It's entirely possible that I have a soft spot in my heart for diminutive megalomaniacs who may or may not be compensating for something. But you have to feel a little bit for the petite strongman of Duloc. He's trying to run a kingdom, for crying out loud. And he's trying to do it in a world populated with dragons, ogres, talking donkeys, witches, and all manner of magical beasties. That can't be easy.
Yeah, he's intolerant. Yeah, he's shallow. Yeah, his name is essentially Fuckwad. But prick him, does he not bleed? Wrong him, shall he not revenge? He might be the villain to Shrek's bawdy heroism, but Farquaad is the more complex of the two, the more fascinating. And as much as I like Mike Myers, John Lithgow's casually evil, emotionally overwrought performance is brilliant.