When his new father-in-law, King Harold falls ill, and he learns he will have to rule the land of Far, Far Away, unless he can find a suitable heir to the throne, He sets out on a mission that may not be as easy as he anticipates.
With a plot lacking no urgency, Shrek 3 is a well-animated film containing a few standout, but ultimately throwaway sequences that don't do enough to sustain our interest.
Shrek the Third has the curse of the third in a bankable series. It is too often sappy, tiresome, and overblown. A franchise such as Shrek, with all the money it has accumulated, should be able to buy a little freshness and originality. But instead
The plot material isn't as strong as in the first two movies -- if anything, it feels a bit desperate -- but the anti-Disney joke blunderbuss remains in good working order.
From its humble, elegant origins as a slim children's book by William Steig, Shrek has metastasized into a symptom of and metaphor for the entertainment industry and modern culture in general.
This is the most visually impressive Shrek yet. It's also the least inspired.
San Francisco Examiner
April 10, 2008
Though the devious wit of the original remains, it is obscured by too many classic-rock interludes (courtesy of Led Zeppelin, Heart and Paul McCartney) and nudging pop-culture references that seem by now just part of the formula.
Apart from some modestly amusing princess shtick and a pleasantly slapsticky opening, there's no real reason for anyone over the age of 11 to see this one.
