Shrek the Third – Blu-ray Disc Review
September 24, 2008 – 11:02 PM - Posted by: Brendan SurplessTags: Antonio Banderas, Cameron Diaz, DreamWorks, Eddie Murphy, John Clesse, Julie Andrews, Justin Timberlake, Mike Myers, Paramount, Rupert Everett
has an average rating of 6.2 on IMDb
1080p in AVC MPEG-4 on a 50gb disc
Dolby TrueHD 5.1
include features mostly aimed at kids.
– 
– 2007
93 minutes
– DreamWorks (Paramount)
– 
Overall Verdict – Perfect for Families
Buy it for $19.95 @ Amazon.com
— Review written by: Brendan Surpless —
The Movie Itself was directed by Chris Miller (writer on the first two “Shrek” films). The third “Shrek” films follow Shrek (Mike Myers) and Fiona (Cameron Diaz) living in Far Far Away Land. We soon learn that the King (John Clesse) has passed away leaving Shrek in charge. Shrek obviously wants nothing to do with being king and only longs to return to his swamp. The King informs Shrek that there is also another in line for the throne, a person named Arthur (Justin Timberlake). Shrek leaves with Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) in hopes of convincing Arthur to come back to Far Far Away Land and be their ruler. While this is all occurring you have Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) informing all the banished villains (who include Captain Hook) that they should storm Far Far Away Land and take over. Now it’s up to Shrek to stop Prince Charming and bring Arthur to his rightful place. What results is a film that is entertaining enough, does have a few laughs but doesn’t really elevate itself above anything that I imagine someone over the max age of 12 enjoying.
In comparison to the first two “Shrek” I’ve always found the second to be the most charming and entertaining. Granted I haven’t seen the first in some time so I can’t completely comment on it but what I do remember is a movie that was fairly unoriginal and lacked the real spark and enjoyment of other animated films that rival studios put out (cough cough Pixar cough cough). The second surprised me as I expected absolutely zlich going into it but came out amused. With the enjoyment of the second I went into this third film was similar hopes and, in all honesty, came out feeling like I watched a somewhat rehashed version of the original. The third, while having a few laughs, just doesn’t have anything we ever want to care about. Sure the movie is great to look at (more on that later) but why oh why can’t animation studios realize that we need more than excellent visuals in animated movies. We need actual story with real heart, emotion and style in you expect us to be drawn into your films like say Pixar films draw us in.
In the end in comparison to numerous other animated affairs, “Shrek the Third” wasn’t a poor way to spend 90 minutes of my life but just doesn’t really scream replay. Stacked up against other recent animated films (I always go back to Pixar) like “Wall-E“, “Shrek the Third” felt too by the book. I’m sure kids and parents will find this one enjoyable so I’m willing to give this a “3 Star Rating” based on that. But be warned if you’re hoping to find something ground breaking here, look elsewhere.
Video Quality on this release is in 1080p using the AVC MPEG-4 codec. Like most animation affairs “Shrek the Third” features a fantastic transfer that literally begs to be seen. From the first opening shots you can easily see the amount of detail that went into this transfer. The single best aspect of this transfer is the use of color. Just about every single color, from the light green on Shrek to the dark grays of Prince Charming’s initial outfit, is perfect. “3-D” pop is also outstanding with numerous sequences (my favorites are first scenes where we’re introduced to Arthur) screaming ‘demo me!!’. No other real defects found here. In short this is a great ‘demo-worthy’ transfer that easily earns a “5 Star Rating“.
Audio Quality on this release is presented in Dolby TrueHD 5.1. What I noticed to be most impressive about this track (especially in comparison to the HD DVD release) is the amount of atmosphere the track created. Dynamics are excellent in particular the varying effects (whether it be screams and yells after Charming convinces the villains to join him in the bar or the little voices from character off screen). Dialogue is always clear and never becomes a volume issue. LFE, while not booming, adds to the track giving us low bass complimenting the film (this is mostly noticed via the film’s score by Harry Gregson-Williams. Featuring a great lossless track that is just about on the same level as the provided video transfer, the included TrueHD track earns an almost perfect “4.5 Star Rating“.
Bonus Materials are presented in High Definition video (using the AVC MPEG-4 codec) and Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound.
- Meet the Cast: This runs 11 minutes and introduces us to the different actors who worked on the film.
- Shrek Tech: Running 10 minutes this feature looks into the animation styles used to create the movie.
- Lost Scenes: At 25 minutes in length we get a few ‘lost’ scenes that aren’t really ‘lost’ as they were never fully animated but rather were discussed at meetings with the producers.
- Big Green Goofs: Now things like this aren’t really funny mainly because the goofs aren’t natural but are created basically trying to force a laugh out of us.
- Shrek’s Guide to Parenthood: With 4 short 1 minute guides (none of which actually include the character in question), this is an instantly forgettable feature.
- Donkey Dance: Another rather dull feature that shows Donkey doing a supposedly funny dance to “The Safety Dance” by Men Without Hats.
- Dreamworks Animation Jukebox: Here we get trailers for hopefully a few upcoming titles in “Shrek“, “Shrek 2“, “Shark Tale“, “Madagascar“, “Over The Hedge” and “Flushed Away“. Note: “Madagascar” has been announced and our review can be read here.
- Merlin’s Magic Crystal Ball: Simply activate the magic ball, ask a question and a simple answer is given. This is more for the kids.
- Learn The Donkey Dance: This is for all of you out there who want to learn to dance just like Donkey!
- How to be Green: It’s never a bad thing to teach even the young ones about global warming.
- Menus: Here you can chose from six different menu designs based on the different characters.
- The Animators Corner: Here this feature allows the viewer to watch the full movie in storyboard form. Definitely a pretty cool feature!
- The World of Shrek: This allows the viewer to bios and facts for each of the main character.
- Shrek’s Trivia Track: This features has pop-up text including production notes, cast info and a few facts about the movie.
- Donkey’s Coloring Book: More for the kids, this allows the viewer to (just as the title mentions) search through Donkey’s Coloring Book.
Blu-ray Disc packaging:
