Spoilers ahead (but you already knew that).
I would be surprised if any of my readers have not heard of “Shrek” (2001). A delightful musical, with plenty of comedy and parody, “Shrek” has endured among today’s youth (and older generation), testified to by its numerous sequels and spin-offs. But what can explain its massive success? The answer lies at the heart of what “Shrek” is: a re-imagination of the classic fairy tale.
The classic fairy tale is something like this: a beautiful princess, locked in a tower or cursed to sleep until true love’s kiss; a dashing prince, wandering in the wilderness until he comes across the princess and saves her. And they live happily ever after. This is the core of “Sleeping Beauty,” “Snow White” and “Rapunzel.”
But “Shrek” turns this upside-down in the best way possible, and by doing so sheds light on why the fairy tale matters.
“Shrek” replaces the dashing prince with Shrek, a rude, green ogre that doesn’t care about anyone, other than himself and his privacy. It makes the beautiful princess Fiona cursed to be an ogre by night (and also gives her fighting abilities). It takes the rugged stallion the prince normally arrives on and swaps in a short, grey donkey with a big mouth.
Throughout the movie, Shrek is not looking for his true love; in fact, he wants to be left alone. He isn’t rescuing Princess Fiona because he loves her; he’s delivering her to Lord Farquaad (a total jerk with whom he has made a deal to get his swamp back). He does not kiss Fiona when he finds her in the tower; he shakes her awake.
In every possible way, Shrek is the opposite of the classic Prince Charming arriving to save the day with a kiss.
But here is the crux: “Shrek” still has a fairy tale ending. It may be a subversion of the fairy tale, but not of the happily ever after.
You can imagine a story that goes one step further, that subverts even the ending of the fairy tale; a story where everyone lives miserably ever after.
“Shrek” does no such thing. The point of “Shrek” is that you need not be a beautiful princess or a dashing prince to have a happily ever after. You do not have to look for true love to find it. You can be a lonely, rude ogre and still live happily ever after.
To everyone disappointed in the fairy tale, to everyone who could not relate to the prince or the princess, who thought the fairy tale outdated, unrealistic, quaint — here is the reminder that true love can be found, challenges can be overcome and a happy ending achieved.
But it won’t be easy. Like Shrek, you may have to open yourself to disappointment. You may even have to crash a wedding. But the people you love are worth it.
The fairy tales did not lie. It is possible to find what you are looking for, some iteration of that elusive happily ever after. Like Shrek, you may have to go on a dangerous quest. But like Shrek, you may find happiness in the end.
