MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON -Review

Here’s a new film that proves that the unlikeliest of movie heroes can emerge from the most unexpected places. And this hero is really unlike the action icons who’ve been dominating the multiplex for the last couple of months. He has no spacecraft like LIGHTYEAR, nor a fighter jet like “Maverick” or even a cape like Doc Strange and Thor. He does have…a shell. Yes, while many films have been taken from books, TV shows, and comic books, this one sprung from the worldwide web. Actually, it’s an extension of three online short films that started delighting viewers since 2010. Oh, and short is the word, as this fella’ has to navigate in our everyday world, which just towers over him. But somehow there’s a big, big following for MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON. And it just might grow larger, while he remains “teeny-tiny”.

As the movie opens, aspiring filmmaker Dean (Dean Fleischer-Camp) discovers that his home has a new occupant (well, former home as he’s crashing at the place he used to share with his wife, which is now an online rental spot): Marcel (voice of Jenny Slate), a one-inch talking mollusk in a shell with one bulging eye, a tiny mouth (very chatty) and a pair of pink shoes. Oh, actually two occupants as Marcel’s grandmother Connie (Isabella Rossellini) is also there in a separate tiny house with a garden she slaves over. Dean decides to film interviews with the verbose Marcel and soon learns of his missing family, who were probably taken away by the house’s previous owners after a huge argument. When Dean posts the videos online, he and Marcel (and the house) become internet superstars. But nobody’s stepping forward to provide info on Marcel’s missing kin. After a fruitless search in Dean’s car, he and Marcel return to find that Connie has injured herself and is mentally “addled”. As Marcel cares for her, Dean is stunned to get a call from TV’s “60 Minutes” who want to do a “segment” on the duo, highlighting Marcel’s quest. He’s against it, fearing that the crew could harm Connie. Ah, but she’s eager to meet their “idol” Leslie Stahl. Will this interview happen? And could it lead to that long overdue family reunion?

Not to sound condescending, but wow what a little charmer. After a Summer of bombastic “in-your-face” flicks, the gentle pace and understatement of this story really soothe the moviegoers’ battered senses. Much of the film’s strength comes from the superb vocal performances of Slate and Rossellini. Ms. Slate has a hesitant, measured line delivery as though Marcel is really thinking through the question before answering in that soft raspy almost-squeak that draws us in. And though it’s closer to her real speaking voice, Ms. Rossellini just exudes a whimsical warmth as her Connie reflects on her garden and her affection for her grandson. And though he’s not delivering the jokes Fleischer-Camp is an excellent “straight man” setting up Marcel’s quips with the same skill as Carl Reiner did with Mel Brooks. Luckily the behind the camera craftspeople really enhance the reality in this whimsical fable. The cinematography from Eric Adkins and Biana Cline somehow transforms the modest suburban house into a magical realm of adventure and danger. This helps to make the melding of live settings and stop-motion animation near seamless. Oh, the magicians making Marcel and pals move are the Chiodo Brothers whose film artistry goes back over 40 years, in TV and features (hard to believe they gave us those KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE). All those talents are in service of an engaging screenplay created by Slate, Fleischer-Camp, Nick Paley, and Elisabeth Holm. Sure it’s “family friendly” although adults may be moved more than the tykes by their observations on loneliness, family, and mortality. Who knew that such pearls of wisdom would be shared by a one-inch wonder like MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON. So good big-hearted flicks can start small, and even online.

3.5 Out of 4

MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON is now playing in select theatres and opens at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinemas in St. Louis on Friday, July 22, 2022