History WesternAnimation / SHREK

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: Shrek was highly praised for its soundtrack. I mean who doesn't like [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xxQs34UMx4 this song?]]

* HotAmazon: AU!Fiona. Definitely hot by ogre standards, and possibly hot from [[FetishFuel certain human viewpoints]].

* ComedicSociopathy: The opening montage is quite sweet and funny. But during the parody of FromHereToEternity, Shrek unintentionally ends up frolicking with a [[CaptainErsatz lookalike]] of the Little Mermaid. Fiona's response? She throws Ariel back into the sea, ''where she gets eaten by sharks''. [[RuleofFunny Neither ogre shows much concern about this]].

'''Gnome:''' Stop mailing all those sweet but slightly threatening fanletters to TheLittleMermaid?

* GentleGiant: Shrek.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: The film was originally going to be produced by Creator/StevenSpielberg, be hand-drawn, and star Bill Murray as Shrek and Steve Martin as Donkey.
** The original script had Princess Fiona born an ogre to the late King and Queen of Duloc. They had her locked in the tower under the lie that she was "of such rare beauty" she was kidnapped. They died, and the kingdom was left under the rule of an ambitious regent (implied to be Farquaad). When she 'became of age' to ascend the throne she escaped the tower and encounters a witch named Bib Fortuna (a reference to the Star Wars character of the same name) - who has narrated the entire sequence through her tarot cards. She gave Fiona a potion which would make her beautiful; but Fortuna warns her the potion has a side effect - she will change between her human and ogress form until she finds her true love. Later she was whisked away by her dragon guardian and returned to the tower. This storyline was not adapted to keep the story simple, but is mentioned through the "witch" Fiona tells Donkey about.
** The writers and artists considered numerous scenes of Farquaad and Shrek together (which would explain Shrek's short jokes to Fiona). One scene was storyboarded (also in the DVD) has Farquaad explaining Shrek his plan to transform Duloc into a modernized urban city complete with convenient stores, mini-malls and trailer homes. Farquaad tells Shrek he doesn't really own his swamp home, but will give him the deed and take away the Fairy Tale creatures if he rescues the princess.
*** Some who worked on the Chris Farley version of the film hold that his Shrek ultimately would have proven to be a more poignant character, as his version of the character would start out not realizing ''why'' so many people react to him with shock and revulsion. At least, he wouldn't realize until the painfully emotional climax of the film. By the time Myers was cast, this character arc had largely been dropped for a more conventional JerkWithAHeartOfGold arc.
*** The Farley version also had Janeane Garofalo as Princess Fiona.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: The film was originally going to be produced by StevenSpielberg, be hand-drawn, and star Bill Murray as Shrek and Steve Martin as Donkey.

** The Spanish dub substitutes Puss' generic Spanish accent for a thick Malaga accent (Banderas is from Malaga). Keep in mind Banderas voices Puss in the English, Spanish, and Mexican versions

* ActorAllusion: Puss, played by Antonio Banderas, basically ''is'' Zorro as a cat - right down to the trademark letter-carved-on-a-tree.

* AnachronismStew: Pretty much the defining trait of Shrek's world, ranging from most characters speaking with American accents in medieval Europe, to featuring characters from stories set in different eras, to [[BlandNameProduct restaurants and retail outlets suspiciously similar to those in modern times]]. The list goes on and on.

** Not to mention the constant use of the word "ass" to mean a literal donkey but in phrases where it usually means the human buttocks. "Nobody likes a kissass." "I have to save my ass." "You still look like an ass to me."

* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:King Harold]] in the third film. [[spoiler:Mama Bear]] in the first; note the rug in Farquaad's room (unless the dance along is canon), [[spoiler:Lord Farquaad]], [[spoiler:FairyGodmother]]. [[spoiler:Prince Charming's fate at the end of the third film is rather unclear, but it's possible he's dead too.]]

* LadyAndKnight: Subverted all to hell.

* SequelReset: The first movie literally ended with HappilyEverAfter, but the sequels have been putting that off ever since. The second film reveals there was in fact an actual Prince Charming that was supposed to break the curse on Fiona, and that her royal parents are still around; the action picks up after the lovers' honeymoon as they're forced to meet her parents, causing another go-round of problems regarding Shrek's self-esteem. The amusing new characters as well as ones who got expanded roles helped mitigate this for audiences, but reaction to the third film (where Shrek now has to get out of being king if he ever hopes to live out his life in the swamp, and the loose end of 2 involving Prince Charming's fate is brought up) suggests the formula is wearing thin. And the fourth movie does a total resent with time travel.

*** Heck, it even shows up in the original film: When Shrek's rescued Fiona and the group is journeying back to Lord Farquaad's castle, they get waylaid by Robin Hood. Cue fight scene. A lively accordion piece quickly starts up, holds a note during a [[TheMatrix Matrix]]-style OrbitalShot (where (mostly) [[CaptainObvious everything stops in place]]), and stops again as Fiona knocks out Friar Tuck, who was playing the instrument.

