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It happens with most movie sequels. The moment a great movie announces it has a sequel, there are expectations that it will be as good as the first one. Unfortunately, it ends with the public hating the movie, but raking in a huge amount of money at the box office. There are exceptions to this rule like the 2008 release of the Dark Knight. It did much better than its predecessor. If the studio is willing to make a third movie, well the odds say that it's going to stink. Such is the case with Shrek the third.

The storyline in this movie was rather weak. It ends up with Shrek inheriting the Kingdom of Far Far Away. The next twenty minutes show Shrek having trouble with his new responsibilities and he decides to pass on the kingdom to the next heir in line. He sets out to find that heir and bring him back. Another concern Shrek has on his mind is the idea of fatherhood. He is unsure whether he is ready to become one or not. It has preyed on his mind ever since Fiona told him she was pregnant. Since the movie wouldn't be complete without a villain, Prince Charming appears with a plan to get the happy ending that should have happened.

I have to say that this was a horrible storyline. I put it on par with Rush Hour 3. The thing is there was really no storyline in either movie. The idea was really weak and thus the villains were not credible in both cases. Prince Charming getting revenge because he didn't have a happy ending with his life. It's not a problem you can place importance on because it happens all the time in life. Everybody is unhappy with something because it didn't turn out the way they wanted. It's how you make the best of the situation that matters. Ironically, that's the point the first two movies make. When it was revealed that Fiona turned into an ogre at night, no one wanted her but Shrek. While it was not Fiona's ideal ending, she was willing to stay with Shrek. The second film emphasizes that point when Shrek became a human. Fiona had the opportunity to become a permanent human, but she chooses to remain as an ogre because she loves Shrek for who he is, not by what he appears.

Some of the jokes in the movie were rather crude in this movie. tTe big one had to be where Shrek is annoyed by the multiple disturbances occuring in the night. With the last knock on his door, Shrek yells that someone had better be dying. The next scene shows Shrek and Fiona gathered around the bed of the dying frog prince. I felt it was an inappropriate place to have that joke, especially since the dying person is a relative of the character. However, that's just me. I also have to admit that the end of the movie was rather dumb. It was a stupid way to resolve the conflict and not very practical.

In closing, the third movie fell rather far below the qualities of the first two. It was good for a few laughs in certain areas, but nothing else beyond that. I can only hope that the fourth one does much better.

Learn more about this author, James Shimoda.
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