Distributed by the uber-hip A24, Marcel the Shell With Shoes On is that rarest of cinematic curios — the arthouse family film.
It’s a feature-length continuation of the short films director Dean Fleischer-Camp and actor/ex-wife Jenny Slate dropped on YouTube years ago — brief clips of stop-motion whimsy in which an off-screen filmmaker interviews the titular, talking, one-eyed, tiny seashell (voiced by Slate), rocking an also-small pair of shoes. Millions of views (as well as a book series) later, Marcel’s story has now moved to the big screen.
It’s a full-fledged story this time, rather than just Slate ad-libbing goofy lines as Fleischer-Camp shoots Marcel in cute places. Fleischer-Camp frames the story in a mockumentary format, following Marcel around the Airbnb he calls home. (Fleischer-Camp’s cagey filmmaker is crashing there after a bad breakup.) Marcel used to have a whole community of shells at this location, but they all disappeared after the house’s previous owners broke up and moved on. (The only shelled inhabitants here are Marcel and his aging grandmother, voiced by a game Isabella Rossellini.)
As crazy as it sounds, Marcel may remind you, in a way, of the Fast & Furious franchise. Just like those big-budget demolition derbies, this movie has a lead character who preaches the importance of family. (That said, Marcel is a more clever, insightful character than Vin Diesel’s muscle-headed Dom Toretto.) Fleischer-Camp and Slate, along with screenwriters Nick Paley and Elisabeth Holm — the latter of whom produced and came up with the story for Obvious Child, the 2014 abortion rom-com starring Slate — gives its inch-high protagonist an understated hero’s journey. He comes out of his shell — my apologies for that one — in order to find his peoples.
Although the story dives into meta territory as clips of Marcel go viral, Fleischer-Camp and Slate really press the message that living online isn’t really living at all. As the introverted shell ventures outdoors for his mission, even going on an eye-opening road trip with his filmmaking partner-in-crime, the filmmakers make the case that the actual universe — with its endless possibilities and individuals — beats the metaverse any day of the week.
Adorable and almost relentlessly heartwarming, Marcel the Shell With Shoes On is some thoughtful all-ages fare that’ll win over the kids and their parents. I wouldn’t be surprised if Pixar comes calling for Fleischer-Camp and Slate’s services in the future.
