SHREK THE THIRD — ** — Animated feature starring the voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy and others; rated PG (vulgarity, violence, brief drugs).

Whoever coined the phrase "the third time is the charm" clearly wasn't referring to "Shrek the Third."

Like the first two films in the highly successful animated franchise, this somewhat lowbrow fantasy spoof simply repeats the same jokes — once, twice, three times ... or more.

As a result of that, both the movie and the series now feel a little tired and uninspired. And as with the first two "Shreks," there's a surprising amount of gross-out humor here, as well as some sexually suggestive material that's inappropriate for a PG-rated kids film.

The big plot dilemma this time has to do with the leadership of the kingdom of Far Far Away. King Harold, aka the Frog Prince (voiced by John Cleese), has just passed away, which has left things in the somewhat incapable hands of his son-in-law, the ogre Shrek (Mike Myers).

However, he would rather return to his swamp with his bride, Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz), than be a king. But to do that, he'll need to find the next person in line to the throne.

Fortunately, Fiona has a long-lost cousin named Artie (Justin Timberlake) who might fit the bill. So Shrek, Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) head off on a quest to find the Once and Future King.

Meanwhile, Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) has returned and is trying to take over the leaderless kingdom. So it's up to the newly pregnant Fiona to hold off Charming and his evil minions until Shrek returns.

Like the third "Spider-Man" film, this one keeps introducing too many new characters (with comic actors Eric Idle, Seth Rogen, John Krasinski and others providing voices).

The most promising bit here is Fiona's "princess posse," which includes Snow White (Amy Poehler), Sleeping Beauty (Cheri Oteri), Rapunzel (Maya Rudolph) and Cinderella (Amy Sedaris).

Unfortunately, the film is so overcrowded that here's not enough for those characters — or any of the others — to do much. Save Myers' Shrek, of course — probably the most one-note of this bunch.

"Shrek the Third" is rated PG for crude digestive humor (including a series of vomiting and flatulence gags), as well as some sexually suggestive material, animated violence and mayhem (mostly slapstick), and a mild drug joke. Running time: 93 minutes.

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E-mail: jeff@desnews.com