* VillainSong: Of course ''Shrek'' subverts it every way it can. The main villain of ''Shrek 2'' gets not one, but two songs: The first one is the self-titled "FairyGodmother Song", a cheerful upbeat ditty about how she wants to help everyone; the second comes complete with an ominous orchestra and backing choir... except the song in question is "Holding Out for a Hero".
** Prince Charming also gets a song in ''Shrek the Third'', set to a musical that was set up as an excuse to publicly execute Shrek. Lord Farquaad didn't have a bona fide villain "song" (except in TheMusical, of course), but he has a menacing leitmotif in the first movie, played upon his first appearance.

** Also, the dragon made a brief appearance under totally different circumstances, and the role of the Knight from the book and Lord Farquaad from the film are suspiciously similar -- both are {{Jerkass}} versions of characters who would usually be the good guy in fairy tales, who end up acting as the primary villain.

* BrokenAesop: The whole point of the first film is "It doesn't matter what you look like, it's what inside that counts"... which doesn't stop an army of "short" jokes at Farquaad's expense (not to mention suggestions that he may be CompensatingForSomething), or the fact that in the end Fiona ends up in the shape that will be the most appealing to Shrek.
** Fiona's transformation could be viewed as one more physically compatible with Shrek. Let's just keep in mind that Fiona's human head would fit in Shrek's mouth (which was pointed out in the DVD commentary during the AlmostKiss). Then again, we have the Donkey and Dragon pair-up... which is equally disturbing and might just qualify for the 'what's inside that counts' [[HotSkittyOnWailordAction to an extreme]].

** Not to mention the Disney-esque "Welcome to Duloc" song.

* FantasticRacism: Farquaad. The trope's name has never been so appropriate: Farquaad literally hates ''all'' "fairy tale creatures" and has them evicted and forced into Shrek's swamp. His "perfect kingdom" would have nobody but humans.

** [[OneDialogueTwoConversations This conversation is skillfully crafted]] to become two separate scenes based on whether or not you know the piece of information; of course, the audience is aware of it at the time.

** Heck, he doesn't just ''find'' the flower, he wanders through a whole copse of them, complaining that his task would be infinitely easier if he could discern color, and he only brings back the right flower because he grabs one - ''any'' one - in a panic when he hears Shrek yell. The other characters don't even react weirdly, making it a relatively subtle sight gag.

* TurnYourHeadAndCough: When Donkey learns that Shrek has been hit by an arrow, Donkey panics at the thought of Shrek dying from it and shouts irrelevant medical advice, including "keep your feet elevated", a plea for somebody to perform the Heimlich Maneuver, and (of course) "turn your head and cough."

* ResetButton: When Shrek and AU!Fiona [[spoiler:share TrueLovesKiss just as Shrek is fading from existence, the alternate-universe literally shatters around Rumpelstiltskin as all of the people within it disappear. When Shrek returns to the prime-universe, he was seen mid-roaring at the birthday party.]]

* FranchiseKiller: DreamWorks had plans for five movies in the ''Shrek'' film series. ''Shrek'' was the first animated film to win the newly coined Academy Award for Best Animated Film in 2001, over MonstersInc and JimmyNeutronBoyGenius. ''Shrek 2'' was nominated for the award and lost to TheIncredibles, but it became not just the highest grossing film of 2004 but DreamWorks' most successful film thus far. ''Shrek the Third'' though, despite being more financially successful than ''Shrek 2'', got mixed reviews from critics and was not considered for Best Animated Film of 2007. The lukewarm reception to ''Shrek the Third'' led DreamWorks to finish up the well under development ''Shrek Goes Fourth'', which was retitled ''Shrek Forever After'' and became the de facto final movie, ending the series at four. ''Shrek Pleads the Fifth'', the fifth movie, was canceled and turned into a prequel film about PussInBoots.

* [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotAwesome What Do You Mean, It's Not Awesome?]]: The Pied Piper teaches some witches a lesson by forcing them to ''break dance''. Later he singlehandedly defeats the BadassArmy of Ogres with a full choreography and a conga line straight to Rumpelstiltskin's castle.

* ShoutOut: Lots of them, mostly to Disney, though the giant gingerbread man is named "Mongo" as a tribute to ''BlazingSaddles'' and there's a lot to other fantasy stories and films.

* [[ChekhovsSkill Chekhov's Skill]]: How to tie knots. ("The dragon goes under the bridge...")

* ResetButton: When Shrek and AU!Fiona [[spoiler:share [[TrueLovesKiss True Love's Kiss]] just as Shrek is fading from existence, the alternate-universe literally shatters around Rumpelstiltskin as all of the people within it disappear. When Shrek returns to the prime-universe, he was seen mid-roaring at the birthday party.]]

