Critical popcorn

The first animated film from A24, Marcel The Shell With Shoes On is a beautifully made, thoughtful faux documentary, and an oddly appropriate addition to the production company’s catalogue, despite the sweet-natured tone.

Marcel (Jenny Slate) is an adorable, tiny shell who lives with his grandmother, Nana Connie (Isabella Rosellini) in a rental property after the rest of their family went missing. When director Dean Fleischer Camp stays in the house, he discovers the two shells, and becomes fascinated by the way they live. Inspired to film them going about their day, making short films and uploading them to YouTube. Soon Marcel becomes a viral sensation, and while he is encouraged by Connie to embrace his newfound fame, and tempted to appear on their beloved 60 Minutes to locate his missing family, his grandmothers declining health leads to him re-evaluating his priorities.

As someone with no knowledge of the three short films that preceded this feature, I was a little worried that I would feel like I was coming in halfway through Marcel’s story, or like I’d missed the start of the film. It’s true that the film does have the feel of a “film of a TV series” but once the narrative overcomes this and gets its hooks into you, it becomes a genuinely compelling, if lightweight narrative.

The blurred line between reality and fiction is weirdly similar to Aardman’s Creature Comforts – incisive ideas cloaked in banal observations, spoken by odd little creatures. The animation is nicely judged and subtle – the mixture of stop-motion and live action is seamless, and the set design is dainty and intricate without being showy, with simple movements belying the technical genius at work. The whole film has a patient, meditative tone, allowing Marcel time to expound on his thoughts about life, family and his newfound celebrity.

This often languorous pacing does however make what should be a breezy 90 minutes into a sometimes soporific experience. The seemingly aimless narrative is both a virtue and a flaw – it tries the patience for a while, but once the (admittedly sparse) plot is given a bit more direction it really draws you in. Particularly when it comes to the characterisation of Marcel and Connie.

The adorable design of Marcel himself recalls Wall-E in its simplicity. Jenny Slate’s softly spoken vocal performance makes the character even more innocent, expressing wonder at the world around her. Slate fills the quieter moments with a charm and innocence that should be more schmaltzy that it is. It’s true that she does veer close to being too cutesy, too “aw shucks” but for the most part the characterisation is judged perfectly. There is something approaching profundity in Marcel’s sheer awe when confronted with the sheer scale of the city in which he lives. Slate’s underplayed delivery of “I had no idea” is really, genuinely touching. In just four words she sums up the viewpoint of someone whose existence has been restricted to the same four walls for his entire life, and whose entire worldview has just been upended.

I do wish that the film maybe hadn’t taken the form of a documentary. I feel like it loses something in its attempts to ground the film in reality. In particular, the attempts to flesh out Camp as a character fall flat, and feels like padding, like they didn’t have quite enough story to fill out the runtime so constructed a bit of private life for the guy behind the camera.

Isabella Rossellini’s vocal performance is also beautifully nuanced. She imbues Connie with a wisdom and intelligence that makes her subtle decline into dementia especially sad. Her slight confusion, combined with her overwhelming, unqualified love for her grandson is conveyed subtly and realistically. There’s a plot development that is achingly apparent to the audience but which blindsides the guileless Marcel, played to perfection by Rossellini. She fills the simply designed shell with nuance and gravitas, which leads to one of the most moving scenes of the year. Connie reciting Philip Larkin’s The Trees is a beautifully affecting moment, and it’s entirely due to her delivery, which for a moment makes you forget that it’s an animated shell reading a poem.

A slight yet often profoundly lyrical meditation on grief, selflessness, and finding your place in the world, Marcel The Shell With Shoes On takes its high concept premise and grounds it by framing relatable, universal fears through the lens of a lovable, truly innocent protagonist. It’s a truly heartwarming, poignant film, and one that stays with you long after it has ended.

Special Features

It’s a real missed opportunity that this Blu-Ray release doesn’t contain the YouTube shorts that made Marcel famous, and frankly a baffling decision, especially when they are so important to the backstory of the film itself. Instead all that accompanies the film is a trailer.

Marcel The Shell With Shoes On is out now: https://amzn.to/3NstdkZ