When one thinks of some of the most successful movie franchises, things like Star Wars, Marvel, or Pirates of the Caribbean come to mind first. Those are all some of my favorite movies as well, but when I look back on my childhood, all I remember is Shrek. I was extremely loyal to any interest I had when I was younger. The only show I watched was Spongebob, the only artist I listened to was Bob Marley, so as a kid, Shrek was probably the only movie I ever watched. Of course, I watched other things, but nothing compared to Shrek. I could see it over and over again and still not get tired. I even went as far as having two Shrek themed birthday parties, though I don't know whether to be embarrassed about that or not since Shrek was kind of a meme for a while. I'm sure I had fun though.
As I've gotten older, my interest has diminished a lot but it got me to question what makes the Shrek movies so good and why did I love them so much? One thing that stands out to me now is the music in the movie, which I would say is one of the best movie soundtracks ever, though it's no Hans Zimmer. As a kid, I never paid close attention and just enjoyed what I heard and even bought the CDs. I appreciate it a lot more now though and find the combination of pop music and the actual score by Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell to be genius since it never really works with other movies. The best usage of this combination can be seen in Shrek 2 in the arguably best scene in any Shrek movie ever, where Shrek is going to the castle to get to Fiona while the Fairy Godmother sings "I Need a Hero". The original song is by Bonnie Taylor and is a pop/rock song but what makes the Shrek version different is the addition of a melody from the first movie. When Shrek is trying to get into the castle, you can hear the same melody from when Shrek, Fiona, and Donkey were running from the dragon in the first Shrek movie. Having seen both films, you can feel the same emotions through the two scenes since the melody is so familiar, which adds a lot more to the moment than if it was just using the song "I Need a Hero" with no other additions. Pop music can only convey so much, so Shrek uses the score in emotional in serious scenes, which is what makes the combination work.
Another thing that stands out is the humor. Of course, as a kid, humor is very important in a movie but should always be balanced by more serious moments. The reason many people prefer Marvel movies over the DC franchise is that there is a balance of humor and reality. There needs to be comedic relief to make it less serious and grim. Shrek was never a very dark or dramatic film, but comedy is one of the reasons I liked it so much. The story itself is also good and can teach a lot of lessons. I wouldn't say that Shrek is one of the best films ever, it doesn't really compare to other animated movies like Spirited Away or The Lion King but I think there is still a lot to enjoy from a story like Shrek.