In ''Shrek the Third'' (2007), King Harold dies, leaving the ogre couple as his successors, and Shrek, unable to accept this fate, leaves Far Far Away to search for another heir to the throne, a teenage loser named [[KingArthur Arthur Pendragon]]. Meanwhile, Prince Charming rallies various fairy tale villains and organizes a coup, taking over Far Far Away, and Fiona (pregnant with Shrek's kids) assembles her own team of fairy tale princesses to confront him.

In ''Shrek 2'' (2004), Fiona, [[LateArrivalSpoiler now an ogress]] and Shrek's wife, travels with him to the kingdom of Far Far Away, ruled by her parents. Meanwhile, Prince Charming, who was supposed to rescue Fiona instead of Shrek, desires the kingdom for himself, helped by his mother, the FairyGodmother. He first tries to dispose of Shrek by deploying Puss-in-Boots, a famous ogre hunter, but the cat ends up [[HeelFaceTurn becoming friends with Shrek and Donkey]]. After Shrek drinks a potion that temporarily makes him and Fiona human, the FairyGodmother makes Charming pose as the human Shrek.

In the first movie (2001), Shrek is driven into conflict with [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Lord Farquaad]], who banishes all magical creatures from his kingdom, forcing them to seek refuge in Shrek's swamp. He teams up with an annoying talking donkey named Donkey, and is forced to rescue Princess Fiona (CameronDiaz) for him so Farquaad would give him the swamp back. However, Fiona's previously-unknown curse, and Shrek falling in love with her, disrupt Farquaad's plans to become a king by marrying a princess.

A CGI-animated tetralogy by DreamworksAnimation loosely based on a 1990 book about an ogre in a fairy tale land, who just wants to live in his swamp undisturbed, but is dragged against his will into fighting for the fate of entire kingdoms.

* BabiesEverAfter: The ogrelings, whom the fourth film reveals to be named Fergus, Fearghal and Felicia.

* LaserGuidedKarma: Farquaad gets what he deserves at the wedding and [[spoiler: gets eaten by Dragon. Dragon burps his crown a few seconds later.]]

-->''[[TheTamingOfTheShrew The Taming of the Shrek]]''.\\

** King Harold makes a excuse about his old "crusade wound" acting up. As [[FawltyTowers Basil Fawlty]], JohnCleese made a similar claim about an old war wound.

** The exploding bird in the first movie... whose eggs are used for breakfast.

** Lord Farquaad and Prince Charming also have their moments (Charming especially during the climax of ''Shrek the Third'': "With soft and bouncy haaaaaaaaiiiiiiir!")

* LostInTranslation: In some versions, like the norwegian one, Shrek is called a "troll". This is because of there not being an equivalent to the word "ogre" in their vocabularies.

*** The first film also has Fiona's Theme playing while Farquaad is admiring Fiona's image. It then turns out the music is coming from the Magic Mirror itself.

* ReasonYouSuckSpeech:

* TurnYourHeadAndCough: When Donkey learns that Shrek has been hit by an arrow, Donkey panics at the thought of Shrek dying from it and shouts irrelevant medical advice, including "keep your feet elevated", a plea for somebody to perform the Heimlich Maneuver, and (of course) "turn your head and cough."

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: So, um, what happened to Farquaad's kingdom?

* ActorAllusion: Eric Idle voicing a character from Arthurian legend, in [[MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail the same film]] as JohnCleese?

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: The subtitle ("The Final Chapter"). It is indeed "the final chapter" involving the titular ogre...[[ExactWords which didn't stop Dreamworks from making a movie about Puss]].

* OneSceneWonder: The little fat kid from the party. "Do the roar!"

* AnthropomorphicShift: Donkey, being portrayed by a live actor in costume, went from the quadruped TalkingAnimal he was in the films to an [[FunnyAnimal upright biped wearing a vest]], at least in early productions. Inverted in later incarnations as the clothes were removed and he began walking in a torso-first fashion with his forelegs held up - a stance more like that of a real quadrupedal animal on it's hind legs.

* CostumePorn
* [[CounterpointDuet Counterpoint Trio]]: Shrek, Fiona, and Donkey during "Who I'd Be."

* DuetBonding: Shrek and Fiona during "[[CounterpointDuet I Think I Got You Beat]]"

** Really, the series is built on this trope. It makes fun of pop culture as much as it does traditional fairy tales, and should probably have its own page with this trope.

Adapted into TheMusical, which opened on Broadway in 2008 and has since closed and launched a United States tour. There is also a ChristmasSpecial, ''Shrek the Halls'', and a HalloweenSpecial, ''Scared Shrekless''. Another film, entitled ''Film/PussInBoots'' was released in 2011. It is set before the events of ''Shrek 2'', and chronicles the backstory of Puss in Boots. It's worth to note that the film is "ogre-less". GuillermoDelToro [[AndTheFandomRejoiced is executive-producing]]. Universal Studios features ''Shrek 4D'', which is set immediately after Shrek and Fiona's wedding and details a ghostly Lord Farquaad's attempt to get Fiona back.