impressive; really stood out
Right after the guards scatter, someone crowds in and turns the fight into hot praise.
Listen, you was really, really something back there. Incredible!Shrek · 2001 — Chapter 1 of 12 · 4'05" · B2
Donkey Asks to Stay, Explained: scare the spit out of
What looks like a nonstop compliment session is really a pitch for company: the ogre is called “a mean, green, fighting machine,” but the flattery keeps circling back to the donkey's own lack of friends. The jokes are funny, yet the loneliness underneath makes the request hard to refuse.
What happens
After a fight with guards, a talkative donkey follows a green ogre home, praising his fighting and begging to stay. The ogre agrees to one night only and sends him outside; the donkey keeps talking to himself about being alone.
Listen for
really somethingbabes in the woodsscare the spit out ofget the job done
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Phrase of the scene
scare the spit out of
frighten someone badly
The offer to tag along is sold at once as extra scare power.
Together the twins scare the spit out of every debate team they meet.
Also in this scene
- really something
impressive; really stood out
- babes in the woods
clueless people, easy to rattle
- get the job done
accomplish the task; do what is needed
- no wonder
not surprising; that explains it
- modest budget
a small amount of money to spend
Everything marked in this scene
33 notes across 64 lines
Ease off was so really can take the weight.
Listen, you was really, really something back there. Incredible!thought they were a big deal Not 'all those things' — they thought they were hot stuff.
They thought they was all of that. Then you showed up, and bam!just like that — A spoken punch; leave it out of formal writing.
They thought they was all of that. Then you showed up, and bam!falling over their own feet
They was tripping over themselves like babes in the woods.clueless people, easy to rattle
Someone recaps the guards as lost and helpless, laughing at the panic.
They was tripping over themselves like babes in the woods.stay by your side
Hey, wait a minute! I got a great idea! I'll stick with you.Keep got and a close; don't stop dead on the t.
Hey, wait a minute! I got a great idea! I'll stick with you.a nickname for a fierce fighter
You're a mean, green, fighting machine.frighten someone badly
The offer to tag along is sold at once as extra scare power.
Together we'll scare the spit out of anybody that crosses us.relative clause: that limits anybody to people who get in the way.
Together we'll scare the spit out of anybody that crosses us.accomplish the task; do what is needed
The breath joke lands through get the job done: even if the scare fails, the smell will finish the job.
If you don't mind me saying, if that don't work, your breath certainly will get the job done, 'cause you definitely need some Tic Tacs or something, 'cause your breath stinks!Glide through the t in outta and into my.
You almost burned the hair outta my nose, just like the time--out of — Spoken spelling only; write out of on the page.
You almost burned the hair outta my nose, just like the time--not surprising; that explains it
A line cuts off the singing, and the next one uses no wonder to say the lack of friends is no surprise.
It's no wonder you don't have any friends.the classic angry-mob weapons Not a shopping list — a mob chasing an ogre.
You know. Grab your torch and pitchforks.compound modifier: The hyphen string acts as one adjective for thing.
You got that kind of I-don't-care-what-nobody- thinks-of-me thing.I approve of you — Praise, not a checkup; skip it in formal settings.
I like that. I respect that, Shrek. You all right.prefer to be left alone
I like my privacy.share a trait
You know, I do too. That's another thing we have in common.crowding you and not leaving
In your face here describes a guest who crowds you and won't take a hint.
Like, I hate it when you got somebody in your face.signal that they should catch on The hint means please leave, not a study tip.
You're trying to give them a hint, and they won't leave. There's that awkward silence.a pause that feels uncomfortable
You're trying to give them a hint, and they won't leave. There's that awkward silence.want to — Fine in a spoken plea; don't write it in mail.
- No. - Please! I don't wanna go back there!seen by others as a freak
You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak. Well, maybe you do.noun clause: The what-clause is the experience he says the other may not know.
You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak. Well, maybe you do.stay united
But that's why we gotta stick together. You gotta let me stay!have got to — Fine when pushing a friend; not in formal writing.
But that's why we gotta stick together. You gotta let me stay!allowed for a single night
The yes arrives with a deadline already attached.
