what-arent-you-doing-in-my-swamp

[what-arent-you-doing-in-my-swamp]

I won’t lie, my favorite place in Wal-Mart is the five-dollar movie bin. Some of those movies look like I have a bigger budget than they do, and I’m a college student. But every once in a while, you stumble across a diamond in the ruff. Like Shrek! Some people might tell you that Shrek is not quite possibly the best children’s film ever, but those people are wrong. Shrek excels in entertaining both children and adults, and it provides a phenomenal positive message, two hallmarks to a quality children’s movie.

Shrek entertains and develops its message through the key element to making a quality film: character development through storytelling.

Our favorite big green ogre starts his first movie a monster, pun intended. At first, Shrek wants nothing more than the solitude of his swamp. Then one night, after begrudgingly sheltering the, very talkative and annoying, Donkey, Shrek finds that he has been graced with the company of just about every fairy-tale creature imaginable. Learning that one Lord Farquaad relocated these “fairy tale things” onto his land, Shrek immediately sets off to move them out. With Donkey as guide, Shrek meets Lord Farquaad and they strike a deal: Shrek gets him a princess, and Farquaad gives Shrek his land back. The princess, Fiona, turns out to be preppy and critical, precisely what Shrek expects. Shrek acts rude and brutish, precisely what Fiona expects. After a day of travel, the crew sets up camp; it is here that Donkey squeezes out the source of Shrek’s standoffishness: fear. Shrek ironically prejudges to avoid judgement, strengthening the stereotype that ogres are dumb, ugly, and mean. As the two of them talk, Fiona listens. You see, Fiona’s preppiness is an act; out of fear of what people would think of her, she puts on a facade. Fiona decides to open-up and Shrek does the same. The two of them begin to love and trust (especially each other) their newfound friends. It seems like it couldn’t be going better when a classic misunderstanding leaves them both feeling betrayed, recessing deeper into themselves than ever before. Realizing it was all a mistake, Shrek returns to save Fiona once more, this time from Lord Farquaad. It is here that true-love’s kiss transforms Fiona into her ogress form. The two love-slugs get married recognizing that true joy comes from accepting and loving oneself and others.

Shrek acted brutish to push away people who prejudge. Fiona acted prude so that she could not be criticized. Both feared getting hurt by letting someone too close. Both fed the others fear by fitting their stereotype. By acknowledging their faults and being vulnerable, they found, to their surprise, love.

Children and adults connect with either ogre, refreshed to see characters start apart and grow together. And it is made all the more refreshing since Shrek hits the two key pieces of good character-development: positive change and relatable characters.

Now let’s talk about how the story tells with Shrek’s visuals and dialog.

Visuals first! It is clear at the start that Shrek is an ogre that likes his privacy. Shrek puts up signs all around his swamp telling people to keep out, he frowns whenever Donkey (or really anyone) is around, and he is disrespectful to his sudden fairy-tale guests. By the end of the film, Shrek has welcomed the company back to his land for his wedding. Shrek is happy around his new friends, and warm to all. The animators went great lengths to define Shrek a nasty ogre that’s still lovable because of his roundness, earthy green color scheme, and organic lifestyle.

Don’t forget about dialog! Shrek starts harsh in tone, language choice, and delivery. He throws villagers out of his swamp, he tells Donkey to sleep outside, and he yells “What are you doing in my swamp!?” at the fairy-tale creatures. At the end, Shrek doesn’t yell, but speaks gently and lovingly with his new friends – even apologizing and asking for forgiveness! When Shrek says “I love you” to Fiona, the directors had Shrek’s voice actor bring in his wife to make the line more genuine. The writers of Shrek worked in all sorts of other tricks to make the characters more amusing, relatable, and organic. For example, voice actors would ad-lib material. Another great example are the puns, like Shrek calling Donkey a “jackass”. And the references, like when Shrek says, “that’ll do Donkey, that’ll do,” referencing Babe.

Shrek is the chief example of a quality kid’s flick. It manages to be especially entertaining while boasting an amazing message. Though some of the best storytelling techniques out there, Shrek teaches that true fulfillment is only obtainable by loving oneself and others. Suffice to say, Shrek is a darn good movie.