Lazy, Uninspired ‘Shrek Forever After’ With Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz

CHICAGO – The laziest big budget film of the year, “Shrek Forever After” is the worst kind of family entertainment in that it relies solely on the goodwill engendered by the hit movies that came before to not only get audience members in seats this weekend but to sell them toys, video games, and tickets to amusement parks.

Rating: 1.0/5.0

Last year was a landmark one for animation with films like “Coraline,” “Up,” and “The Princess and the Frog” proving that the medium had a wealth of storytelling possibilities that wouldn’t merely result in commercials for other products of films. The pattern continued into early 2010 with the spectacular “How to Train Your Dragon,” one of the most beautiful movies of the year to date.

Read Brian Tallerico’s full review of “Shrek Forever After” in our reviews section. [14]

Perhaps without the recent high quality output in mainstream animation, I wouldn’t be as aggravated by the shear, unadulterated laziness at the heart of “Shrek Forever After,” not just the worst film in this franchise but the worst high profile work in a long time. With the depth and complexity of the animated films of 2009, why do we have to suffer through a piece that doesn’t seem as creatively inspired as the TV special “Shrek the Halls”? Every frame of this film reeks of a project that has been conceived and executed merely to fulfill the bare minimum to get audiences into seats. They know that if they tell a few jokes and bring back the characters you love, that you’ll pay to see it. Actual creativity requires too much effort. Fans of all ages deserve better.

The plot of “Shrek Forever After” is essentially a riff on “It’s a Wonderful Life” spun into more of a midlife crisis story for Shrek (Mike Myers). The big green guy longs for the day when his roar struck fear into the hearts of the townsfolk instead of just serving as a party trick. Domesticity can be tough on any man but it seems especially hard on Shrek to go from fearsome creature into exhausted father.

Continuing reading for Brian Tallerico’s full “Shrek Forever After” review. [14]

Shrek (Mike Myers) and His New Nemesis, Rumplestiltskin (Walt Dohrn).
Photo credit: DreamWorks