- But one night only. - Ah! Thank you!Stress one and only; keep night softer.
- But one night only. - Ah! Thank you!Pack gonna into one beat, then lift fun.
- What are you-- No! No! - This is gonna be fun!remain awake far into the night
We can stay up late, swapping manly stories, and in the morning I'm making waffles.trade macho anecdotes
We can stay up late, swapping manly stories, and in the morning I'm making waffles.Donkey Asks to Stay, explained
What's really going on
Under the comedy, the scene is a negotiation about loneliness. One line admits, “I don't have any friends,” and the next move is flattery: the ogre is “a mean, green, fighting machine,” and together they could be a team. The reply to all this is dry: “I like my privacy.” The next line turns that into “another thing we have in common.” The sharpest turn comes later: “You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak. Well, maybe you do.” That turns flattery into recognition, and the final “one night only” sounds like a limit but also leaves the door open a crack.
Theme
LonelinessThe donkey's cheerful chatter keeps circling back to having no friends and being left outside.
FriendshipA request for shelter exposes two outsiders: one wants company, the other insists he likes privacy.
Listen for
- you was really — Ease off was so really can take the weight.
- got a great — Keep got and a close; don't stop dead on the t.
- outta my nose — Glide through the t in outta and into my.
- one night only — Stress one and only; keep night softer.
You're a mean, green, fighting machine.A comic compliment: the ogre looks terrifying and fights like a machine, and the donkey wants him as an ally.
Together we'll scare the spit out of anybody that crosses us.The donkey imagines the two of them as a team so frightening that anyone who challenges them will be terrified.
It's no wonder you don't have any friends.A blunt remark that the constant singing makes having no friends unsurprising; it is an insult, not a compliment.
You got that kind of I-don't-care-what-nobody- thinks-of-me thing.The donkey admires the ogre's apparent indifference to other people's opinions, treating it as a strength rather than rudeness.
You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak. Well, maybe you do.The donkey first assumes the ogre cannot understand being treated as a freak, then realizes that the ogre probably knows it very well.
You are quite a decorator. It's amazing what you've done with such a modest budget.The praise is overdone: after the place is called undesirable, calling the ogre a decorator and mentioning a modest budget makes it sound like a design achievement.
Questions about this scene
Why does the donkey keep complimenting the ogre?
The praise is a way in. After the fight with the guards is called incredible, one line admits, “I don't have any friends,” and adds, “I'm not going out there by myself.” The compliments lead straight to the request to stay.
Why does the ogre agree to let him stay?
The plea “You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak. Well, maybe you do.” is followed by repeated begging and then “Okay! Okay!” The permission is still capped: “one night only.”
What does “babes in the woods” mean here?
It describes people who are helpless and unprepared. The line says the guards were “tripping over themselves like babes in the woods,” so the phrase is about their panic, not actual children.
Why does the ogre send the donkey outside?
An earlier line is “I like my privacy,” and the deal is “one night only.” When asked where the donkey will sleep, the answer is “Outside!”
Why is privacy suddenly “another thing we have in common”?
One line says, “I like my privacy.” The reply is quick to agree—“another thing we have in common”—turning a reason to be left alone into a reason to stay together.
Shrek · 12 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 2worn outShrek Finds His Swamp Occupied
Watching · Chapter 1scare the spit out ofDonkey Asks to Stay
Chapter 2worn outShrek Finds His Swamp Occupied
Chapter 3loaded pistolFarquaad Picks Princess Fiona
Chapter 4end of storyOgres Are Like Onions
Chapter 5Prince CharmingShrek Is Not Prince Charming
Chapter 6better off aloneDonkey Pushes Shrek About the Wall
Chapter 7the last thing on my mindPulling the Arrow from Shrek
Chapter 8wake up and smell the pheromonesShrek's Dinner with the Princess
Chapter 9breathe a wordFiona's Ogre Secret Comes Out
Chapter 10hand in marriageFarquaad Proposes to Fiona
Chapter 11stabbing me in the backForgive You for the Backstab
Chapter 12hold your peaceShrek Crashes the WeddingChapter 1 of 12 · about 31 min to go