Marcel, a Concha de Sapatos

What a charming little film.

For a film about a shell it felt incredibly human! It was very relatable to the human experience, it even made me shed a tear. This movie just had no business being this good. It was darling! Just a very sweet lighthearted funny film that touch the soul in a different way! This movie accomplished something emotionally that most "human" movies fail to do! I'm speaking about humans like I'm an alien in this review... I am also a person.

Great stuff. Great look. Great vibes. Great sound.

No yeah really the soundtrack was actually very good! Super good score for some reason.

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is remarkably somber for a film so cute; it is a film about small adorable characters and animated inanimate objects spawned from the idea that (to quote the director) "if an object is neglected long enough, it develops a spirit of its own".

Based on Jenny Slate's and Dean Fleischer Camp's beloved web series about a tiny shell with a big heart and even bigger shoes (the popularity of which is acknowledged by the characters/"interviewees" in this film), it's a stop-motion/live-action mockumentary that is sure to make you cry tears of sadness and even more certain to inspire tears of "MY GOD, THIS IS SO PURE AND PRECIOUS". Something to that effect.

Some of you might worry that the film is merely cutesy (which is different than being genuinely cute). But the picture is actually rather interesting on a technical level.

I'd love to see a featurette on just how much of the stop-motion animation is truly stop-motion, and how they made said animations interact so seamlessly with the live-action footage (which is filmed to make the world that surrounds Marcel seem a large and confusing one indeed). Another noteworthy behind-the-scenes detail -- that might have influenced the themes and tone of the film in some way -- is the fact that, whereas Fleischer-Camp and Slate were married when they created the original web series together, they worked on the movie as exes.

Last but not least: like all great things, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On also contains an appearance by Nathan Fielder. Why are you still here?

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is an absolute joy from start to finish. It's really funny, incredibly moving and extremely deep whilst exploring the need to connect with others and the safety in community as well as the highs and lows of being an internet success.

Jenny Slate is perfect as Marcel, imbuing the character with an innocence and earnesty that would melt the coldest of hearts. Director Dean Fleischer-Camp essentially being co lead is a risky move that thankfully pays off and it's honestly really impressive how genuine his bond with Marcel feels.

Dean's direction is equally impressive with the documentary style construction of the film blending with the stop motion animation as seamlessly as possible. The tone is well handled overall however there's just one scene that really didn't need a joke, even if it was pretty funny.

What would you do, in an Airbnb for you, where you thought you were alone, until a tennis ball did roam; then appears a little shell, puts you under his cute spell, seems he's been left and deserted, though he's charming and assertive; has the place all to himself, alongside Connie and her shelf, there was once a bigger throng, for unknown reasons they've all gone; so you start to record moves, capture chats and he approves, publish them for all to see, where they're gobbled up with glee; before you know it he's a star, people travel from afar, the search begins for family, does he find them - watch the movie.

An endearingly told tale about a shell called Marcel.

That almost says it all--though I admit I was actually fairly invested in the documentary-making bachelor, as well.

I'm not sure what I was expecting heading into a movie like this, but what I got was a lovely, tight story about companionship, loss, and the importance of meaningful connections. It all felt pretty magical, to be honest, and I was in a pretty grumpy mood going in.

Highly recommended.