How do the makers of 'Shrek' use presentational devices to reverse this tradition, to reveal the ogre as good, and the prince as evil?
SHREK
In traditional fairytales, ogres are man-eating beasts. The prince usually rescues the princess; they marry and live happily ever after.
How do the makers of 'Shrek' use presentational devices to reverse this tradition, to reveal the ogre as good, and the prince as evil?
In this essay, I am going to analyze the characters of Shrek and Lord Farquaad, and write about how filmmakers use different presentational devices to create an unusual fairytale.
In conforming fairytales there are Princes such as prince charming, but they are the only kind of prince you are normally going to find, whereas the ogres and giants are a mixed breed, there is the ogre who attempts to eat the three Billy goats gruff, or the giant form Jack and the Beanstalk. In that fairytale the giant chases Jack all the way around his castle threatening to eat him. Shrek tries plea for a peaceful end to a fight and only scares the villagers off, instead of attempting to harm them. Lord Farquaad is different from other characters in his position such as Princes, Farquaad attempts to draw a queen so he can become King, and have his own Kingdom. The prince from Snow White, is attracted to Snow White for real, instead of for his own gain, and from this he saves her live.
The film opens with a modern song, with Shrek criticizing and having a laugh at the expense of normal fairytales, and then carries on with the fun by Shrek wiping his backside with an average fairytale story. The viewers are shocked by the use of this in a children's movie, an opening like this suggests that this is a modern children's movie, and creates an image of maturity for children.
Shrek threatens to grind the bones of the villagers and also shave they're livers
he also tries frightening them by shouting at them fully to scare them away from his home, and attempting to slay him. The storybook characters react in shock, frozen in horror, and it takes Shrek to tell them what to do for them to runaway. This suggests that Shrek does not really want to hurt them, and just wants to scare them off, and have some privacy for himself.
When Shrek tries to intimidate Donkey reacts by laughing at him because he ...
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Shrek threatens to grind the bones of the villagers and also shave they're livers
he also tries frightening them by shouting at them fully to scare them away from his home, and attempting to slay him. The storybook characters react in shock, frozen in horror, and it takes Shrek to tell them what to do for them to runaway. This suggests that Shrek does not really want to hurt them, and just wants to scare them off, and have some privacy for himself.
When Shrek tries to intimidate Donkey reacts by laughing at him because he doesn't see the harm that every other person sees, "You need some Tic-Tacs" Donkey ridiculing. Donkey keeps irritating Shrek without noticing by running in to his house with Shrek letting him, jumping up and down on his chair and when Shrek kicks him out, peering through the window staring at Shrek. Also just generally doing things Shrek doesn't really want him to do, e.g. invading his privacy. The mice tease Shrek by thinking that his house is their new home, but they cannot see what he is, so they believe him to be just some big cuddly overgrown bear. Both these suggest that Shrek isn't as frightening as he should be, if he was all he wants he would be shouting and crushing bones, and terrifying the unwanted guests away.
Donkey tells Shrek that he should get his swamp back by going to Lord Farquaad and pulling off some 'ogre stuff', he also tells him that he is too soft and that it is his swamp anyway. Shrek threatens to kick the Storybook Characters of his land and send them al back home. Shrek offers to end the dispute 'over a pint' because he doesn't want to get confrontational, and have a fight. This suggests that Shrek isn't really a fighting ogre, because he doesn't really want to hurt anyone.
When Shrek rescues Princess Fiona he violently shakes her to wake her up instead of the usual kiss from a knight to wake the prince from a long slumber, she is also disappointed that it is not a romantic moment, even though he is an ogre. He also gives an excuse that he has to save his ass, for that fact that he didn't slay the dragon, practically saying that he has to save himself and Donkey. Initially he tries to act threatening towards Princess Fiona but doesn't last long doing this. Other characters see Shrek as a harmful ogre, these are people such as the villagers, but Princess Fiona sees him as harmless, because she understands how he feels.
Lord Farquaad has an evil side to him; he watches a torture of the gingerbread man and just enjoys it, at first he laughs and then taunts him, 'Run, run, run as fast as you can...' He also attempts to pull off the gingerbread man's buttons, but he pleads with him for his buttons. Soon after that he throws the gingerbread man in the bin and he screams. There is also a parody of the famous series Blind Date where Lord Farquaad has three beautiful women to pick from. After he has picked Princess Fiona he comes over all formal with the language he will use to try and woo Princess Fiona. ' Beautiful fair flower Fiona will you be the perfect bride for the perfect groom?' When he finally meets Fiona, and finds out that she is also an ogre, Lord Farquaad orders the knights, 'Get that out of my sight!' he tells the knights to arrest her and still proclaims himself King, even though the marriage has been abandoned.
When Shrek scares the villagers away, there is a close up shot of the inside of his mouth, just to give the impression that he is going to eat them, with it being dark, it makes it seem even more uncomfortable. When they arrive at the start of the scene threatening to kick him out of his swamp, the low-angle shot of him makes him seem more powerful than the villagers, as we are looking with a point of view sot looking up, it makes him seem the dominant person in the picture, this makes them runaway. Tension is built as Lord Farquaad walks into the room, his guard is wearing a balaclava, and the first shot of Farquaad is of him putting on gloves, therefore meaning business. He is again being viewed with a low angle shot, trying to emphasize height, power and his characteristics. These are used effectively to show his power of Shrek and Donkey. Mid angle shots are used when Shrek and Donkey are relaxing showing that they are equal and neither of them has the most power. Close ups are used to show the characters emotions, such as when Princess Fiona and Shrek realize their true happiness. Sometimes the characters back is shown. This serves as a highlight to their isolation from the rest of the characters. One example is when Shrek sits on the cliff and turns his back on both Fiona and Donkey, showing that he doesn't want to socialize, he wants to be on his own.
The settings in the film are not traditional because Shrek's swamp is supposed to be scary and unwelcoming and not to attract guests, but Donkey and others follow Shrek inside and not scared in the least.
Lord Farquaad's castle is supposed to be beautiful- but instead we get a gingerbread man being tortured, hooded creatures promoting violence and secrecy, his own isolated hood to chill in. Very lonely and big.
Lighting in the film is used to show the loneliness of Shrek, as he is isolating himself from the rest of the characters. He does this by sitting away from the fire with his back to it, staring into the moon trying to find something to contemplate.
It is also used when Shrek has met the princess and he is pictured by the sunset. Ha and Fiona walk through the forest on a sunny day, the lighting here gives an overview of a happy romantic day, even though it doesn't seem real. There are birds chirping and the princess singing, all showing contentment.
At the end of the film a brilliant light is used to show the goodness and make a real magical fairytale ending.
All in all this film uses traditional fairytale characters brought to you using presentational devices which change the effect of these characters full circle. At first these presentational devices show you them as traditional characters howling, being good for the normally good characters and evil for Shrek. But this has a reversal of trend, Shrek ends up as the good guy and Lord Farquaad comes out of the film nearly as evil as Hitler