Featured Image Credit: Dreamworks
Topics: News, World News, Film and TV
Kit Roberts
Shrek is perhaps one of the most widely-loved animated movies out there, especially those not made by Disney.
But aside from the thinly-veiled jabs at Disney like the Fairy Godmother's magic factory in Shrek 2, the other thing that Shrek is known for is the incredibly dark or weird easter eggs.
Like any great film aimed at children, there are, of course, the little adult jokes in there that are cleverly disguised to go over the children's heads while keeping parents and grandparents entertained.
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Who can forget Shrek's comment that Lord Farquaad is 'compensating for something' at the sight of his castle, which Donkey takes to mean something other than Farquad's height.
Speaking of Farquaad, there is also the rather gross moment showing him in bed with the Magic Mirror in front of him.
Farquad orders the Magic Mirror to 'show me the princess', which the Mirror does with a knowing grimace, after which Farquaad embarrassingly pulls up the bedcovers as though trying to conceal something.
But it's not Farquaad's alone time fantasies that are the source of our interest here, but instead, the fate of Mama Bear.
Those who have seen the movie more times than they care to admit may recall the scene in which fairytale creatures are being rounded up by Farquad's soldiers.
Notwithstanding the extremely dark undertones of a minority group being rounded up by soldiers to be taken to a 'designated resettlement facility', the fate of one of the fairytale creatures is sadly shown.
This is the Three Bears from Goldilocks and the Three Bears, who are seen in two cages with Baby Bear complaining 'this cage is too small'.
Mama Bear is seen wearing a pink ribbon on her head, and Papa Bear has glasses.
The next time we see the ursine family is in the 'designated resettlement facility' itself - Shrek's swamp.
But there is someone missing from the family.
Rather than the three bears in the first scene, there is only the Papa Bear and Baby Bear, who are huddled by a fire as Baby Bear appears to be weeping in his father's arms.
On the face of it, this seems understandable, any child would find that distressing.
But it seems there might be a more acute reason for Baby Bear's crying.
A later cutaway to Lord Farquaad's castle lingers momentarily on the villain's choice of decor.
This includes, horrifyingly, a bearskin rug which is wearing a pink ribbon eerily similar to that worn by Mama Bear earlier.
We did say it was dark.