I have to agree about the lack of chemistry and the lethargy of Patrick Dempsey. Plus, there were definitely some plot holes and inconsistencies. (The main one for me was how Timothy Spall could have adjusted so rapidly to New York that he was able to masquerade as a waiter, cart owner, etc. Either people from that universe could function in the new environment or they couldn't...) However, we overall enjoyed this and it was the very incongruity of creepy cockroaches scrubbing a tub that made the scene amusing. The parts where it winked at fairy-tale conventions worked for me, and I thought the winking was sweeter and less in-your-face than SHREK, much as I liked SHREK.