by Rebecca Mikulin

Created on: April 06, 2009

You know it happens every time...you watch a movie, you love it, then you just can't resist the first several sequels that come out. It seems like anymore - be it from a flooded market where so many works just get buried as soon as they come out or from simple lack of creativity - whenever any movie makes it big a sequel is sure to follow. Such is the case with the Shrek movies.

In case you're new to the series (it's a trilogy now and I'm not going to place any bets that they won't keep producing them) Shrek is an ogre who starts out living alone in his swamp perfectly happy to live out his days without bothering anything that doesn't bother him. Unfortunately the townspeople near his swamp didn't like the idea of an ogre being there and constantly formed mobs to pester him with pitchforks until he couldn't take it anymore.

In the first movie we follow Shrek as he leaves his swamp and meets up with a talking donkey that will not leave him alone, is sent off on a mission to rescue a princess from a dragon for the cowardly prince Farquaad - somewhat disenchanting the princess, Fiona, I might add - and battling all opposition in his way. Through the course of the film Fiona gets over her dislike of the ogre (thanks in part to the loquacious Donkey) and reveals her need to break a malicious spell that has been put on her.

In Shrek 2 the newly wed Shrek and Fiona must travel to the land of Far Far Away to meet Fiona's parents who are less than pleased at their daughter's choice in men and try everything they can to separate the couple, turn Fiona back into her rightful self and marry her off to Prince Charming with the help of the scheming Fairy Godmother. The fairy tale characters that were a smaller part of the first movie come on in full force and many more are added as the two must battle their way through Charming and his cohorts to be together.

Now, in Shrek the Third Fiona's father is deathly ill and the subject of the next in line must be discussed. Obviously this unwillingly domesticated ogre will not submit himself to the social rigors of being a king and will do anything possible to put someone else on the throne. In the old king's final gasps he imparts to Shrek that there is another, his nephew Artie.

Shrek travels far away...to a boarding school where the luckless Arthur is hung from the rafters by the geeks in braces and his esteem goes down from there as one travels up the popularity ladder. When he is told that he is really a king Artie...or, more appropriately,

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>