• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
• 
• 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Soundtrack Review: Shrek Forever After (2010)

Reviewer: JØrn Tillnes

Shrek Forever After Soundtrack Review: This is a review of the motion picture score Shrek Forever After by Harry Gregson-Williams.

"Shrek Forever After is a lot more than what it appears to be. Don't be fooled!"

I know what you might be thinking. Shrek again? There seems to be nothing stopping the green ogre in his tracks but is that a good thing? I have to admit that I loved it when the first one came out, still enjoyed it when the second one came. By the third one, I wasn't that impressed anymore, but it was still good. Now Shrek is back for the fourth time with Donkey, Fiona, Puss and yes, even Cookie. This time around, Shrek gets in trouble because he's simply bored and signs a treaty with Rumpelstiltskin changing Far Far Away into an alternative evil one where Rumpelstiltskin is king and Fiona and Shrek never met. Also back for the fourth time is Harry Gregson-Williams who has been composing for Shrek since the first one. Is there anything new here or just the same as before?

Track List

1. Once (More) Upon a Time	****
2. Rumpelstiltskin	****
3. Same Day, Every Day	****
4. Shrek Signs The Deal	****
5. Rumpels Kingdom	*****
6. The Exit Clause	****
7. Ogre Resistance	*****
8. "Din Din"	****
9. Rumpels Announcement	****
10. Planning The Attack	****
11. Fiona Doesn't Love Me	****
12. Deal of a Lifetime	****
13. The Main Event	*****
14. Rumpels Defeath	*****
15. His Day is Up	*****
16. Never Been Better	*****

Wrong Perception

In the first Shrek, he was joined by John Powell, but in the second and third he went pretty much solo (with some help for additional composers). The first Shrek was great, energetic and fun with Powell doing the dragon stuff while Gregson-Williams did the two main themes, the Fiona/fairytale and the heroic Shrek theme. After that it has still been good, but perhaps the excitement went away with John Powell no longer helping Harry?

It's funny how one's perception of a score can change in a matter of a day. When I first got Shrek Forever After I listened to it a couple of times, I thought: "Hmm, it's better than Prince of Persia at least", but then I put it away for a review this week. I knew I would come back to it so I read another review of it at another film music blog and naturally I responded with my earlier findings. There wasn't really much great stuff here and basically more of the same from Harry.

Shrek has to be same, that much is true. You can't have Shrek without the two main themes, especially since it's the same composer doing all four movies. I went back and listened to all the three previous scores and then it hit me. While the first one had more excitement, the fourth one just needed a better tuned ear.

And so it happened...

A Change of Heart

I listened to it again last night and my whole perception changed. The feeling of "heard it all before" changed to "this is actually some pretty good stuff" in a matter of hours. I was completely wrong, but sometimes it takes 4 or 5 listens before you really get it, or get that "Aha!" moment that I got yesterday. This review has changed completely because of it.

It starts like all the other 3 Shrek movies with the Fiona/fairytale theme and it's become like the Superman theme or the Star Wars theme a well-known part of the franchise. It is just as good as it ever was and firmly starts where a new Shrek adventure should start. The Shrek/hero theme is present as well, but is less used simply because this score has less action cues than before. Shrek Ever After is like the dramatic brother, emphasis on drama, to the previous Shreks.

Rumpelstiltskin

Rumpelstiltskin has a truly great and evil 5-note motif to back up his evil schemes. This theme seems to be present in a lot of the cues and already in cue nr. 2 'Rumpelstiltskin' it begins. You can clearly feel his presence and I think it's the best bad guy theme of the whole franchise. Puss has got his small contribution with the Spanish guitar, but this score is all about Rumpelstiltskin and so it should be.

There's a wonderful touching and sad moment when Shrek realizes that Fiona doesn't love him and the cue 'Fiona Doesn't Love Me'. Touching as it is, it can't stand on it's own and needs imagery or a lot of imagination to make you emotional. Perhaps the biggest critique of this score I can give is that it lacks emotion, at least to me. Not once have I really felt sad or happy because of this music, but it is not a requirement and I am a very hard person to please.

The ending is the best of any Shrek series as Harry Gregson-Williams pulls out his best to bring you the four cues 'The Main Event', 'Rumpels Defeat', 'His Day is Up' and 'Never Been Better'. They show something that this score hasn't had too much of, which is really dramatic orchestration and composition. It literally flies off the handle with 'The Main Event' being the appetizer, then the cue 'Rumpels Defeat' is a truly great adventurous track which you can hear the Shrek/hero theme blasting in it's glory as Rumpelstiltskin is going down. This cue is the dramatic highlight for me. 'His Day is Up' breaks up the action with a lovely melancholy but heroic theme. Then it all ends with the hint of another adventure, with big bold strings, horns and all that comes with an impressive finale.

Conclusion

First impressions can be wrong, just have that in mind while listening to Shrek Forever After, as you might discover more and more as you listen to it. It's not just more of the same, it's more of the great music Harry has served over the years. It's a slight comeback of Harry after a couple of underwhelming scores, and he has yet to really disappoint me when scoring animated movies. Shrek Forever After is a lot more than what is presented to you the first time and Harry truly delivers. If this is the last installment in the Shrek series it ends on a high.

->Buy the CD on Amazon<-

->Buy the MP3 Album on Amazon<-

Listen to The Invincible soundtrack by Two Steps From Hell below:

blog comments powered by Disqus