‘Shrek’ Coursework Essay

In traditional fairytales, ogres are man-eating beasts. The Prince usually rescues the Princess, they marry and live happily ever after.
How do the makers of ‘Shrek’ use presentational devices to reverse this tradition, to reveal the ogre as good and the prince as evil?

This plan will help you to write your GCSE media coursework essay. Copy all the text written in this style. Fill in the blanks, and anything written in italics is an instruction which tells you what you should write.


In this essay, I am going to analyse the characters of _____ and _____, and write about how film makers use different _____to create an unusual fairytale.
In traditional fairytales the Prince is ... In Cinderella… (What does the prince look like? Write down five things that he does or says in the story.)
Typically Ogres or Giants are ... In Jack and the Beanstalk the Giant … (What does the Giant look like? Write down three things that he does or says in the story.)

Language is an important device. It can create the impression of good and evil both in characters and films. The film ‘Shrek’ opens with the traditional ‘Once upon a time, but then … (How is it different to a normal fairytale? What are we surprised at? What does this opening suggest about the film we are about to see?)

When the storybook characters arrive … (What does Shrek threaten to do to them? How does Shrek try to frighten them? How do the storybook characters react? What does this suggest about Shrek, and what they think about him?)

When Donkey approaches, Shrek roars at him and tries to frighten him. Donkey is not frightened and … (How does he respond to Shrek? Why does he laugh at him? List 3 things that Donkey does to Shrek which annoy him. How do the mice tease Shrek? Why is this so funny?
Donkey and the mice don’t seem afraid of Shrek. Is he as frightening as other Ogres? Can you give 3 reasons why not?)

Shrek and Donkey visit Duloc to try to reclaim Shrek’s swamp from Lord Farquaad. Donkey thinks that Shrek is too kind and should not have to ask, as the swamp belongs to him anyway. Donkey thinks that Shrek should get his swamp back by… . Shrek threatens … (what does he threaten to do to the villagers? How does Shrek offer to solve the dispute over ‘a pint’? What does this suggest about Shrek’s character?)

When Shrek breaks into the castle to rescue Princess Fiona, he acts like an ogre when… (How does he greet the princess? How is this typical of an ogre? How does she respond? What does this suggest about her?

Although Shrek appears violent, we learn that he has failed to slay the dragon because… Why doesn’t Shrek slay the dragon? What does this say about him? Is he as frightening as other Ogres? Can you give 3 reasons why not?)

At the beginning of the film Shrek tries to threaten the characters that he meets, but Donkey, the mice, the storybook characters and Princess Fiona are not intimidated by Shrek or his appearance. He tries to make them frightened by reminding them that ____________. Although Shrek is an ogre_____________.

In contrast to Shrek, Lord Farquaad is cruel. He watches the torture of the Gingerbread Man and then… (What does he shout at the Gingerbread Man? What does this show about his character? What does he do with the Gingerbread Man’s buttons’? Where does Lord Farquaad throw the Gingerbread Man? Write three sentences to describe Lord Farquaad so far.)

Lord Farquaad is all set to marry Princess Fiona, until he sees that when the sun sets she_________. Lord Farquaad speaks to her in a cruel way and orders his knights to ‘Get that out of my sight.’ Lord Farquaad calls off the wedding, but he still proclaims_____________. Lord Farquaad is deceptive because he should only be King _____________. It is clear that he does not love the Princess, but agrees to marriage because he wants ______________________.

When a director is making a film it is important that he/she uses a variety of camera angles to create certain effects. At the beginning of the film Shrek scares the storybook characters away there is a close up of his mouth at this point… (What does the close up look like? Why do you think that the Director uses it?)

Close up shots are useful for focusing the viewer’s attention on the characters’ emotions. Close ups of Shrek and Fiona smiling are used to ___________.

Tension is created when Lord Farquaad is introduced. Instead of focusing on the face, the camera focuses on _______. This suggests ________________.

When Shrek visits Lord Farquaad’s castle, the camera moves from ground level upwards to reveal his tower. This is called a high angle shot. It is useful because it makes Lord Farquaad seem ______________, and Shrek and Donkey appear ______________.

Low angle shots are effectively used because thay show Lord farquaad looking down on ___________ and ____________.

Mid angle shots are used when Shrek and Donkey are relaxing together, and when Shrek has cooked Princess Fiona a meal. These shots show both of the characters at the same time and have the effect of ___________________________.

Sometimes a character’s back is shown rather than their face. This is used to suggest isolation from other characters. For example… (What happens with the camera when Princess Fiona leaves Shrek and goes inside? How does Shrek show that he wants to end the friendship with Donkey?)

Presentational devices are also used to influence the viewer, and to make them see a particular character in a certain way. The story begins in Shrek’s swamp… (What does the swamp look like? How does this fit with being typical for the home of an ogre? What does it suggest about Shrek? What is Lord Farquaad’s castle like? Is it as you would expect? What does this suggest about him?)

When we first meet Shrek it is obvious that he is supposed to look like an ogre because … (what does he look like? Describe where he lives, how he bathes and how he pulls the wax out of his ear etc.)

Lord Farquaad seems like a typical Lord. He wears… (what does he wear? What is his home like? What happens if he marries a Princess?)

Lighting is also used to persuade the viewer to think of a character ina certain way. When Princess Fiona leaves Shrek, Shrek sits with his back to the camera and stares at the moon… (Why do you think darkness is used here? What is it supposed to reflect?)

The images of light are used thoughtfully too. Shrek and Fiona are often pictured walking through meadows… (Why do you think that Shrek and Fiona are pictured walking through woods on a sunny day with birds chirping? What do you think the brilliant light at the end of the film is supposed to suggest?)

When we first meet Lord Farquaad and the hooded figure there is marching music… (What do you think it is supposed to say about him? How does this make the viewer feel?)

When Shrek enters Lord Farquaad’s arena the loud music suggests __________.

When Shrek overhears the conversation between Donkey and Fiona, he misinterprets the conversation. At this moment the music is slow, this suggests_______________. (Why do you think there is a song about broken dreams and promises? What is the effect of having the Donkey and Dragon crying?)

Donkey is an important character in the film, as he helps us to understand the character of Shrek. When Donkey refuses to listen to Shrek, ignores the ‘Beware of the ogre’ sign, and follows him back to the swamp… (What does this show about Shrek’s character? How does Donkey turn the Tournament scene into a comedy? What does this show us about Shrek’s powers to be a real Ogre? Write 3 sentences about Donkey and Shrek’s friendship. How does Donkey make us believe that Shrek is not a real Ogre?)

After analysing the characters of Shrek and Lord Farquaad, I have come to the conclusion that although Shrek seems like a traditional ogre… (write about how he is different.)

Although Lord Farquaad looks like a Lord, his actions suggest that he is evil. (Give examples of his evil actions)

The story of ‘Shrek’ uses presentational devices to reverse our expectations so that by the end of the film… (write two sentences about how the viewer feels towards Shrek and Lord Farquaad.)

Perhaps the message of the story is that you can’t judge a book by ___________.