Shrek
The greatest fairy tale never told.
Production
Budget
$60 000 000
Revenue
$484 409 218
Director
Scenario
William Steig
Author
Composer
Producer
Actors
Mike Myers
Shrek / Blind Mouse (voice)
Eddie Murphy
Donkey (voice)
Cameron Diaz
Princess Fiona (voice)
John Lithgow
Lord Farquaad (voice)
Vincent Cassel
Monsieur Hood (voice)
Peter Dennis
Ogre Hunter (voice)
Clive Pearse
Ogre Hunter (voice)
Jim Cummings
Captain of the Guards (voice)
Short description
Shrek is a large green ogre who lives alone in a swamp and values his privacy. His solitude ends when Lord Farquaad, the ruler of the nearby kingdom of Duloc, banishes a crowd of fairy-tale creatures to the swamp. To get them removed and reclaim his home, Shrek agrees to travel to a castle guarded by a fire-breathing dragon and bring back Princess Fiona, who is meant to become Farquaad's bride. A talkative donkey accompanies him on the journey, and the two form an unlikely partnership as the mission proves less straightforward than it first appears.
The 2001 animated film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson and written by Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio and Roger S.H. Schulman. Mike Myers voices Shrek, Eddie Murphy voices Donkey, Cameron Diaz voices Fiona and John Lithgow voices Farquaad. It was produced by DreamWorks Animation with Pacific Data Images on a budget of 60 million dollars, and it went on to gross 484 million dollars worldwide. It stands first among the feature films Adamson and Jenson have directed, and both returned for later entries in the series.
Audiences rate it 7.9 out of 10 on IMDb from around 806,000 votes and 7.8 out of 10 on TMDB from over 19,000 votes, while a film critics' rating stands at 8.3 out of 10 from 212 reviews. The 90-minute adventure blends comedy and fantasy with family appeal and launched a franchise that continued with sequels from the same directors.
What's left behind the scenes
- According to the creators, the song "I’m a Believer" was chosen solely because of the line "I thought love was only true in fairy tales."
- Work on the cartoon began on October 31, 1996, and ended after more than four and a half years.
- Although Donkey is supposed to be a hoofed animal, almost all of his movements are modeled after those of a dog, with the exception of the chase scene at the beginning of the cartoon, where Donkey's movements are modeled after those of a rabbit.
- The scene where Thelonious (the executioner in a mask) sings is a reference to Stacker 2, a commercial featuring wrestler Cain, also wearing a mask, singing karaoke.
- The filmmakers did not initially plan to use the song "All Star" by Smash Mouth in the opening credits of the finished film. However, it was so well-received by the audience at test screenings that they decided to keep it.
- According to the creators, the fight choreography for Princess Fiona was based on films with Jackie Chan, as well as the film *Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon* (2000).
- In Hebrew, "shrek" means "monster," and in German, it means "horror" or "fear."
- Approximately 1250 types of props were 'created' for the film, which was a record for a computer-animated film.
- This cartoon features around 36 different locations, which was a record at the time of the film's release.
- The character of the Fairy Godmother was originally created for the first part of "Shrek," but the filmmakers decided to abandon her. She became one of the key characters in the second film.
- Cameron Diaz voiced the fight scene between Fiona and Robin Hood's men after her physical training for the film 'Charlie's Angels' (2000). Therefore, sometimes she got so into the role that she switched to Cantonese.
- According to Andrew Adamson, Shrek is approximately 7-8 feet tall (approximately 213-244 cm). Shrek's actual height is 7 feet, but in the eyes of frightened people he grows another foot taller.
- During the voice recording of the film, Cody Cameron jokingly proposed to Cameron Diaz, saying, “You could become Cameron Cameron.”
- Some animators truly took a mud bath in order to better study the movement of viscous mass.
- According to British Channel 4, "Shrek" took second place on the list of "Best Family Films".
- Originally, Chris Farley was supposed to voice Shrek. After the actor's death, the role went to Mike Myers.
- At the beginning of the cartoon, around 1000 fairytale characters rush to Shrek's swamp.
- In the original version, Robin Hood speaks with a French accent, but not because he is French, but because he, like his historical prototype, is not Anglo-Saxon, but Norman. And before the Hundred Years' War between England and France, French was the native language for the Normans, who formed the basis of the English nobility after William the Conqueror.
- In one of the scenes outside Shrek's house, Papa Bear and his son can be noticed. Later, in Farquaad’s castle, when he looks at a picture of Fiona in the mirror, we can see Mama Bear as a rug lying on the floor. However, there is no need to worry, the creators of the cartoon did not break up the family: Mama Bear appears during the karaoke scene on the DVD, dancing with Papa and Son.
- Originally, the film did not include a scene where Princess Fiona burps. This episode was decided to be added to the film after Cameron Diaz burped during sound recording.
- At the beginning of the animated film *Shrek*, he brushes his teeth and looks at his reflection in a mirror, which then cracks. An exactly identical scene is present in the film *Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me*, where the main role was also played by Mike Myers.
- During voice recording, Mike Myers forgot to say, “Attention all fairytale creatures!” To correct this oversight, producer Jeffrey Katzenberg flew to New York to see Michael, and the latter said the phrase into the microphone in Jeffrey’s limousine.
- In one scene, Lord Farquaad wants to marry and asks the Magic Mirror to show him princesses. It provides him with images of Cinderella, Snow White, and Fiona. But, as is well known, Cinderella was not a princess.
- Before the film’s release, it was very closely examined by DreamWorks studio lawyers in order to avoid potential lawsuits from Disney.
- The actors who voiced the characters never met during the production of the cartoon. They recorded their roles separately from each other.
- The song “Welcome to Duloc,” sung by wooden puppets at the entrance to Duloc, is not only a parody of the Disney song “It’s a Small World,” but it is also in the same key and rhythm as the Disney song.
- According to John Lithgow, despite really enjoying working on the project, he was a little disappointed because he never met Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, or Eddie Murphy during production.
- While recording the sound for the scene where Shrek confesses his love for Fiona, Mike Myers read the role to his wife, Robin Ruzan.
- The only characters who call Shrek by his name are Donkey and Fiona. Everyone else refers to him as "Ogre," "Man-Eater," "It," "He," or "This."
- In the fight scene between Fiona and Robin Hood's men, the action stops, and the camera circles around the characters. This is, of course, a reference to 'The Matrix' (1999).
- In the scene where Lord Farquaad lies in his bed and watches the Princess Fiona tape in the mirror, you can notice a painting hanging above him. This canvas is very similar to Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus," but with Farquaad instead of Venus.
- According to Mike Myers, when creating Shrek's accent, he tried to imitate the accent of his mother when she read him fairy tales as a child.
- *Shrek* was the first winner of an Academy Award in the category of Best Animated Feature.
- The animators studied many types of medieval cold weapons and armor before choosing the weaponry for the scenes of rescuing the princess and the knightly tournament.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
