Shrek 2 (2004)

Directed by: Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury, Conrad Vernon | 105 minutes | animation, comedy, adventure, family, fantasy | Dutch voice cast: Peter Blok, Carlo Boszhard, Angela Schijf, Jon van Eerd, Wim van Rooij, Beatrijs Sluijter, Tony Neef, Simone Kleinsma, Gordon, Stan Limburg | Original voice cast: Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddy Murphy, John Cleese, Julie Andrews, Antonio Banderas, Rupert Everett, Jennifer Saunders, Aron Warner, Kelly Asbury, Cody Cameron, Conrad Vernon, Christopher Knights, David P. Smith, Mark Moseley

After the overwhelming success of ‘Shrek’, a sequel was inevitable. With the release of the second part in America, all records were broken and the Dutch public is also ready to purchase cinema tickets. Now that ‘Shrek 2’ appears to be nearly as good as the original, and just as profitable, it’s no surprise that Shrek 3 and 4 are in the works.

All the success elements of ‘Shrek’ are retained in part 2. ‘Shrek 2’ is also a parody of many different fairy tales and there are many references to other films. The story is again full of enchantments and fairytale characters and is therefore exciting for the children and amusing for the elderly. The different kinds of humor can be clearly seen in a movie theater, the parents and children take turns laughing.

The cast of the original version, of course, includes Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and the unforgettable Eddie Murphy. Furthermore, John Cleese, Antonio Banderas and Julie Andrews have been added as voices. The Dutch version is voiced by Peter Blok (Shrek), Carlo Boszhard (donkey), Angela Schijf (princess Fiona), Jon van Eerd (puss in boots) and Beatrijs Sluijter (queen Lilian). The disadvantage of the Dutch spoken version is that a number of puns are necessarily lost, moreover the animation is adjusted to the American texts, not the Dutch ones. Furthermore, the great voice of Eddie Murphy is lost because there is no Dutch version of Murphy. Carlo Boszhard does the voice of the donkey very nice but it doesn’t come close to the original. If you don’t have children who can’t follow subtitles yet, go for the original version!

‘Shrek 2’ takes a lot from part 1 and does so without being repetitive. The film is full of obvious and hidden jokes and is never boring. Maybe just not the quality of the original, but definitely a great fun movie for all ages.