Shrek 2 (2004)
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Shrek and Fiona must navigate the complexities of royal life and a meddling fairy tale villain who wants to sabotage their marriage.
The story
Newlyweds Shrek and Princess Fiona return from their honeymoon to find they have been invited by Fiona's parents to a royal ball to celebrate their marriage. Although Shrek is mortified about visiting the kingdom as an ogre, Fiona convinces him to attend. They travel to the kingdom of Far Far Away with Donkey. Upon arrival, they meet Fiona's parents, who are repulsed by Shrek's appearance. Meanwhile, the villainous Fairy Godmother, a powerful potion seller, seeks to force Fiona to marry her son, Prince Charming, and works to undermine Shrek's position. To protect their relationship, Shrek and Donkey team up with a swashbuckling cat named Puss in Boots to thwart the Fairy Godmother's schemes.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After their honeymoon, Shrek and Fiona are invited to a royal ball in Far Far Away. Shrek is uncomfortable with his ogre status in a royal setting, but Fiona insists they attend. They are met by Fiona's parents, King Harold and Queen Lillian, who are repulsed by Shrek. The Fairy Godmother, who wants Fiona to marry her son Prince Charming to rule the land, tries to manipulate the situation. She orders Harold to get rid of Shrek, leading him to hire Puss in Boots to assassinate the ogre. Shrek, Donkey, and Puss instead team up to find a way to make Shrek more acceptable to Fiona's family. They steal a 'Happily Ever After' potion, which transforms them into humans (and Donkey into a stallion) for a limited time. During the ball, a plot involving love potions and a double for Shrek leads to a confrontation. Ultimately, Harold reveals his true form as the Frog Prince and stops the Fairy Godmother's magic. Shrek and Fiona choose to remain ogres, and the kingdom celebrates their union.
- First release year
- 2004
- Runtime (minutes)
- 92
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Andrew Adamson; Kelly Asbury; Conrad Vernon
- Writers
- Andrew Adamson · screenplay; Joe Stillman · screenplay; J. David Stem · screenplay; David N. Weiss · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Mike Myers · Shrek; Eddie Murphy · Donkey; Cameron Diaz · Princess Fiona; Julie Andrews · Queen Lillian; Antonio Banderas · Puss in Boots; John Cleese · King Harold; Rupert Everett · Prince Charming; Jennifer Saunders · Fairy Godmother
- Genres
- animated; fantasy; comedy
- Themes
- identity; acceptance
- Tone and mood
- humorous; fantasy
- Setting
- The kingdom of Far Far Away.
- Premise and plot tags
- sequel; parody
- Source material / true-story basis
- Shrek! by William Steig
- Franchise connections
- Shrek
- Reception
- The film received positive reviews from critics and is considered by many to be one of the best sequel films ever made.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 75 · scale: 100 · review count: 40
- Awards and nominations
- People's Choice Awards · Favorite Animated Movie · win; People's Choice Awards · Favorite Movie Comedy · win; People's Choice Awards · Favorite Sequel · win; Teen Choice Award · Choice Award Choice Movie – Comedy · win; Academy Award · Best Animated Feature · nomination; Academy Award · Best Original Song · nomination; Golden Globe Award · Best Original Song · nomination; Grammy Award · Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film's production was inspired by the 1967 comedy-drama film Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.; The lead actors received a significant salary bump to $10 million each.; The film's character Puss in Boots spawned several spin-off media including a feature film and a streaming series.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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