Shell

Without having heard about this 2024 movie titled "Shell", as I stumbled upon it by random chance here in 2025, of course I opted to give the movie a fair chance.

Writer Jack Stanley put together a pretty straightforward script. It wasn't exactly an outstanding narrative, I have to admit that, but it proved entertaining enough for what it was. There are far more interesting and entertaining body horror movies out there. The story in the movie felt really superficial and incomplete, it was as if it was actually lacking a key ingredient and had a 'what's the point of this?' feel to it.

The movie does have some familiar faces on the cast list, with the likes of Kate Hudson, Elizabeth Berkley, Kaia Gerber, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Peri Gilpin, Peter MacNicol and Elisabeth Moss. The acting performances in the movie are good.

The effects in the movie were good, and certainly helped to make the movie all the more watchable.

Watchable for what it was, but hardly an outstanding movie in the body horror subgenre of horror movies. And it is not a movie that warrants more than a single viewing.

My rating of director Max Minghella's 2024 movie "Shell" lands on a generous five out of ten stars.

The costumes, lighting, writing, everything is so good in the first like 75% of the movie. But towards the end, the twist is revealed and I completely checked out. Not only because I had guessed it long before but the visual effects, and plot just kinda fall apart at the end. It was giving camp where the rest of the movie was a... thriller? Overall, the acting was great.

Elizabeth Moss, whom I don't usually watch her work does a wonderful job here. She is a great actor. Her best friend and her doctor have good performances, but the rest of the actors don't really deliver much.

The first hour has potential, then it just spirals to oblivion. It is another take on body horror that plays like a thriller more than a horror. Once it turns into a horror, it just does not hold its weight against other similar movies. It becomes self-indulgent and corny in every way.

I looked through here to check if it is really comedy. Nothing funny about this movie and sort of a horror movie. And that was it was here comedy-horror, and I still don't find nothing funny. Probably some sort of dark comedy. Anyway, I only have 18 minutes left with the movie while I am writing this review.

I went into watching this... excited to see it. And I liked it, until about 30 mins to the end. It was a little... okay - a lot OUT THERE! Then I didn't like it.

I was hopeful with the cast and with the proposed storyline before seeing it, as well as not reading reviews.

I came out of watching.... Wishing for my time back.