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"SHREK THE THIRD" (2007) (voices of Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy) (PG) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Moderate Mild *Heavy *Minor Moderate Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate None Moderate None None Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Moderate None Mild Moderate *Moderate QUICK TAKE: Computer Animated Comedy: A swamp ogre tries to get a young man to be the next king of Far, Far Away Land, all while dealing with a diabolical prince as well as news that he's going to be a new father. PLOT: In Far, Far Away Land, King Harold (voice of JOHN CLEESE) is on his death bed, and thus tells his son-in-law, Shrek (voice of MIKE MYERS), that he wants him to be the next ruler of the land. Yet, the green ogre would rather return to his swamp home with his wife, Princess Fiona (voice of CAMERON DIAZ), and thus seizes upon Harold's last words of there being another heir. Accordingly, and while Fiona and her mother Queen Lillian (voice of JULIE ANDREWS) stay at the castle, Shrek sets sail with his sidekicks Donkey (voice of EDDIE MURPHY) and Puss in Boots (voice of ANTONIO BANDERAS) in search of Arthur. What they find, however, is Artie (voice of JUSTIN TIMERLAKE), a picked-on high school kid who doesn't seem to be king material. Nevertheless, Shrek convinces him he's right for the position, and they set off on their return trip, eventually needing the assistance of former high school magic teacher Merlin (voice of ERIC IDLE). Unbeknownst to them, Prince Charming (voice of RUPERT EVERETT), one-time beau to Fiona but now relegated to performing in dinner theater, has hatched a plan to use all of the fairy tale world's villains to help him storm the castle and give all of them a happy ever after ending. With Shrek captured, Prince Charming's plan seems to have fallen into place, but Fiona, with the aid of her mom, masculine barmaid Doris (voice of LARRY KING) and others, including Snow White (voice of AMY POEHLER), set out to rescue him and restore Far, Far Away Land to its former glory. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Yes, especially if they're fans of the first two films. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG For some crude humor, suggestive content and swashbuckling action. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: It's debatable whether kids view animated characters (particularly non-human ones) as role models, but here's a quick look at the main characteristics of the major ones. SHREK is the swamp ogre who doesn't want to be king, and thus sets out to retrieve Artie for the position. He must also contend with Prince Charming's diabolical quest, as well as his own thoughts and worries about being an upcoming father. PRINCESS FIONA is his wife who's now pregnant, but must first contend with escaping from Prince Charming's capture and leading various ladies into battle against him and his minions. DONKEY is Shrek's wisecracking sidekick, a talking donkey who's sometimes annoying to him, but assists him on his various quests. He must contend with switching bodies with Puss in Boots. PUSS IN BOOTS is the former feline assassin who now assists Shrek, and must contend with switching bodies with Donkey. ARTIE is the young man who's picked on in high school, and isn't sure he wants to be king when he's informed he's in line for that position. QUEEN LILLIAN is Fiona's mother who must contend with her husband's death as well as Prince Charming storming the castle. KING HAROLD is her husband the frog king who dies early in the film. PRINCE CHARMING is the dashing young man who was supposed to marry Fiona, but has now been relegated to performing in dinner theater. He hatches a plan to take over Far, Far Away Land as its king. MERLIN is the former and now reclusive high school magic teacher who reluctantly agrees to help Shrek and the others. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a quick look at the content found in this computer-animated comedy that's been rated PG. While no profanity is present, various colorful phrases are, as is some brief and non-explicit, but sexually related dialogue (about how babies are made since a major married character becomes pregnant). Just off-camera nudity is implied (for comedic purposes), while some animated cleavage is present and a masculine "woman" could be viewed as a transvestite or transsexual. Comedy and/or action based violence includes various fight scenes (characters striking others in various ways, but in a non-graphic fashion), while slapstick style material is also present. It's possible some of that and some villainous characters might be unsettling or scary for the very youngest of viewers. Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, while a father character dies early in the film (mostly played for comedy, with little to no grieving after that). Visual and verbal crude humor is present (including projectile vomiting), as is some drinking and brief drug-related jokes. Other potentially imitative behavior also occurs. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those concerned with bright flashes of light on the screen, there's a brief POV shot of flying through the city streets. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there's a spin-around camera shot. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Acting as the stand-in king, Shrek goes to christen the launch of a new ship, but he throws the bottle of champagne that hits the ship too hard, causing an explosion, fire, and the ship to start to sink. Various characters drink in a pub where Prince Charming orders a fuzzy navel for himself and then everyone. Puss in Boots talks of the guys fishing and having a cold pitcher of mojitos (in the future). A character stumbles out of a smoke-filled carriage, commenting on the frankincense and myrrh (but it's obviously a visual spoof of a van filled with pot smoke). A sign on a wall reads, "Just say nay" (a spoof of the anti-drug "Just say no" ads). We see what looks like an intoxicated dwarf stumbling along the street. BLOOD/GORE Crude humor includes the following: Dressed in a stuffy and stiff royal costume, Shrek complains, "My butt is itching up a storm and I can't reach it in this monkey suit." He then gets a royal worker to use a rod to scratch his clothed butt (that the audience sees when the curtain is lifted and Shrek is enjoying the sensation). Shrek complains that all babies do is eat and poop, followed by more poop-based talk. A billiards ball flies off the table and goes down a headless character's open neck hole. Shrek has a dream where there's a baby Shrek that belches, causing Shrek to joke, "Better out than in." The baby then does an enormous amount of projectile vomiting that blasts Shrek backwards. A nerdy student suddenly gets a minor nosebleed, and then does so again moments later. Donkey talks of having received swirlees and wedgies back in school, with Puss in Boots wondering how the latter could occur since Donkey doesn't wear any clothes, prompting Donkey to say he doesn't want to know. During a baby shower, one woman says a gift device is for the poop, with another naively asking, "Babies poop?" prompting the first to say that everyone poops. Donkey is about to be seasick over the side of a ship, but swallows instead. A small piece of candy pops off from the backside of Gingerbread Man when he's scared (a poop joke). A baby Shrek farts in a tub of water, while another vomits on Queen Lillian. Another burps, one farts and a baby dragon breathes fire that ignites that gas into a fireball. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE All of the following is played for comedy. Prince Charming has a bad attitude for plotting to take over Far, Far Away Land, make himself the king, and kill Shrek. The villainous minions who follow him also have bad attitudes. We see that students have put a sign on Artie that reads, "I suck-eth." We see that some high school students have Artie hoisted up by the back of his shirt or pants on a basketball hoop, and everyone in the auditorium laughs at him. For those concerned about its use, Merlin uses magic to transport a number of characters back to Far, Far Away Land. Snow White has a bad and condescending attitude toward others. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence" may be unsettling or suspenseful to younger viewers but all of it's played for laughs and lighthearted action. It's possible some of the villains (scary looking trees, a Cyclops, etc.) might be unsettling to some younger kids. Shrek has a dream where a baby carriage rolls out into the room by itself (as if in a horror movie) and then there are eventually many baby Shreks that he must keep out of harm's way (as they inadvertently crawl into or cause danger around them, etc. all played for comedy). Various villains grab various good characters, while one evil woman holds a knife to Queen Lillian's neck, but Shrek's speech gets all of the villains to drop their weapons. Yet, Prince Charming comes at Artie with a sword, but Shrek uses a chain to grab that. They tug back and forth, with the sword then seemingly impaling Shrek, but he shows that it just went between his arm and body. A large castle tower set piece (on a stage) then falls on Prince Charming. GUNS/WEAPONS Swords/Spears/Crossbows: Carried and/or used to threaten or fight with others and/or cause property damage. See "Violence" for details. Prince Charming carries a sword during his dinner theater performance. Guards carry spears. Some tree guards carry what look like rifles. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "C'mon, lazy bones," "You twit," "My butt is itching up a storm and I can't reach it in this monkey suit," "Frumpy pigskin" (instead of Rumpelstiltskin), "Losers," "You, my friend, are royally..." (the last word is overridden by the sound of a loud ship horn), "Better out than in" (said about a burp), "Mmm, it's spicy," "What kind of Chester-shire place is this?" (or something like that), "Totally eweth," "Dork," "You made a funny," "More like the mayor of Loserville," "Just say nay," "Shut it" (meaning shut up), "Freaks," "King of the stupid," "Idiot," "You're one funny kitty cat," "Land ho," "Ain't dope," "Oh no you don't," "Don't try to weasel out of it," "This is lame," "Makes me hotter than July," "You want some eggs with that ham?" (said about purposeful overacting), "I feel all exposed and nasty," "How in the Hans Christian Anderson?" "Shut up," "Everything's a little fruity in the loops" and "You morons." A bartender spits into a mug before serving it to someone. A character sports some tattoos. Shrek holds up his fists, playfully calling them "persuasion" and "reason." Some high school students talk like typical "valley girls." We see that students have put a sign on Artie that reads, "I suck-eth." We see that some high school students have Artie hoisted up by the back of his shirt or pants on a basketball hoop, and everyone in the auditorium laughs at him. Artie makes the rocker sign with his hands (pinkie and index fingers extended). Doris slaps a woman to get her to calm down. Pinocchio answers Prince Charming with various purposefully circular responses to avoid lying to him (and thus giving away what he knows due to his nose growth). We see miscellaneous graffiti. Queen Lillian head-butts a stone jail cell wall to break through it, and then does the same to another (leaving her a bit dazed). As the women prepare to take on the villains, we see them burring one's bra (no breasts are seen). As the women prepare to take on the villains, we see a tattoo on one's arm. We see some bare-chested, male fans who have letters painted on their chests. To taunt Prince Charming about his theater clothes, Shrek comments on his leotard and asks if it comes in men's sizes. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) A moderate amount of suspenseful music plays in the film. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY None. SEX/NUDITY We see Shrek shirtless in bed. Donkey later comes in and tries to get him out of bed by pulling back the sheet and reacts to the sight of his full nudity (we don't see it). We see Shrek shirtless. Princess Fiona shows a little cleavage in several scenes. We see some miscellaneous cleavage. Puss in Boots says good-bye to many female cats before setting sail, including one he says he doesn't know, but would like to (said suggestively in a dashing man sort of way). Shrek can't believe that Princess Fiona is pregnant, and rhetorically asks how that could happen. Puss in Boots then matter-of-factly starts to explain about getting a certain feeling for a woman and "a powerful urge," but Shrek says he knows that part. Despite having fathered a bunch of donkey-dragon hybrid kids, Donkey naively then wants Puss in Boots to continue. Shrek has a nightmare where he's nude on stage in front of a bunch of baby Shreks (we don't see anything explicit). Doris shows some cleavage. Various fairy tale villains descend upon Far, Far Away Land, causing chaos and such on the city streets, including changing a store sign to read "Ye Olde Hooters." About Prince Charming, Doris (a masculine woman, transvestite or transsexual) says he "makes me hotter than July," prompting some girls there to respond, "Ewww." Rapunzel and Prince Charming briefly kiss. Merlin wears a short robe that rides up a bit whenever he raises his arms, but nothing explicit is seen. As the women prepare to take on the villains, we see them burring one's bra (no breasts are seen). We see Shrek shirtless. We see some bare-chested, male fans who have letters painted on their chests. After putting the kids to bed, Shrek suggestively asks Princess Fiona what they should do now, but the next thing we see is both asleep in bed, exhausted from the kids. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES We hear that King Harold is dying, and then see Queen Lillian, Princess Fiona, Shrek and others at his death bed (or lily pad, to be more exact). He dies in an exaggerated, overly dramatic fashion (played for comedy), and everyone grieves, but he's not dead yet. This happens several more times until he finally is truly dead. That's followed by a brief funeral scene, but there's little to no grieving after that. Artie complains that his dad dumped him at school and was never heard from again. Shrek then compares that to his father who tried to eat him. