'SHREK': OGRES AND THE WOMEN WHO LOVE THEM.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

The hero kills fish with his flatulence and uses the wax in his ears for dinner-table candles. The princess goes ``Matrix'' on Robin Hood and harbors a dark, dark secret. The sidekick is a jackass, and the villain uses Mama Bear as a throw rug. The Bluebird of Happiness explodes eggs with its shrill singing, the Gingerbread Man shouts ``Eat me!'' and Cinderella and Snow White slap each other silly.

You get the idea. DreamWorks' new computer-animated film, ``Shrek,'' isn't your parents' fairy tale. But while it gleefully and good-naturedly sends up both the Brothers Grimm and the mythmakers at Disney with brazen barbs, the film is, at its heart, a sweet-natured story about self-acceptance, inner strength and the true meaning of beauty. Inventive, irreverent and beautifully animated, ``Shrek'' is a work of art, destined to take its place alongside the classics that it playfully parodies.

``Shrek'' clearly signals its subversive intentions in its opening credits sequence, showing its title character, a gruesome, green ogre who's happily at home wallowing in a swamp and his own gross behavior. If the early flatulence jokes seem to brand ``Shrek'' as just another infantile comedy, at least its creators can point to the fact that Shrek (voiced by Mike Myers) is an ogre, and ogres aren't exactly known to be devotees of Miss Manners.

Shrek's comfortable loner existence is interrupted when the evil Lord Farquaad (John Lithgow) banishes all fairy-tale characters from his kingdom. Suddenly, Shrek's swamp is inundated with unwanted guests like princesses, dwarfs, blind mice, a wooden boy, big bad wolf and three excitable pigs. The worst of the lot, to Shrek at least, is a jive-talking jackass (Eddie Murphy at his best) who believes Shrek really, really needs a friend.

To rid his sacred swamp of all the uninvited visitors, Shrek cuts a deal with Farquaad (try saying that name fast). Shrek must rescue the object of Farquaad's desire, the beautiful princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz), who's (naturally) held captive by a fire-breathing dragon. If Shrek gives Farquaad the princess, Farquaad will give him peace of mind.

That is Shrek's quest, and the journey is an enjoyable romp,thanks to a script that makes superb use of its characters, situations and the myriad of supporting players culled from dozens of fairy tales. DreamWorks' Jeffrey Katzenberg produced the film and obviously takes great delight in sending up Disney, his old employer. Yet the digs are never mean-spirited and they're always on target, such as the resemblance of Farquaad's overbearingly orderly kingdom to the Happiest Place on Earth. (There's a priceless ``Small World'' joke.)

Equally impressive is the computer animation, done by the people at Pacific Data Images, who have made huge advances since making ``Antz'' three years ago. They have created a magical fantasy world, bringing fairy tales to life in a stunning fashion. The movie almost demands a second viewing if only to appreciate the quality of the animation, although you'd get a lot more of the inside jokes the second time around, too.

For Shrek's voice, Myers has fashioned an understated Scottish brogue that brings a sweet tenderness to the character that you might not expect. But then, the unadulterated triumph of this film comes a bit out of left field, too. Thankfully, a major studio movie can still surprise us with greatness and prove that Hollywood magic need not be an implausible fairy tale.

``SHREK''(Rated PG: mild language and some crude humor)

The stars: Voices of Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, John Lithgow, Cameron Diaz.

Behind the scenes: Directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson. Screenplay by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio and Joe Stillman and Roger S.H. Schulman, based on the children's book by William Steig. Released by DreamWorks Pictures.

Running time: One hour, 25 minutes.

Playing: Opens today exclusively at the AMC Century 14 in Century City; expands citywide Friday.

Our rating: Four stars

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Fiona and Shrek share a moment in DreamWorks' computer-animated alternative fairy tale, ``Shrek.''