Shrek at first seems like a traditional ogre as he tries to be scary and looks ugly, also in one of the opening scenes he scares off a group of men who are trying to kill him which makes the audience think that he is a traditional ogre.
In another important scene Shrek meets the Donkey. Initially Shrek tries to intimidate Donkey so he roars at him because he is on his swamp, but Donkey is not frightened of Shrek and just replies sarcastically, “You need some tic–tacs” Shrek is yet again surprised by yet another character not being scared of him. Donkey follows Shrek back to his hut in his swamp, and continues to annoy Shrek by bouncing on his chair and foiling every attempt that Shrek has to scare him.
The behaviour of Donkey tells the audience that Shrek is not scary and is actually just trying to be alone in his swamp as he does not enjoy company from others.
When Donkey and Shrek visit Duloc viewers are astonished as it is meant to be a castle but looks more like a theme park. When they meet Lord Farquaad, dozens of knights are sent to attack and kill Shrek, instead of instantly attacking Lord Farquaads’ knights Shrek asks, “Can we just settle this over a pint” this shows that Shrek does not like violence he is actually kind inside.
As the film progresses viewers begin to learn that Shrek is not a traditional ogre, but just tries to be scary so he can be alone in his swamp.
When Shrek rescues Princess Fiona, instead of kissing her which is what traditionally happens in fairy tales when a Princess is saved Shrek shakes her violently and tells her to, “Wake up now lets go” the audience by now is beginning to realise that this is the opposite of what usually happens in a fairy tale and that the Prince should be in Shreks position. The Princess is disappointed that there was no romantic moment as she had been thinking about when she will be saved and that she wanted it to be romantic.
By now other characters see Shrek as very insecure, as he is loving on the inside but does not want to share his feelings for others so he disguises this by trying to act scary.
We first catch a glimpse of Lord Farquaad’s evil side when we see him torturing the ginger bread man. He laughs and taunts him by saying, “Run, run, run as fast as you can…” the viewers see the irony, as that was one of the ginger bread mans lines and also Lord Farquaads servant has already taken off the ginger bread mans legs.
When Lord Farquaad is about to get married to Princess Fiona he uses very formal language when he says, “Beautiful fair flower Fiona will you be the perfect bride for the perfect groom?” in this film we quickly learn that the Prince is no way like a traditional fairy tale character because he seems extremely evil in all of his scenes and in his actions, also because he does not save Princess Fiona by himself, instead he black mails Shrek into saving her.
In any film camera angles could mean the difference in the audience knowing what the scene is about and them having absolutely no idea of what is happening.
When Shrek scares off the story book characters towards the beginning of the film, the camera zooms in and there is a close up on his mouth which is emphasising that you are meant to be scared of Shrek. Also when the storybook characters tell Shrek of the orders that they have been given a low angle shot is shown of Shrek, which makes him look larger than he is and makes him command the scene.
When Donkey and Shrek are in Duloc they see Lord Farquaad on a balcony. Low angle shots are used effectively to show that Lord Farquaad is higher than everyone else in this scene, and then high angle shots are used when looking at Shrek and Donkey to show that they are lower than Lord Farquaad.
When Donkey and Shrek are relaxing together, mid angle shots are used. Such shots are helpful as they show that the characters are equal and that they are socialising together. Sometimes a characters back is shown towards the camera rather than their face. This shows that the character is isolated from the rest of the group or just wants to be alone.
In this film camera shots are used to define moments, and to emphasise the importance of something or someone.
The film is partly set in Shreks’ swamp, Lord Farquaads castle and the castle above the volcano. The films settings are not traditional because they are not held home to the right characters and have the wrong decoration in them or have the wrong surroundings.
In a scene towards the end of the film the Princess leaves Shrek at dusk to go to her shelter and Shrek is left alone. His isolation is emphasised by him staring at the stars and into the black of night, with his back facing the camera and a light glow coming from the fire behind him creating a warm glow to Shrek.
I believe that lighting in the film is used to express emotions when the characters are not saying anything.
When we first meet Lord Farquaad there is a marching music playing triumphantly in the back ground, which creates a tense atmosphere and makes the audience expect that something is about to happen. Also when Shrek misinterprets the conversation that he overhears between Donkey and Princess Fiona, slow music begins to gently play in the background suggesting Shreks unhappiness and misfortune.
The film makers use music and sound effects to create tension and different moods according to each scene and to emphasise what a character is feeling.
The Donkey is an important character in the film because he shows us that Shrek is not actually scary but is loving and caring deep inside.
In conclusion, the makers of Shrek use presentational devices to reverse the tradition of fairy tales. By increasing the impact of the film, by using lighting, different settings, music and sound effects, to make the true feelings and roles of the characters more blatant. This shows us that a good film is successful not just because of the characters, but also because of the devices that the makers use to influence the viewers.
The reversal of a traditional fairy tale, was a touch of pure genius, and is the first time that it has been done in a film, but is also slightly risky because of this.
Due to the roles being reversed near the beginning of the film, it surprises the viewers and makes them want to watch on, to see what happens next. I personally think that the role reversals are successful, because it adds a new dimension to the film, with an element of surprise as you do not quite know what will happen next.