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With an estimated global market size approaching $2,000 billion, the beauty and wellness industry is one of the biggest and most profitable in the world. So when it comes to your average consumer, it should come as no surprise that most people will try almost anything if it can help them achieve their ideal outward appearance. Whether it's losing weight, having porcelain-smooth skin or a full head of hair, you can bet there's at least a dozen products out there claiming to be capable of granting your wish. But what if there was a beauty treatment so dramatically effective that it could revolutionize not just the industry, but the world — were it not for its one very horrible side effect? That's the premise behind Shell, director Max Minghella's followup to his 2018 directorial debut, Teen Spirit, in which a down-on-her-luck actress named Samantha Lake (Elisabeth Moss) finds herself on the receiving end of just such a treatment. The brainchild of Shell CEO and co-founder Zoe Shannon (Kate Hudson), it's a groundbreaking scientific discovery that allows humans to reverse the effects of aging, all thanks to genetically modified shellfish enzymes that are injected directly into the body. However, when two of the company's clients, veteran actress Jenna Jennaro (Elizabeth Berkley) and Hollywood newcomer Chloe Benson (Kaia Gerber), mysteriously go missing, it raises concerns about the safety of the procedure — concerns Zoe will do everything in her power to hide from both the authorities and the mainstream media. Needless to say, it's an unpredictable situation, especially for Samantha, who thought the treatment could be a boon for her tanking acting career, but instead winds up worrying for her life. But is there hope for her yet in the form of brilliant Shell scientist Dr. Hubert (Arian Moayed), who may be the only person who knows how to stop the treatment's terrifying side effects? Or is Samantha doomed to suffer the same fate as Jenna and Chloe — or perhaps even one far worse? A love letter to the B-movies of the '80s and '90s, the resulting tale of body horror will give anyone considering a medical procedure purely for the sake of vanity a reason to think twice. Still, for all its inspired cheesiness, retro-futuristic production design, and gleeful gore, there's so much more that Shell could have been. Make no mistake, genre fans will get a kick out of the film's hilariously out-there climax, which features one of the most ridiculous reveals this side of Kevin Smith's Tusk. For those in the mood for a horror comedy whose scares run more than just skin-deep, however, you might want to look shell-swhere. |
Shell screens under the Special Presentations programme at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Its runtime is 1 hr. 40 min.
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