Shrek (Andrew Adamson & Vicky Jenson, 2001) is based on the 1990s fairy tale picture book with the same name written by the American cartoonist William Steig. The word Shrek came from German Schreck meaning “fright” or “terror”. However, this story of a non-charming prince and ogre hero, non-sleeping princess, and an unhelpful sidekick, quickly won a place in the hearts of people worldwide as it was one of the biggest box office hits from 2001. It was popular for the cinephiles too, wining a consecrated place in the films’ history, especially within the animation industry. Shrek premiered at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for a Palme d’Or. Making it the first animated film since Disney’s Peter Pan (Hamilton Luske, Clyde Geronimi, and Wilfred Jackson, 1953) to be chosen to do so. The film won the first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Since Shrek has turned into a franchise.
The early 2000s, for Walt Disney Studios, were years of decline, after the memorable and successful Renaissance era from 1989 to 1999 with iconic films like The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), Lion King (1994), and Tarzan (1999). Before 1994, Jeffrey Katzenberg was the chairman of the studio and responsible for some of Disney’s most critically acclaimed and highest-grossing animated features mentioned previously. In that year, he left after Mr Eisner refused to promote him to the president, simultaneously he went on to create a new studio with David Geffen and Steven Spielberg – the well known DreamWorks SKG. Another factor that contributed to Disney’s fall was the competition among the animation studios, for many years Walt Disney Studios was the powerful name in this area. However, in the early 2000s, this hegemony was broken by other animation studios like DreamWorks and Pixar (which Disney hadn’t bought yet).
Shrek has a unique place in the entertainment industry that allowed it to be classified as a neo-classic, at such an early age (20 years). It had technological development by the advanced graphics and 3D CGI. The film has a reputed celebrity voice cast. Shrek influenced other films with the subversion and modernisation of the fairy tales, which is noticeable from its first scene, where the narrator starts to tell a story like the start of many of Disney’s films, for example, Sleeping Beauty (Clyde Geronimi, Wolfgang Reitherman, Les Clark & Eric Larson, 1959). However, then a book page is ripped off by Shrek, who uses it as toilet paper. Shrek’s plot formula inspired other films like Hoodwinked (Cory Edwards, 2006) and movies from the Post-Renaissance and Revival eras of Disney.
Shrek was an early signal to the kind of humour that is successful nowadays on the internet. The film was the start-up and solidification of DreamWorks face, which is the asymmetrical smirk, the similarly crooked eyebrows and smile, the half-closed eyes and the intense stare-down that comes at you from the promo posters. The characters never, or rarely, make that face to begin in the film. It is usually a way to get audiences to watch a particular film over another and promises a very different tone from what we are used to. Above all, the film attracts a wider target audience by its countless references to popular culture. Adapted lines from films like Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939), mirror scenes from many Disney movies and an iconic list of Hollywood ones from Steamboat Bill Jr (Buster Keaton & Charles Reisner, 1928) to Matrix (Lana Wachowski & Lily Wachowski, 1999). It satirizes recognizable brands like Starbucks, and takes a modern approach for example, when it uses “P” to indicate Parking. This DreamWorks classic marked the first time an animated feature opted for contemporary and popular music instead of original songs. Besides that, there is a diversity never seen before in animation, although there are issues regarding transphobia, homophobia, and queercoding. Again, uniting more spectators from different backgrounds.
Furthermore, there are other factors important to consider that also contributed to this story to conquer a special place in our hearts. Shrek is the opposite of a traditional hero, characterised by noble qualities and usually a human being. He is an ogre, rude and selfish. These personality flaws make him a typical anti-hero. In that sense, it makes him close to reality and human beings, as we are imperfect too. Throughout his journey, the audience learns these negative personality traits are a protective shell towards the prejudice he suffers from Duloc’s citizens. Again, it relates to the audience, as many members of minority groups sadly deal with prejudice. Shrek teaches a valuable message to Donkey and the spectators that will never get old “Ogres are like onions”. Relating to us in that humans too, are like onions as we all have countless layers which go beyond the surface. Then, do not judge a book by its cover as appearances are deceptive.
Where to find the mentioned film:
Netflix
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