Shell

A British drama; A story about a girl who works at a remote gas station on the West coast of Scotland with her father. Their physical isolation and reliance on each other trigger confusing emotions. This bleak, haunting, coming-of-age drama has a pacing perfectly poised for mystery, drama and tension. The film has a minimalist feel and while the story is slow burning it never loses momentum. The editing has occasional slackness but the direction is first rate and it helped produce some good performances and a crackling atmosphere.

I came across this film via MyFlixer. I'm always attracted to the alternatives of life. This seemed like a indie cinema creation. The film itself was dark, broody and disturbing. It gave me some hope in the days of loneliness and covid 24/7 brainwashing. I liked the main character. She is stuck in her Dad's vortex of a petrol station. The blokes that patronise the petrol station, do so out of a fancy for her. The electricity between her and her old man is weird and desperate at the same time. There's not much conversation here, it's all said in the lack of conversation. A daughter imprisoned by her epileptic patriarch. A touchy and difficult subject matter that she manages to escape after the main event. I liked it, it had all the darkness and desolation of any good British Film. It's worth your time, but don't expect much joviality.

A lonely existence in an isolated spot, looking after an introverted epileptic father.

In spite of the minimalistic tone both in terms of story, scenery and characters a good job has been done in terms of narrating the story of a father and a daughter in this seemingly isolated existence. What would have probably been intolerable for most, these two souls do not seem to mind, nor looking for a change in their situation. They have a close bond that surpasses everything and ties them together and to that place.

The raggedly beautiful backdrop of the windy Scottish Highlands adds a pleasant variance to the ambiance of this story.

A great thing about "Shell" is that the girl in the epicentre despite the remoteness in which she leaves she is popular among clients, some of whom openly express their feelings but it does not change her nor makes her full of herself. She always remains the girl at the gas station.

A let down is the prevailing sense of misery that seems to be the norm in most of modern British cinema.

Despite its contained nature, this is a careful and well exposed character study.

I recorded this not knowing what it was about, then set down to watch it 3 months later. As the movie progressed, clearly slower than most action movies, my curiosity and expectation turned into a growing sense of awkwardness as the scenes unfolded. A young woman unaware of - or grappling with her own sexuality becomes the focus of male urges in forbidden, fleeting or equally desperate desires. The location of desolate isolation intensifies the storyline of her yearning to break free from her roadside, family-tied prison-without-walls young life, and the pace becomes irrelevant or perhaps magnetizing. Genuine tension fills the air with each customer visit with growing concern of the outcome. This movie is a triumph in awkwardness. Well done Director.

I had not heard of this film before but watched it last night and found that although it was on late, I could not take my eyes off the screen. The film is slow moving, but the acting draws you in - it is not an action thriller,so don't expect much dialogue or excitement. The characters move around each other with ease and there is a pathos and understanding between the father and daughter where you root for them to find some happiness in their dreary, bleak lives, even if it is with each other. Taboo subject, touched on with delicacy and great acting. It is almost like a French film where the words are few, the acting looks easy as if they are not acting, but the result is mesmerising and very watchable for the audience. You do feel for the couple and for their circumstances, but looking around the countryside, you can see that it reflects their empty lives.