generic conventions in shrek
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How does the film exploit//challenge generic conventions in the closing sequence of this film?
There are many ways in which the film Shrek both exploits and challenges the generic and narrative conventions in the closing sequence of the film.
Firstly it is necessary to establish what the genre of the film actually is, Shrek is an animation film which I would personally categorise in the genre of fairy tale romance. It is best to look at comparisons to other films particularly Disney when looking at the generic and narrative conventions in order to see how these are exploited and challenged.
When Lord Farquart arrives to collect Fiona you can see how the film works towards the signifiers of the genre by the way Lord Farquart is introduced to be the knight in shining armour coming to rescue the princess, the reality however is a lot different and soon becomes apparent. Shrek the ogre, in other films perceived to be the villain is in reality the knight in shining armour who actually saved her and the glances between them in this scene show their feelings towards each other. Just in any other romantic films there is misunderstanding which results in Princess Fiona leaving with the unconventionally short Lord Farquart, she leaves by horseback refusing to be helped and independently jumping on the horse, this again challenges the idea of the helpless princess usually dominated by the knight in shining armour who has rescued her.
When Princess Fiona leaves with Farquart and Shrek argues with donkey there is a period of reflection and a scene which skips between the three characters, this is typical of the genre, The idea of reflection is important, in this scene you see Princess Fiona looking in the mirror, Shrek and Donkey who looks into the water, as well as representing a time of thought and reflection of the misery they all feel this is important because it conveys the message of the film, the importance of physical beauty, the mirror that Lord Farquart has is only a reflection of the power that he holds over everybody and the fact that he cannot see his reflection shows that he does not get a real idea of who he is. Lord Farqurt is seen to be the rich and important man, when he is seen in his suit in comparison with Shrek in his ragged clothes and the princess is seen eating on a white cloth wearing a white dress, the comparison is representative of the way the genre is challenged, but not completely In the ideal fairy tale the layout of the genre would be that a handsome knight rescued the beautiful princess and they all lived happily ever after , the conventional fairy tale would follow these rules. In modern narrative as opposed to fairy tales it is often the underdog who wins the fight within the narrative with the woman choosing rags rather that riches love rather than outward beauty, in this way the narrative conventions are both exploited and challenged...