SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN

THE DESIGN SCHOOL

FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD ENVIRONMENT

NAME : TANG JU YI

STUDENT ID NO : 0317735

FILMS SELECTED : “SHREK” AND “UP”

WORD COUNT : 1039 words

ENGLISH 2 (ELG 30605)

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 1: COMPARE – CONTRAST ESSAY

LECTURER: CASSANDRA WIJESURIA

SUBMISSION DATE: 19TH SEPTEMBER 2014

PRE-WRITTING

Similarities between Shrek and Carl Fredricksen

1. Both are loners

2. Have trustworthy Friends

3. Love their wives

4. Change of Attitude in life

VS

Shrek and Up Comparison Essay

There are lots of animated films that inspired me, two of my favourites are Shrek and

Up. I realise that both films share some similarities. In Shrek directed by Andrew

Adamson, the main protagonist, Shrek is portrait as an irritable, terrifying green ogre who

loves the solitude in his swamp. He realise that his life is interrupted when many fairytale

characters exile in his swamp by the orders of the selfish Lord Farquaad. Shrek is forced

to accept the request of rescuing Princess Fiona in order to get his peaceful life back. In

Up directed by Pete Docter, the main protagonist, Carl Fredricksen is an old man who

becomes lonely, stubborn, and misses his wife terribly after her death. As years goes on,

the city grows, but Carl refuses to move because he wants to cherish the memories that

he had with his beloved late wife. He decides to escape by creating a makeshift airship,

using 10,000 helium balloons to lift his house off its foundation! He starts his journey to

Paradise falls with Russell, a young Wilderness Explorer. Shrek and Carl are loners, they

have friends to support them, they cherish their lover and they change their attitude in the

end.

Both Shrek and Carl are loners at the beginning. At first, it seems that Shrek

successfully scares off villagers by roaring at them, but it later becomes obvious that they

were only attacking him because he is an ogre not because he did anything wrong. During

a conversation with Donkey, he laments that he is constantly judged by the outside world

the minute people meet him, “Look, I'm not the one with the problem, alright? It's the world

that seems to have a problem with me. People take one look at me and go 'Aah! Help!

Run! A big stupid ugly ogre!' They judge me before they even know me. That's why I'm

better off alone”. This implies that he became a recluse after trying and failing to find

acceptance among others. In the story Up, Carl’s wife, Ellie contracts an illness and dies of

old age, leaving Carl alone. Carl’s life becomes bitter because he loves his wife very much

and he cannot accept the fact that Ellie is gone. Although he manages to get through the

day by performing arbitrary tasks, he is still socially isolated and avoids human interaction.

Shrek and Carl have friends who always support them. Donkey is Shrek’s first friend

and is the one who accompanies him throughout the adventurous journey. While passing a

mountain guarded by a vicious, fire-breathing dragon, Donkey risks his life by distracting

the dragon’s attention while Shrek can rescue Princess Fiona. Another incident is when

Shrek and Fiona are about to get killed, Donkey and his girlfriend, the Dragon braved

themselves and came to the rescue. Donkey never leaves Shrek alone in difficult

situations, in the end, he became Shrek’s most trustworthy pal. In Up, Russell is a

hyperactive, anxious and curious boy who shows up at Carl’s doorsteps, hoping to earn

his final merit badge for assisting elderly. Russell travels along with Carl and his house to

Paradise Falls by mistake. He beholds a spirit that somewhat reminded Carl of Ellie in his

curious nature. Russell’s cheerfulness also supports Carl mentally, in the end, Carl is able

to let the past go and live on. He is grateful to Russell and approves their friendship when

he gives Russell the badge while saying “The highest honour I can bestow, the Ellie

Badge”.

Shrek and Carl cherish the most important women in their lives. At first, Shrek did

not have feelings for Fiona, but the longer they get together, they realise that they share a

lot in common. Eventually, Shrek and Fiona start to deeply fall in love, but this is

interrupted when Shrek and Fiona get into a misunderstanding followed by Shrek bringing

Farquaad to get Fiona, who then proceed to a marriage. However, Shrek’s love for Fiona

is shown when he tries to cancel any possibilities of Fiona’s wedding. Fiona’s ogre

transformation spell is triggered and manages to appall Farquaad into losing desires of

marrying her. In the end, Shrek marries Fiona. In Up, Carl met Ellie in his youth, both of

them become close friends almost instantly as they share the spirit of adventure. Years

later, Carl and Ellie gets married. They go through many stages of their life together, for

instance, they expect to have a child but later find out that Ellie is infertile. Carl never gets

upset towards Ellie, instead he tries his very best to cheer up the women he loves. After

Ellie’s death, Carl finds it difficult to live without Ellie and desperately misses her.

Both Shrek and Carl undergo changes of attitude in the end. Shrek from an extreme

loner becomes more outgoing and willing to let others in. He changes because of the

people around him, like Donkey and Fiona. They never look down on Shrek due to his

physical appearance, instead, Donkey become Shrek’s best buddy and Fiona become his

wife. Shrek finally realise that he does not need to be perfect to have a happily ever after.

In Carl’s story, things start to change after he stumbles across Ellie's old Adventure Book

and upon reaching the page saying "Stuff I'm Going To Do" and begins his journey to

Paradise Falls. Eventually, he and Russell reach the falls , Russell is angry with Carl over

his decision to save his house instead of a bird named Kevin. Settling into his home, Carl

finds a note from Ellie’s childhood scrapbook that says "Thanks for the adventure, Now go

have a new one". Reinvigorated, he knows that he has to let go of the past, so he goes to

find Russell and rescue Kevin.

Shrek and Carl are loners, but they have friends to support them, they cherish the

women they love and eventually,they manage to change their cranky attitudes in life. Both

films inspired me a lot because I have a personality almost like Shrek and Carl. I admire

them because they manage to break their walls and build bridges despite their stubborn

personalities. After all, life is meaningless without the companions of friends and families.

References

1. Zoe Adams ( 3rd February 2010 ) Fun Facts about Shrek the Ogre. Retrieved from

http://www.thefactsite.com/2012/05/ogre-called-shrek.html

2. James Keast (6th February 2009) Pixar RevealsEarly Look At Up. Retrieve from

http://exclaim.ca/News/pixar_reveals_early_look_at_up

3. Dreamworks animation official website (2011) The Tale of Shrek. Retrieved from

http://www.shrek.com

4. Disney official website (2014) Characters of Up. Retrieved from

http://www.disney.co.uk/up/#story

5. Pixar Official Website (2014) The Story Process. Retrieved from

http://www.pixar.com/features_films/UP

Thank you !