Shrekkati per le feste

I have been a long-time Shrek fan. Since basically drooling over the trailer for the first Shrek movie since it was released on the net. It was groundbreaking, and absolutely hilarious that appealed to both children and adults. Shrek 2 came along, kept a lot of the same formula, and again in turn was a very good film. However with the coming of Shrek 3, I was very disappointed. My wife and I hardly laughed at all, and I found the film to be drawn out and boring for the most part.

***Enough of the lead-in*** With Shrek the Halls, comes redemption and hope for the franchise. Yes, this special was short, however in that short amount of time I laughed more than the entire full length of Shrek 3. This wasn't a cheesy made-for-TV video either, the animation is beautiful and the jokes were spot on (the entire Gingerbread man / Santa thing was great). I'm not going to spoil anything away, since there's really not much *to* spoil away, but just know it's fun for the whole family, and for something that you can watch in the comfort of your own home without having to pay for theater admission, how can you pass this up?

I have to say that i was holding my breath when I sat down to watch this. I wanted so much to like it but everything pointed to this being a total disaster. First off Christmas specials are rarely on the caliber of Charlie Brown Christmas and are usually closer to The Star Wars Holiday Special. Add on the fact that the last Shrek movie was nowhere near as good as the first two. Having now seen it I can say that there is hope for the Shrek series yet. Shrek The Halls tells the story of Shrek learning about Christmas. Now that the big green guy has a family, he wants to give them the best Christmas ever, but he doesn't know how. but with the help of donkey and puss in boots and the rest of the gang, he learns in a trial and error type of way that one can only find in a Shrek story. This cute little half an hour special has really restored my faith in both the Shrek series and Christmas specials in general. that may seem way to dramatic but if Shrek the Halls can pull it of then maybe there is hope for the ones yet to come.

Shrek the Halls is great Christmas fun, not as good as the first film, but on par with the second and an improvement on the third. My only problems with it though were that I felt it could have been longer by about say 10 minutes, and the pace was a tad too fast in places. Still it is hugely enjoyable, that still maintains the charm and humour of the film franchise and offers some delicious moments. My favourite moments were Gingy's Christmas story of horror and Puss losing himself playing with a bauble, both of which had me and my whole family in hysterics. The animation is simply great, the soundtrack is delightful and the laughs are plentiful. The characters are just as likable as they were in the movies, though Shrek is a real Scrooge, and Gingy especially is a scream here. The voice acting is professional enough, Eddie Murphy and Antonio Banderas the standouts as Donkey and Puss. All in all, enjoyable fun for Christmas Time. 8/10 Bethany Cox

This little 22 minute marvel accomplishes what Shrek the Third could not: it is consistently funny and works well on its own. Shrek the Third was mildly amusing, while this is side-splittingly funny. It is also easy for most of the audience to relate to. Everyone has tried to create the perfect Christmas before, and everyone can relate to wanting to have an intimate Christmas with the immediate family. Some have commented that it bears a resemblance to the Star Wars Holiday Special, but I just don't see it. It breezes by without unnecessary musical numbers or "special guest appearances". All in all, an amusing little time-waster, and I hope that future editions of Shrek the Third on DVD come packaged with this as a bonus.

I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 400 (C H R I S T M A S ) MOVIES AND SPECIALS.

SO PLEASE BEWARE OF SOME REVIEWERS THAT ONLY HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. WHEN ITS A POSITIVE THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE NO AGENDA! I REVIEW MOVIES & SPECIALS AS A WAY TO KEEP TRACK OF WHAT I HAVE SEEN! I HAVE DISCOVERED MANY GEMS IN MY QUEST TO SEE AS MANY " C H R I S T M A S " MOVIES AS I CAN.

"Shrek The Halls" is one of those "Christmas Cartoons" that does everything correct. It stays loyal to the tone of the movies that it was based on. They kept the same voice talent from the films and gave us a very funny and touching story about "Christmas".

In this special Shrek thought he could finally sit back, relax and enjoy his happily ever after with his new family, the most joyous of all holidays arrives. It's Christmas Eve and everyone is filled with holiday cheer - except for Shrek. He isn't exactly the picture of yuletide joy, but for the sake of Fiona and the kids, he tries to get into the spirit of things as only an ogre can. Unfortunately, everyone seems to have their own ideas about what Christmas is all about.

Loved this one!