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Some may view a manly looking barmaid with a husky voice (of Larry King) as a man in drag or a transsexual, etc. For those concerned about its use, Merlin uses magic to transport a number of characters back to Far, Far Away Land. School bullies. Monarchies and how the next rulers are chosen in them. Pregnancy and parenthood. VIOLENCE Most of what's listed below is action-adventure and/or comedy based, and is non-graphic and non-explicit in nature. Acting as the stand-in king, Shrek goes to knight a man and accidentally hits him too hard on the shoulder with the sharp sword (we hear, but don't see the impact). Acting as the stand-in king, Shrek goes to christen the launch of a new ship, but he throws the bottle of champagne that hits the ship too hard, causing an explosion, fire, and the ship to start to sink. Part of Shrek's stuffy and stiff royal costume pops off and hits Donkey. That sets off a comedy-based chain reaction of chaos where various things or characters accidentally smash into other things or characters, including a small fire breaking out. Shrek falls from his bed to the floor. Various villainous characters pin Prince Charming to a pub bar. After he convinces them to join him, they enthusiastically get into a rowdy bar fight (punching, hitting others, etc.). During some jousting where Artie is on a fake, stationary "horse," Lancelot blasts him backwards with the lance. Shrek picks up Lancelot, and then drops him. To try to act as if Shrek is just wearing a costume to fool others, Puss in Boots claws into him and Donkey kicks him, both causing pain. Various fairy tale villains descend upon Far, Far Away Land, causing chaos and such on the city streets, including scary looking animated trees approaching good characters, and something being thrown through a storefront window. Donkey's huge dragon wife catches one villain and tosses him aside (with her mouth), but a large metal net then falls down and traps her. Doris slaps a woman to get her to calm down. Villains burst through a door, knocking various good characters backwards. Shrek and Artie wrestle over control of a ship's steering wheel, eventually causing it to be yanked out from the deck and the ship to wreck (but no one is hurt). A tree branch flips back and hits Shrek in passing. Merlin is briefly shocked by some sort of electrical type charges. Merlin knocks Artie on the head. An animated tree villain flicks a bird aside, and then he and others menacingly surround Shrek and others. Various good characters and villains fight, including Puss in Boots battles one with swords. Various punches and other such contact occur, while Captain Hook knocks Merlin away from a piano. Puss in Boots and Donkey are captured in a net, with Prince Charming then aiming a cannon at them. Shrek then struggles to move the cannon before it fires, eventually causing it to blast that nearby piano. A bolt of magical energy from Merlin accidentally hits something and causes it to explode. During a play's rehearsal, Prince Charming practices slicing the costumed Shrek character, apparently getting to the people inside those costumes (done to two different people, but with no blood). Shrek grabs Prince Charming, but stops when crossbows are held on him. Prince Charming holds a sword to Artie's throat. A guard kicks Donkey into a cell and throws Puss in Boots in after him. Queen Lillian head-butts a stone jail cell wall to break through it, and then does the same to another (leaving her a bit dazed). A guard shoves a character. Various forest animals, under orders from Snow White, attack two large guard trees to gain access to the castle where more fighting occurs, including some guards being tripped and Doris punching several more. During this, Donkey kicks a plate glass window to rescue the Gingerbread Man. We see some bare-chested, male fans who have letters painted on their chests. An arrow is fired into the shoulder of one of them (no blood). Donkey's dragon wife uses her flame breath to blast and melt the top of Prince Charming's sword. Various villains grab various good characters, while one evil woman holds a knife to Queen Lillian's neck, but Shrek's speech gets all of the villains to drop their weapons. Yet, Prince Charming comes at Artie with a sword, but Shrek uses a chain to grab that. They tug back and forth, with the sword then seemingly impaling Shrek, but he shows that it just went between his arm and body. A large castle tower set piece (on a stage) then falls on Prince Charming. Reviewed May 15, 2007 / Posted May 18, 2007

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