Movie Review: Shrek the Third
When King Harold falls ill, Shrek and Princess Fiona become King and Queen of Far, Far Away. But Shrek wants to return to a simpler, quieter childless life in the swamp and thus goes on a quest to find the only other remaining heir to the land, a loser teenage high school boy named Artie (a nod to the legend of King Arthur). Meanwhile, Prince Charming has been reduced to a lowly childrens birthday stage performer. And while Shrek is away, he develops a plan with the other story-land villains to take over the kingdom.
Okay, let’s be honest. The Shrek series never had good storylines, and this has the worst yet. But like the two films before this, Shrek the Third succeeds when it is allowed to wit-fully play with and against the conventions of the fairy-tale genre. The first 20 minutes are jammed packed with three laughs a second. It’s so much, almost too much, that when the story eventually kicks in, the momentum of the film hits a slow-motion like pace (at least in comparison).
Aside from the conventional gags, the funniest moments revolve around Puss and Boots and the cast of side characters. But sometimes the film fails in its play against conventions, which is evident in this movie with a new age magic-less version of Merlin the Wizard. You can barely notice Justin Timberlake’s lack of acting chops hidden behind the animation (but trust me, it’s there), which often (like the other films in the series) appears very stiff.
But in the end, Shrek the Third will keep the children quiet for at least 90 minutes. But is it worth a trek to the local multi-plex? In the age of Amazon Unbox and Netflix, waiting for home video is probably the smarter (and more affordable option). And don’t forget, there are other options: Spidey now and Pirates 3 next week.
Kristen Bell Biography
For some actors, success just seems to come naturally. In the case of talented stage and screen beauty Kristen Bell, it wasn’t so much a matter of if she was going to be a star after realizing her dream during an early performance as a banana in Raggedy Ann and Andy at the tender age of 12 — but when she would finally make the big time. Paralyzed with stage fright as she waited for her cue off-stage, Bell was offered a word of encouragement by her supportive mother that would ultimately give her the drive to realize her life’s calling. A native of Detroit whose early stage experiences eventually led her to study at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, Bell saw her early dreams of on-stage success begin to come true when she was chosen to portray Becky Thatcher in a Broadway production of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer shortly after arriving in the Big Apple.
Realizing that she had what it took to find success onscreen as well as on-stage, Bell was soon packing her bags for Los Angeles and landing small supporting roles in such features as Polish Wedding and Pootie Tang. She returned briefly to Broadway for a role in the 2002 revival of The Crucible, playing alongside well-known stage and screen actors Liam Neeson and Laura Linney. In 2003, Bell impressed television viewers with a solid performance in the made-for-television drama The King and Queen of Moonlight Bay before moving on to essay the unforgettable role of a young girl struggling to raise her three stepbrothers after their drug-addicted mother is sent to jail in Gracie’s Choice. If television had offered Bell her most successful roles to this point in her career, the magnetic young screen presence still had feature aspirations, as evidenced by her involvement in David Mamet’s 2004 thriller Spartan. Of course, Bell wasn’t about to turn her back on the small screen just yet, and following appearances on such popular series as Everwood and Deadwood, she took the lead as a sort-of new-millennium Nancy Drew on UPN’s Veronica Mars. If that, combined with a lively performance in the Showtime musical spoof Reefer Madness, wasn’t enough to make young Bell a household name, subsequent performances in the college comedy Fifty Pills and the thriller Deepwater would at least serve to expand her feature-film resumé. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
* Born:
on 07/18/80 in Detroit, Michigan
* Job Titles:
Actor
Education
* New York University, New York, musical theatre
Milestones
* 2001 Cast in the Off-Broadway stage musical “Reefer Madness”
* 2001 Made her Broadway debut originating the role of Becky Thatcher in the short lived “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”
* 2002 Appeared on Broadway as part of the original cast of “The Crucible” starring Laura Linney and Liam Neeson
* 2002 Moved to Los Angeles
* 2003 Television debut in the season premiere of “The Shield” playing a gang member’s girlfriend
* 2004 Cast as the title character on UPN’s “Veronica Mars”
* 2005 Will reprise her role in the film version of “Reefer Madness” (Showtime)
Jolie and Pitt Make Most of Celebrity Status
Jolie and Pitt Make Most of Celebrity Status
The list of benefits given to celebrities seems endless. They never wait in line at clubs, they always get the best table in the restaurant, and if you’re Brad Pitt… you get free helicopter lessons while your significant other films a movie.
As Angelina Jolie prepares to film her new movie “Wanted” in beautiful Prague, Czech Republic, she is making plans to take Brad Pitt with her. In order to keep Pitt occupied during those arduously long filming days, Jolie is arranging for complimentary helicopter flying lessons for the Fight Club stud.
In addition, the producers have also rented the pair a massive mansion complete with a helipad. They are even importing Pitt’s prized Bugatti car. Talk about star power!
Jolie got bosses of “Wanted” to agree by telling them that the only way they would get her to replace Halle Berry in the action flick, would be by agreeing to her demands. A source also told the Sun that Jolie knew that her demands would be met, given that she and beau Brad are the current king and queen of Hollywood.
For such celebrity power, any producer would do whatever it takes. “These two can have whatever they want — and they and the film company know it,” the Sun quoted the source, as saying.