Shrek The Third
By
Victoria Alexander
FilmsInReview.com

Boring and sluggish even with Shrek often naked.

My weekly column, ?The Devil?s Hammer,? appears every Monday on www.FromTheBalcony.com. The Devil's Hammer on FTB

Shrek (voiced by Mike Myers) complains and moans on about not wanting to be designated King of Far, Far Away. He wants to go home to his orge-loving life with nothing-to-do this time Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz).

Upon the death of Fiona?s frog father (John Cleese), Shrek refuses to be king and goes in search of Artie (Justin Timberlake) a cousin who is next in line for the throne. While Shrek is away, Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) organizes a takeover of the empire by enlisting a motley crew of villains from classic fairy tales.

These villains, notably Captain Hook, the Evil Queen, and the Big Bad Wolf, are the true neglected stars of Shrek The Third. Princess Fiona?s handmaidens are similarly underused background players. Sleeping Beauty (Cheri Oteri), Snow White (Amy Poehler), Rapunzel (Maya Rudolph), Cinderella (Amy Sedaris) and some guy in drag, Doris the Ugly Stepsister (voiced by Larry King!), stand around impersonating Paris Hilton, Nicole Ritchie, Lindsay Lohan and Brittney Spears. The maiden in drag? The former Chyna, Joanie Laurer?

Sluggish as well is Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas). They are now Fairy Tale?s ?Entourage? who gave up being foibles to live the good life in the castle as attendants to the presumptive king.

The biggest surprise is the fact that Fiona?s mother, the Queen (Julie Andrews), is really a ninja.

The production and artistry is gorgeous, but how long could I enjoy looking at the scenery and beauty of Prince Charming?

The previous Shrek?s were clever, but this one has been designed with 5 year olds in mind. That?s the audience with the highest return potential.

Be warned: Everybody was in this for the money. Why pay for a story?

Victoria Alexander lives in Las Vegas, Nevada and answers every email. You can contact Victoria directly at masauu@aol.com or by visiting www.FilmsInReview.com

SHREK THE THIRD
Paramount Pictures
DreamWorks Animation S.K.G. presents
a PDI/DreamWorks production

Credits:
Director: Chris Miller
Co-director: Raman Hui
Chris Miller
Screenwriters: Jeffrey Price, Peter S. Seaman, Chris Miller, Aron Warner, Story by: Andrew Adamson
Based on the book by: William Steig
Producer: Aron Warner
Executive producers: Andrew Adamson, John H. Williams
Production designer: Guillaume Aretos
Visual effects supervisors: Philippe Gluckman, Ken Bielenberg
Music: Harry Gregson-Williams
Co-producer: Denise Nolan Cascino
Editor: Michael Andrews

Cast:
Shrek: Mike Myers
Donkey: Eddie Murphy
Princess Fiona: Cameron Diaz
Puss in Boots: Antonio Banderas
Queen: Julie Andrews
King: John Cleese
Prince Charming: Rupert Everett
Merlin: Eric Idle
Artie: Justin Timberlake
Captain Hook: Ian McShane
Sleeping Beauty: Cheri Oteri
Snow White: Amy Poehler
Rapunzel: Maya Rudolph
Cinderella: Amy Sedaris

Running time -- 92 minutes
MPAA rating: PG