Shrek 2 (2004) - Fun and adventure reign supreme in tremendous family animation romp

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+ Best Huge Hit Movie of the Year + Most Profitable Movie of the Year: 217.92 mil. $ range

Shrek, Donkey, Fiona and a bunch of new characters adjoin on this anticipation-building poster for Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury and Conrad Vernon's Shrek 2

Newly wedded ogres Shrek and Fiona go on their honeymoon to Far Far Away for salutation, - and meeting Fiona's parents. But their reception is less than warm, and problems ensue involving Shrek's father-in-law, Fiona's Fairy Godmother, - and her son, Prince Charming.

Shrek 2 is written by Andrew Adamson (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)), Joe Stillman (Gulliver's Travels (2010)), J. David Stern (Daddy Day Camp (2007)) and David N. Weiss (Clockstoppers (2002)), with Conrad Vernon (Shrek (2001)), Cody Cameron (Open Season 3 (2010, actor)), Walt Dohrn (Trolls (2016, actor)), Chris Miller (Shrek the Third (2007)) and David P. Smith (Shark Tale (2004)) contributing dialog, and directed by returning great New-Zealander filmmaker Andrewson, Kelly Asbury (Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)) and Vernon. - A hefty group of creatives!
The film is arguably even more fun and dynamic than the original crowd-pleaser from 2001. It packs an enormous amount of popular cultural and musical references, while its underlying story also just works flawlessly in itself.
Shrek 2 delights also with wonderful voice performances and handsome animation. It is a brilliant family adventure.

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The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) or, Just Plain Narnia 

2004 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
Conrad Vernon: Sausage Party (2016) - One outrageous, funny, horny adult animation 

2004 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I] 

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 150 mil. $
Box office: 919.8 mil. $
= Huge hit (returned 6.13 times its cost)
[Shrek 2 premiered 8 May (Westwood, California) and runs 92 minutes. Development began before the release of the first film. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) was an inspiration for the writing team. Voice acting stars Mike Myers (Wayne's World 2 (1993)), Cameron Diaz (Man Woman Film (1999)) and Eddie Murphy (48 Hrs. (1982)) were each paid a staggering 10 mil. $, - up from 350k $ apiece for the first film, - for their approximately 15-18 hours of total voice work done on the film. The many involved writers are a testament to a lengthy and winding road towards the film's finished script. The film opened #1 to a 108 mil. $ first weekend in a record-breaking 4,163 theaters in North America, where it spent another week at #1 and another 3 weeks in the top 5 (#2-#3-#4) and grossed 441.2 mil. $ (48 % of the total gross). Its 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 88.2 mil. $ (9.6 %) and France with 50.9 mil. $ (5.5 %). It was the highest-grossing film worldwide of 2004 and made an additional estimated 800 mil. $ in merchandise sales. It also beat Finding Nemo (2003) as the highest-grossing animated film of all time, a record it held until Toy Story 3 (2010). It is DreamWorks' most profitable title to date and the highest-grossing in the Shrek franchise. Roger Ebert gave the film a 3/4 star review, translating to a notch harder than this one. Rare for a mainstream animated film, Shrek 2 competed for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, losing to Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11. It was also nominated for 2 Oscars: It lost Best Animation to The Incredibles and Best Song (Accidentally in Love) to Al Otro Lado del Río from The Motorcycle Diaries. It was also nominated for a Golden Globe, won 1/2 BAFTA nominations, was nominated for 2 Grammys and a wealth of other honors. The Shrek franchise continued with Shrek the Third (2007), Shrek Forever After (2010) and spin-off Puss in Boots (2011). A possible reboot was reported in 2018. Adamson returned with The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005); Asbury with Gnomeo & Juliet (2011); Vernon with Monsters vs. Aliens (2009). Myers returned in 3 video projects before Shrek the Third (2007); Diaz in Far Far Away Idol (2004, video short) and theatrically in In Her Shoes (2005); and Murphy in Father of the Pride (2004, TV-series), Far Far Away Idol and theatrically in Dreamgirls (2006). Shrek 2 is certified fresh at 89 % with a 7.68/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Shrek 2?

Gulliver's Travels (2010) or, Gulliver's Travesty

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Jack Black is ready to bonk around in shorts and Converse Allstars on the poster for Rob Letterman's Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver works in the mail room of a large New York magazine, as he plucks up the courage to talk to the girl he is in love with. - Which brings him on an adventure in the Bermuda triangle!

The plot is only coherent in patches, but there's also really no base of reality at all in this shoot-and-miss catastrophe of a film. No one in the cast make total asses of themselves, but it is a laughless comedy and a film with several problems. - Particularly the overly speedy pace, which made me wonder if director Rob Letterman (Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)) is lacking in self-confidence (or talent, or perhaps has ADD?) This fault hinders any amazement over the film's many effects.
In Lilliput, Gulliver becomes part of a romantic triangle and among other things helps Jason Segel (Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)) with a Prince song, while Chris O'Dowd (Pirate Radio (2009)) is attacking from inside a kind of Pacific Rim-like robot.
Gulliver's Travels, obviously a very free adaptation of the Jonathan Swift (A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland Being a Burden on Their Parents or the Country, and for Making Them Beneficial to the Publick (1729)) 1726 classic, doesn't have much Swift to it. Most extenuating about it, however, is its ending, when Jack Black (Goosebumps (2015)) gives a dance performance to Edwin Starr's War. Black's love for music is luckily plugged into this awful film, which is written by Nicholas Stoller (Zoolander 2 (2016))) and Joe Stillman (Shrek (2001)).

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2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 112 mil. $
Box office: 237.3 mil. $
= Flop
[Gulliver's Travels was released December 25 and runs 85 minutes. Filming took place in and around March 2009 in England. Swift is not mentioned in the credits in the film, which, although the film is terrible, is an added shamefulness. The film opened #8, a terrible start for a big budgeted 3D-movie, to a 6.3 mil. $ opening weekend in North America, where it grossed 42.7 mil. $ (18 % of the total gross). Black, Letterman and the film's producers were very lucky that the film pulled in better internationally: The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 24.7 mil. $ (10.4 %) and Japan with 18.9 mil. $ (8 %). Roger Ebert was among the few critics that liked the film, giving it 3/4 stars, equal to 4 hearts here. Gulliver's Travels is rotten at 20 % with a 3.9 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Gulliver's Travels?