hrek (Myers) and his jolly green bride, Princess Fiona (Diaz), have just returned from their honeymoon at Hansel's Honeymoon Hideaway to find Donkey (Murphy) waiting for them back in the swamp. Where's his sweetheart, the Dragon? "She's being all moody and stuff now," Donkey complains.
But before they can persuade Donkey that they need a little alone time, a retinue of herald trumpeters appears at their tree stump. Shrek and Fiona are summoned to a royal ball in their honor in the Kingdom of Far, Far Away—by Fiona's parents, the king and queen.
Shrek's not sure this is such a great idea, but Fiona is eager to show off her new husband. So off they go in their onion coach—Donkey in tow.
Arriving in the Kingdom—passing the Saxxon Fifth Avenue and Cinderella's gated mansion along the way—they pull up in the forecourt of the palace to a cheering crowd. That is, until Shrek and Fiona step onto the red carpet in all their green glory. Then you can hear a pin drop.
It seems that Fiona's father, King Harold, had other plans for his daughter, born with a curse that turned her into an ogre every night. He had conspired with Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders) to have her son, Prince Charming (Rupert Everett), rescue Fiona from the tower and her curse. But Shrek beat him to it.
Now Fairy Godmother is furious, and she tells the king to find an assassin, the notorious Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas), to deal with Shrek. Or else.
Crunchy humor, gooey center
Shrek 2 returns viewers to the fractured fairy-tale land of 2001's original computer-animated film with much of the creative team intact, and the sequel does not disappoint. Like its predecessor, Shrek 2 is a knowing satire with plenty of crunchy humor and a soft, gooey center.
The filmmakers have wisely picked up the story right where it left off, choosing this time around to lampoon family relations and the Beverly Hills lifestyles of the rich and charming. Where the first Shrek satirized family animated movies, particularly those produced by a certain rodent-dominated fantasy kingdom, Shrek 2 broadens its scope to make fun of the entire entertainment industry through the denizens of its California-ized Far, Far Away. "Swimming pools, movie stars," Donkey says.
Welcome additions to the franchise include Princess Fiona's father, King Harold, played to apoplectic perfection by veteran funnyman Cleese, and her mother, Queen Lillian, whose silky English voice could belong only to the original Mary Poppins.
But Banderas steals the show with the blustery and ridiculous Puss in Boots. "Pray for mercy!" he hisses, before coughing up a hairball. Saunders (of Ab Fab fame) manages to remain this side of grating as the harpy Fairy Godmother.
The filmmakers have also peppered Shrek 2 with plenty of sight gags. Blink and you'll miss the Rodeo Drive signs on the road into Far, Far Away: Pewtery Barn, Armani Armoury, Farbucks. And there are the homages, to everything from The Lord of the Rings to Spider-Man, Flashdance to Cops. If you don't like one, just a wait a minute and another will be right along.
For all the funny stuff, though, Shrek 2—like its predecessor—never condescends in its treatment of the emotional journey of its central characters, and it is the sweetness of that story that makes Shrek 2 more than just a string of really funny bits.
