HAPPILY N'EVER AFTER\

"Are good or evil?"

Entrusted with keeping the balance between good and evil, Munk (Shawn) and Mumbo (Dick) draw unwelcome attention to themselves as they argue about who should be in charge. That attention comes from wicked stepmother Frieda (Weaver) who takes advance of this and ceases power for herself. Now all of the fairy tales villains will have their day and everyone will live happily n'ever after.

Updating classic fairy tales has become a little bit of a trend for animators as of late but can 'Happily N'Ever After' bring something new to an already crowded genre?

The success of the 'Shrek' franchise has brought fairy tale classics back to the forefront of animation but instead of the more traditional or even Disney approach, the modern retelling of classic tales have taken a more modern and fun approach. Movies like 'Hoodwinked' and all three 'Shrek' movies have taken classic tales like 'Little Red Riding Hood', 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs', 'Sleeping Beauty', 'Pinocchio', 'The Gingerbread Man', 'Rapunzel' and many more and used them as comedic fodder for an alternative take on the lands of fairytale stories. But with these movies already covering all that these world have to offer, is there a place for 'Happily N'Ever After'?

Produced by the same studio that brought you 'Valiant', 'Happily N'Ever After' provides another twist on the classic fairytales that have entertained youngsters for centuries. The main tale used is 'Cinderella', with references to 'Sleeping Beauty', 'Snow White', 'Rapunzel' and 'Rumpelstiltkin', but this throws a real twist into the tale by introducing a new lead character by the name of Rick, a lowly kitchen boy who adores Cinderella and it is him he thinks she should marry. Unbeknownst to Rick, Cinderella or any of the other characters in the Fairytale world, their fate is determined by a Wizard, who keeps the balance between good and evil in check and makes sure the tales play out as they should. When Cinderella's wicked stepmother discovers this fact and steals control of the scales that keep the balance from the Wizard's hapless assistants Munk and Mumble does the balance start to swing towards the side of evil. Now it is up to Rick to readdress the balance and maybe, just maybe he might be able to swing the story in his favour. This is an interesting twist on the classic fairytale approach again and one that makes this animated feature well worth watching.

The vocal cast that director Paul Bolger has gathered together really have fun with their parts. Unlike many animated movies the performances are just stars appearing as computer generated versions of themselves but actual characterisations. Husband and wife team Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar are good as the main leads Rick and Ella, Andy Dick and Wallace Shawn are great as Munk and Mumble and Sigourney Weaver revels in her role as the evil step mother.

'Happily N'Ever After' is a fun romp that treads over already established ground. While the movie doesn't bring anything new to the genre, it is a lot of fun and one that younger audiences and families alike should really enjoy.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good, as you'd expect from an animated movie.

BONUS FEATURES

The Depot of Fairy Tale Security
Join Munk and Mumbo to play interactive games entitled 'Choose your own fairy tale ending', 'Munk's fairy tale fix', 'Mambo and Munk's magical matchmaker', 'Mambo's memory mix up' and 'Create your own witches broom'.

Happily N'Ever After: Alternative Ending (2.14 mins)
Watch a slightly different ending from the main feature and find out what Rick and Ella did next.

Journey of the Characters in the Enchanted Forest
Split into sections entitled 'Development of characters', 'Posing out the action', 'playing the part' and 'Colour, light and effects', director Paul Bolger takes you through the production of 'Happily N'Ever After'.

Audio Commentary with director Paul Bolger
The man at the helm provides a break down of the development of the movie and long time it took to get there. He talks about the switch from 2D to 3D, the development of the characters and the changes to the story to make it more family friendly. This is a good commentary that older fans of the movie should enjoy.

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for 'Happily N'Ever After' is one that younger and older viewers alike should enjoy. The featurettes and commentary are good and the interactive games should keep the youngsters amused for a long time.

DVD

Shrek

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2007