‘Shell’ Lacks the Meat It Needs to Be a Full Feminist Meal [TIFF 2024 Review]
Body horror movies are hot right now, and with good reason. Between Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance and Jane Schoenbrun’s I Saw the TV Glow, it feels like we are in a new golden age of the sickening subgenre, this time with women, trans folks, and non-binary babes at the helm. This fact is one of the many reasons why Max Minghella’s Shell, which had its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, feels so behind the times.
Similar to The Substance (which is, essentially, a full sugar version of this tasteless, zero-calorie sludge), Shell treads eternally familiar territory, following an aging actress (Elisabeth Moss as Samantha in this case) who gives in to an untested, too-good-to-be-true beauty hack in an attempt to stay relevant in her industry. But unlike Fargeat’s wonderfully unhinged attack on the sexist “self-care” industry, Shell fails to go further than skin deep.
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There is an utter lack of subtly in Shell and not in a fun way. Actor-turned-director Minghella (Teen Spirit) telegraphs every twist way ahead of time and continues to do so through the utterly clawless (at least in terms of storytelling) climax. The characterization of Samantha is equally one-note, with Jack Stanley’s script repeatedly regurgitating the cat lady stereotypes that have plagued single women narratives for decades. And just wait for the painfully obvious needle drops, including a feel-good montage set to “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves!
On paper, these questionable choices might sound satirical, or even campy. But the way Minghella presents them is hardly self-aware. As a result, the film’s ultimate message (love yourself, flaws and all) comes across as cloying, even insincere. And quite frankly, with sexist beauty standards mutating more and more with each new “innovation” in de-aging technology, we deserve much better.
Ironically, the one thing to admire about Shell is Kate Hudson, who plays wellness magnate Zoe Shannon. Don’t get me wrong: Zoe is absolutely a villain, preying on her peers to further her status. We know, and should absolutely fear, this woman, her sparkly rhetoric, and seemingly “healthy” routines as toxic as the monstrous formula she’s, well, shelling out. But, as she did in Glass Onion, Hudson uses her real-life experience to present the character honestly, yet comedically. If only someone would put her in a Death Becomes Her remake instead!
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Also, a slight delight is Elizabeth Berkley, whose brief cameo is an inspired choice in an otherwise unoriginal film. Sadly, Kaia Gerber is also underused, the supermodel spawn appearing as a shiny new foil to the dowdy and depressed Sam. Yes, the Bottoms star has only been in a few films so far, but she deserves a chance to show us what she’s got outside of just having great genes.
Moss, on the other hand, really phones it in here. It’s a real shame given how far we know she can stretch herself in films like Her Smell and shows such as The Handmaid’s Tale. Speaking of which, it remains chilling to see her continue to make movies about the dangers of cults while refusing to talk about being in one herself.
In the age of Ozempic and TikTok diet culture, I’m glad we’re seeing new movies trying to confront our ever-evolving obsession with perfection. Unfortunately, Shell fails to offer anything we haven’t seen before, relying on familiar faces and tired tactics to try and sell us a faulty product.
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Shell
Summary
A tasteless, zero calorie version of The Substance, Shell has nothing new to say about the ever-evolving beauty industry and how it claws away at women.
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