Rewind Back to 2001: “Shrek” (25th anniversary)
- Matt Palmer
- 1 hour ago
- 4 min read
For this slate’s Rewind Series review, I wanted to take another look at a 2001 family favorite that still can be enjoyed by families today. This animated DreamWorks movie eventually spawned three sequels, not counting a fifth entry gearing up for a 2027 release. The movie I’m talking about is the 2001 family favorite “Shrek,” which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year!
Once upon a time, in a far away swamp, there lived an ogre named Shrek whose precious solitude is suddenly shattered by an invasion of annoying fairy tale characters.
They were all banished from their kingdom by the evil Lord Farquaad. Determined to svae their home, not to mention his, Shrek cuts a deal with Farquaad and sets out to rescue Princess Fiona to be Farquaad’s bride. Rescuing the Princess may be small compared to her deep, dark secret.
The 2001 movie “Shrek” is still a refreshing and hilarious hit movie for the entire family, which successfully flipped fairy tale tropes on their heads with a blend of some gross-out humor for the kids and witty satire for adults. Audiences fell in love with its unconventional spirit, cementing its legacy as a beloved classic that can still be enjoyed today.
“Shrek” also popularized a unique blend of heartfelt storytelling and irreverent, somewhat, gross-out humor that can easily resonate with both children and adults. In the opening, Shrek uses a literal page from a fairy tale book as toilet paper and, from that point on, first time viewers will easily tell how unconventional this fairy tale would be. In a prime example of comedic exaggeration, Shrek yanks a massive, deep plug of wax from his ear and lights it to set a romantic dinner mood with the Princess - which can still give the younger ones a good laugh.
While there are plenty of jokes and gags that the children will easily enjoy, “Shrek” also has a few subtle jokes to keep the adults entertained. There are a few moments where there are rhyming patterns in songs that were intentionally broken to imply a word that’s not for children without actually saying it, which can still be hilarious.
Audiences (and myself) also enjoyed the mockery of classic tropes, turning an ugly ogre into the hero and a beautiful princess into a martial arts fighting, belching, independent lead character. There’s also plenty of sharp satire directed at theme parks and
corporate perfection, with the Kingdom of Duloc functioning as a direct parody of Disneyland.
The voice cast for this movie is still one of the best in an animated movie and their high-energy personality-driven performances elevated the movie beyond a traditional animated fairy tale. Some of the key highlights of the voice cast includes Eddie Murphy’s comedic timing as Donkey, Mike Myers’ iconic, cranky Scottish accent for Shrek, and the natural, conversational chemistry between the actors, with added warmth and humor to the characters.
The still iconic animated movie also featured quite a few fun moments that will keep everyone entertaining and laughing. One of the most iconic (and still hilarious) moments of this movie is the interrogation scene between Farquaad and the Gingerbread Man that is still a frequently quoted, humorous highlight (“Do you know … The Muffin Man?).
The “Shrek” soundtrack is beloved and well-known for its rebellious, pop culture-infused departure from traditional fairy tale musicals, featuring relatable, high-energy hits that appealed to both children and adults. The soundtrack also helped define the movie’s witty, anti-formulaic tone, blending nostalgic classics with contemporary hits to create a memorable, timeless experience. Some of the soundtrack includes: “I’m A Believer” (Smash Mouth), “All Star” (Smash Mouth), “I’m On My Way” (The Proclaimers) and many others!
“Shrek” is widely regarded as a ground-breaking, irreverent, and humorous animated classic that successfully satirized fairy tales while offering a heartfelt story about self-acceptance. It was hailed as a revolutionary movie for both its high quality (at the time) computer animation and its appeal to both children and adults, featuring a mix of irreverent humor and sophisticated wit.
MPA: Rated PG for mild language and some crude humor (runtime 90 minutes)
Initial release date: May 18. 2001
Streaming services: Hulu/Disney Plus/Peacock/various PVOD services
The principal actors never met each other. They all read their parts separately, with a reader feeding them the lines. John Lithgow later admitted that, while he enjoyed playing Lord Farquaad, he was a little disappointed that he never actually worked directly with Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, or Eddie Murphy.
Chris Farley was originally cast as Shrek and even recorded almost all of the dialogue. However, after his death, the role was given to fellow Saturday Night Live (1975) performer Mike Myers. Shrek's "air quotes" in the film is an homage to Farley, whose character Bennett Brauer also used air quotes. A story reel featuring a sample of Farley's recorded dialogue was leaked to the public in August 2015.
(at around 14 mins) Mike Myers was in New York City when the crew realized that the line "What are you doing in my swamp?!" had never been read. So producer Jeffrey Katzenberg flew to New York City and had Myers read the line in the back of a limo.
The late Alan Rickman was the initial casting choice for the role of Lord Farquaad. However, Rickman opted to portray the role of Professor Severus Snape in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) instead. The role ultimately went to John Lithgow.
Prior to release, the movie was viewed by DreamWorks' lawyers, since there were concerns that Disney would sue over the movie's not-so-subtle satirical references to the company's films and theme parks.
Computer animation production started on the project on October 31, 1996, and took more than four and a half years to complete.
Comments