championships.

Assured and nicely forwarding the characterization, Shrek 2 retains all of the elements that made the first film a success without reveling in its glory. The films events begin just after Shrek and Princess Fiona’s marriage as they venture off on their honeymoon. This montage sequence scores big-points for pastiche as Spiderman, Lord of the Rings and Disney get the post-modern treatment.

After this initial fun the film turns to a Meet The Parents style format with the nervous newlyweds meeting the King (John Clease) and Queen (Julie Andrews) to receive the blessing for their marriage. In the background, Prince Charming, played with aristocratic arrogance by Rupert Everett, seeks out the castle were Princess Fiona was once kept only to discover that he has been beaten to the Royal crown.

The introduction of this character to the audience is one of the high points of the film as the Prince glides into the castle with a wonderful flourish, which can be attributed to any number of Vidal Sassoon adverts, as Charming’s hair flows in the wind.

His mother, who is coincidently the Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders), becomes embroiled in a plot to remove Shrek from the loving arms of Princess Fiona and replace him with her own son. To achieve this goal, deadly ogre-assassin Puss in Boots is hired and provides another comic highlight; mixing Kite-Kat cuteness with the balletic battling grace of the Three Musketeers. Voiced with feline ferociousness by Antonio Banderas, Puss plays off Donkey’s (Eddie Murphy) cemented role in this franchise as the overly talkative animal that Shrek loves to hate.

Together, the trio try to unravel the Fairy Godmother’s plot and this is also a problem that presents itself to the audience, as while Dreamworks Animation studio have improved the computer graphics, less care has been taken with the narrative. While the story is jigsaw puzzle of fairytales it has lost the attractive simplicity of the first film.

However, the characterization and human relationships that develop are surprisingly realistic with the newlyweds falling out and a lot of genuine tension between son and father-in-law. Still, bringing new characters into the mix has caused some damage as Donkey is reduced simply to a few funny lines, while Charming and the Fairy Godmother play off their fairytale personas without delving deeper into the psychologies of these fantasy creations.

Although, the above criticism may seem a little harsh as this film is seen (by most) as a children’s cartoon, the original Shrek was nuanced to the very highest degree and my nose would start getting longer if I stated that the second adventure of the green giant was any better. So, sit back and enjoy a decent comedy but don’t forget a long time ago, there was once a fantastic film called Shrek, and live happily ever after.