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By STEVE PERSALL
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 31, 2001
Editor's note: When St. Petersburg Times film critic Steve Persall reviewed Shrek two weeks ago, he called the computer-animated movie "a pleasant, byte-sized distraction" and gave it a grade of B. Here, he addresses Fiona's transformation.
Mr. Thompson's regard for the feelings of overweight people is admirable. Take it from someone whose high school yearbook biography includes a demeaning nickname based on my waistline, larger at the time than the average jock's.
I eat, therefore I am. Overweight, that is.
However, Mr. Thompson's complaint that Shrek compounds cruelty toward overweight people misses the point that Princess Fiona is a fine learning model, especially for fat children or those who ridicule them.
Fiona, like real-life people, has been trained to believe trim is beautiful and faces should be sleek and smooth. When she accepts her body shape as a blessing instead of a curse, Fiona sets a positive example for overweight people and those insulting them.
"Ugly" is a word used mainly by Fiona describing herself after her nightly transformation. Somebody must invoke it, setting up her eventual comfort with body size as a progressive dramatic move. In other words, a happy ending.
Yes, Fiona resembles a sweet-faced overweight girl. How better to relate to, and inspire, sweet-faced overweight girls everywhere? We've heard for years that female self-worth shouldn't be based on Barbie dolls. What's the alternative?
Best of all, Fiona overlooks the ogre-ness in herself and Shrek, finding true love despite their physical differences from the norm. They live happily, even cosmetically challenged, ever after.