Shrek Forever After
Paramount Pictures | Release Date: May 21, 2010 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
58
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 35 Critic Reviews
Positive:
21
Mixed:
13
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
Boxoffice MagazinePete Hammond
Hilarious and heartfelt from start to finish, this is the best Shrek of them all, and that's no fairy tale. Read full review
83
Tampa Bay TimesSteve Persall
This movie is a last chance to save the series, which it does. Read full review
83
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
It has a sweetness all its own. Read full review
80
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
This is - allegedly - the final chapter in the series, and everyone involved appears invigorated. Read full review
80
MovielineMichelle Orange
More redux than sequel, the final Shrek is more parent- (and specifically dad-) oriented than ever; it may also produce the first twinge of nostalgia in the kids who thrilled to the original at a formative age. Read full review
80
EmpireJames White
DreamWorks could be entering a period of fresh creativity. With How To Train Your Dragon and a balanced, darker-hued and very funny Shrek finale, they’ve found the magic again. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Although Shrek Forever After is not as funny or as impudent is its great-grandparent, some of its comedic jabs land solid blows to the funny bone. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
For this last chapter, the filmmakers play things relatively straight, resulting in the best Shrek movie to date. Read full review
75
NPRElla Taylor
The visual jokes -- one standout is an army of ogres condemned by the Pied Piper to perpetual line-dancing -- are pretty irresistible. Read full review
75
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Believe it or not, there's life in the old boy yet. After a disappointing third outing, this "Shrek" brings the cycle of fairy-tale-themed films to a fine finish. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Stephen Cole
Letting Shrek get grumpy again has freshly animated this cartoon series. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesBetsy Sharkey
Whatever else gets tossed into the mix, Shrek must be the heart and soul. In this, Myers is a master; he makes it seem easy being green. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen Holden
What fortifies Shrek Forever After are its brilliantly realized principal characters, who nearly a decade after the first “Shrek” film remain as vital and engaging fusions of image, personality and voice as any characters in the history of animation. Read full review
70
SalonMary Elizabeth Williams
After an uninspired middle period, the "Shrek" series has, like the revitalized character himself, roared back to form. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Everyone involved fulfills his or her job requirements adequately. But the magic is gone, and Shrek Forever After is no longer an ogre phenomenon to reckon with. Instead, it's a "Hot Swamp Time Machine." Read full review
67
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
Shrek 4 is at its best when it's sadistically doing these character remixes; you can feel the filmmakers' glee at getting to shrug off story continuity and make a mess. Read full review
63
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe Williams
It's no classic, but Shrek Forever After is a pleasant reminder that every time a cash register rings, this ogre turns angelic. Read full review
63
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Mediogre at best. Read full review
63
Rolling StonePeter Travers
It's a fun ride. What's missing is the excitement of a new interpretation. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia Puig
Donkey continues to be lovable, and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) has one of the funnier character arcs. Read full review
63
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike Scott
Worse, Shrek Forever After feels like just another animated movie -- which is exactly what the series was fighting against when it started, and a big reason why it caught on with audiences. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck
Reveals a definite been-there, done-that feeling. Read full review
50
VarietyJohn Anderson
The reputed swan song for the series and its first entry in 3D, pic contains a respectable number of laughs, but also borrows its storyline from the oft-recycled "It's a Wonderful Life," and if that's all its creators can do, it's best to put Far Far Away far far away. Read full review
50
Village VoiceErnest Hardy
It takes the film a deadly long time to kick in, and when it does, it largely retreads formula: ironic use of pop standards, musical numbers with contemporary choreography played for maximum laughs, risque one-liners. Read full review
50
Arizona RepublicBill Goodykoontz
If you found "Shrek the Third," the third film in the "Shrek" franchise, tired, it will probably come as no surprise that Shrek Forever After is downright exhausted. Read full review
50
Orlando SentinelRoger Moore
Forever After still goes down like warmed-over porridge. You don’t have to be Goldilocks to think that this time they’ve cooked their Golden Goose. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Yet even though Forever After is not as fresh-seeming as its predecessors, it provides passable entertainment, especially for the kids who won’t be familiar with the George Bailey storyline retread – or midlife crises, for that matter. Read full review
50
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
There’s nothing much wrong with the film’s pacing or characterizations. We’ve just seen it all in fresher and funnier forms, from Donkey’s sassy backtalk to Puss in Boots’ eye-widening charm. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeJanice Page
To see this final installment is to know: It’s time. Read full review
50
TimeMary Pols
The resulting adventure is once again lively and clever, although its creative underpinnings -- a sort of flea-market pastiche of antique fairy tales, vintage vaudeville and contemporary pop culture -- seem rather more shabby than chic. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleAmy Biancolli
Wanders far away from the infectious and propulsive zing that we've come to expect the past nine years. Read full review
42
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
That’s no huge surprise, given the last two Shrek films, but it’s still dispiriting watching a once-promising series make ever-greater commitments to apathy. Read full review
40
Time OutDavid Fear
Third times are rarely charms in the movies, much less fourth go-rounds, and it takes more than ho-hum 3-D and video-game-ready action sequences to liven up diminishing returns Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Having run its course in the third installment, the franchise jogs and lurches but mostly meanders through a story that tests the limits of true love (Shrek's, and ours). Read full review
25
New York PostKyle Smith
Tired? This series is as exhausted as Shrek after a day of baby wrangling and diaper changing. Read full review
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