CASEY PHILLIPS: There's something to be said for keeping your expectations reasonable and then meeting them. That's exactly what first-time "Shrek" director Mike Mitchell has pulled off with "Shrek Forever After."
The fourth "Shrek" film was created and marketed largely as a 3-D picture, but despite seeing it in a mere two dimensions, I found the story held its own, even if it didn't break the series' successful "twisted fairy tale" mold.
The plot reimagines Shrek's life had he not become a hero, which breathes new life into characters who were at risk of growing stale after three films. To wit, Eddie Murphy's Donkey is a surly beast of burden; Cameron Diaz's Princess Fiona trades in her gown for a battle ax to lead a band of resistance fighters; and Antonio Banderas' Puss in Boots is a much tubbier kitty.
Thanks to this fresh take, I found myself paying attention to the plot, which doesn't take many risks but merely plows ahead like a good pack mule, delivering the funny without fuss.
REVIEWED THIS WEEK* Movie: "Shrek Forever After"* Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas and Walt Dohrn.* Rating: PG for mild action, some rude humor and brief strong language.* Synopsis: After making an ill-advised wish to Rumpelstiltskin to "feel like a real ogre again," Shrek's life is turned upside down as the ones he loves forget who he is.
HOLLY LEBER: Pulling off a fourth incarnation of any movie is a risk, so going at this one from the "what could have happened" angle rather than the "what happened next" one was a wise choice. I wouldn't have wept in despair had another "Shrek" movie not found its way to the cinema, but I was able to appreciate "Shrek Forever After" despite having not seen the third movie.
The good thing about the "Shrek" movies is that while they're aimed at kids, they can be appreciated by adults.
CASEY: I personally thought Banderas stole the show, much as he did with Puss in Boots' debut in "Shrek 2." Similarly, newcomer Walt Dohrn's Rumpelstiltskin is quite funny, in an "I'm an angry Troll Doll" sort of way. I could have used more screen time for the Pied Piper, an assassin who communicates (and kills) through the use of jazz flute.
HOLLY: And inspires involuntary choreographed dances.
For those with a particular affection for the swashbuckling feline, Puss in Boots is getting his own movie in 2011, so the franchise will live on. We'll see how the killer kitty fares on his own.
Side note to Hollywood: Stop putting everything in 3-D. It used to be special. Now it's just more expensive.
CASEY: Personally, I'll appreciate 3-D (and its added cost) when it doesn't require glasses. In the meantime, I have no problem with films being in 3-D, so long as, like in "Forever After," the story in the 2-D version doesn't suffer.
HOLLY: Final thought: I want a little ogre baby. They're precious. They made my biological clock tick. (Don't judge.)