Shrek 4 Will Open Tribeca Fest

Animated feature controversial choice for high-profile showcase
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 1, 2010 3:38 PM CST
Shrek 4 Will Open Tribeca Fest
This image released by Paramount Pictures shows a scene from "Shrek Forever After".   (AP Photo/Paramount Pictures)

The Tribeca Film Festival will kick off on April 21 with Shrek Forever After as its opening-night film. The fourth and final installment in the Shrek series is only the second 3D animated feature to open a major film festival, after Up at Cannes last year. "We have always sought to open our festival with films that are captivating and strike an emotional chord with moviegoers," said a film festival co-founder.

But the move leaves some critics feeling a little ... green. They question the decision to award a spot customarily used to showcase important works—United 93 made its premiere at Tribeca—to an heavily merchandised, established franchise. "Wasting a venue that can be, and often is, used for original or chancy work on a 'Shrek' four-quel seems a bit misguided," writes Steven Zeitchik of the Los Angeles Times. (More Shrek stories.)

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