Word: shrek
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...story. The ogre (Mike Myers characterizes him vocally as a dour Scotsman) does a deal with the vertically challenged Farquaad (John Lithgow) to rescue Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) from a faraway castle. If he succeeds, the princeling will marry the girl and remove the crowd of enchanted nuisances from Shrek's property...
...princess guarded by a ferocious dragon? You bet. Will Shrek fall in love with her? Why bother to ask? What's so good (or original) about all of this? Well, frankly, it's the Donkey...
...Shrek's sidekick, a pest, a troublemaker, a nonstop talker, and he may just harbor secret dreams of pop stardom. Mostly, though, he represents the reality principle in the movie--hooves on the ground, big ears swivelingly alert for false and dangerous notes. His vocal characterization is supplied by Eddie Murphy, and it is fair to say that not since Robin Williams in Aladdin has an actor so deliciously appropriated a movie. Whether he's fending off the sudden amorous attentions of Fiona's dragon, proposing an evening of man-to-man conversation with Shrek--to be followed...
There's still plenty of room for Myers' comic gloom. His Shrek is, indeed, the perfect foil for the Donkey's irrepressibility. Diaz, too, has an excellent character to play. You've gotta see what she does to Robin Hood and his Merry Men when they get fresh with her. She is also not exactly what she seems...
...potent twist on that standard fairy-tale trope about the transformative powers of love and provides a neat switch on all those Snow White-Sleeping Beauty legends. But let's not stress morals and messages. Let's stress the sheer, cheeky fun of this movie. And the fact that Shrek, like Chicken Run a year ago, enchantingly expands animation's palette and possibilities...