Shrek the Third and Ocean's Thirteen

I watched Shrek the Third and Ocean's Thirteen the other day. Both movies are the third sequel of a successful franchise and both were entertaining.

Shrek the Third is probably the worse Shrek movie, but still a really good movie. In the first and the second Shrek I was basically laughing non-stop at the subtle in-jokes and the turning-the-fairy-tale-world-upside-down jokes. But there are only so many fairy tales and in the third one they seem to run out of fairy tales to make fun of. Although seeing "Dopey" and a heart tattoed on Snow White did make me laugh out loud.

Also Shrek sounds a bit tired, Mike Myers doesn't sound as excited as in the first one. And hearing Donkey go on and on and on and on can be a bit tiring as well. Justin Timberlake made Artie the loser with delusions of grandeur, but he didn't have enough a role to carry the whole movie. I'm hoping this will be the last Shrek but apparently there will be a fourth one. Probably Shrek being a grumpy dad with teenage kids.

As for Ocean's Thirteen, the whole Ocean's 11 franchise was basically George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Steven Soderbergh way of having fun. That it did well was just a bonus for them. And you can really tell in the movie that these three are just having fun. No heavy acting for Brad as he did in Babel. No heavy acting for George as he did in Syriana. The story is implausible, the whole thing is full of in-jokes and the cast is just partying in Vegas basically.

Still nice to see them loosening up and giving the audience entertainment. There's not much storywise or acting wise, but you will be entertained nonetheless. And if they keep sticking to this formula, I don't mind an Ocean's Fourteen. Because it will still be George, Brad and Steven having a laugh.