Shrek the Third **

By Dan Hudak

      How the mighty ogre has fallen.

      Gone are the charm, energy and humor of the first two “Shrek” films, and in its place is a dull movie that’s not nearly as funny or cute as it thinks it is. “Shrek the Third” certainly isn’t clever, either, and its attempt to include as many fairy tale characters as possible reeks of pathetic desperation to do something new for an audience that just wants you to recapture the magic of old.

      Part of the problem is that it jumps into the story without a fun opening sequence to reignite our interest. What’s more, it begins with Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) doing dinner theatre and getting heckled by the Gingerbread Man and Pinocchio (okay, that is funny), and then vowing to take over the kingdom of Far, Far Away. Less than ten minutes later, King Harold (John Cleese) is dead and Charming has planned a coup d’etat with the help of Captain Hook (Ian McShane), Rumplestiltskin (Conrad Vernon) and other fairy tale villains.

      Death is a dark, disarming note on which to begin a movie that’s sure to be a big hit with children, although people of all ages will inevitably be happy and cheerful as it starts. To be enshrouded in such negativity so early on sucks the life out of the audience and, as a consequence, the movie as well.

      Of course, the reluctant hero Shrek (Mike Myers) and his loyal sidekicks Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) are here to save the day. While Shrek’s pregnant wife Fiona (Cameron Diaz) stays behind to fend off Charming’s attack with the help of Snow White (Amy Poehler), Cinderella (Amy Sedaris) and Sleeping Beauty (Cheri Oteri), Shrek and the guys travel to find the rightful heir to the throne, a teenager named Arthur (Justin Timberlake).

      It’s always difficult to add new elements to a formula that’s worked in the past, and true to form the surplus of characters never allows the film to gain momentum. As a result the sequences with Shrek, Donkey and Puss work best because they offer familiarity and some decent laughs, particularly when Donkey and Puss switch bodies after a botched spell by Merlin the Magician (Eric Idle).

      The new characters, for the most part, struggle: the girls who join Fiona’s gang are whiny shrews, Captain Hook and the others villains don’t do very much and John Krasinski (“The Office”) is underused as Arthur’s nemesis, Lancelot. And while it’s a funny idea to have Larry King and Regis Philbin voice ugly maidens, the children aren’t going to understand the humor and the material isn’t good enough to amuse adults.

      Hopefully the trend of so-so (which is about as much as you can say for “Spider-Man 3”) third installments will not continue into the summer, as there are many more to come: “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” next week, “Ocean’s Thirteen” on June 8, “The Bourne Ultimatum” on Aug. 3 and the return of loudmouth Chris Tucker and the ancient Jackie Chan in “Rush Hour 3” on Aug. 10. Come to think of it, maybe “Shrek the Third” isn’t that bad after all.

      Oh wait, yes it is. 

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