Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2022) Best Movie Quotes

Starring: Jenny Slate, Isabella Rossellini, Rosa Salazar, Thomas Mann, Lesley Stahl, Dean Fleischer-Camp

OUR RATING: ★★★½

Story:

A24’s live-action animated comedy directed and co-written by Dean Fleischer-Camp. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2022) follows Marcell (Jenny Slate), a one inch tall shell, who lives with his grandmother, Connie (Isabella Rossellini), and their pet lint, Alan. After a documentary filmmaker, Dean (Dean Fleischer-Camp), discovers them, Marcel decides to search for his family.

Our Favorite Quotes:

'My name is Marcel, and I'm partially a shell, as you can see on my body, but I also have shoes, and a face. So, I like that about myself, and I like myself. And I have a lot of other great qualities as well.' Share on X

Best Quotes

Marcel: It’s pretty much common knowledge that it takes at least twenty shells to have a community. That that’s about the minimum that you need to survive, so. I think at first I was thinking we’re not going to make it. But sometimes you just have to disregard those rules and think, “Well, actually, the rule is that I want to be having a good life, and stay alive, and not just survive, but have a good life.

Marcel: There are actually only two of us now. Myself, and my grandmother, Nana Connie. Back when the man and the woman lived here, there were a lot of us. More sounds, and smells, and things to say, because there were more people to talk to.

Dean: I’m making like a little documentary that I might put online.
Marcel: Online?
Dean: Yeah.
Marcel: Eh, you lost me.

'Sometimes, people say that my head is too big for my body. And then I say, “Compared to what?”' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Dean: Where did you get the rope?
Marcel: This? I’ll show you. I come to the bathroom and I get these curly hairs. They’re the strongest, because you have to uncurl it, but then you can see it’s really long and strong. Hey, what are you laughing at? We call them hardy hairs.

Marcel: This is my bread room. It’s a bedroom, but I sleep on a piece of bread.

Marcel: Sometimes, people say that my head is too big for my body. And then I say, “Compared to what?”

Marcel: Sometimes, if I don’t have a way to itch my itch, the only thing I can do is I just stand there. I just let it get me, and I just have to scream it out.

'The rule is that I want to be having a good life, and stay alive, and not just survive, but have a good life.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: You miss a hundred percent of the shots you don’t take. That’s a quote. I didn’t make that up.

Marcel: What is cleaning the house if all she does is move things around, and disturb the entire environment?

Marcel: I got to go check on Nana Connie if this lady’s going to be running the vacuum.

Connie: You’re making what?
Dean: A documentary.
Marcel: Oh, it’s like a movie, but nobody has any lines, and nobody even knows what it is while they’re making it? No?
Dean: That’s sort of a way to put it, yeah.

Marcel: [referring to Connie] She’s always been a pretty tough cookie. Everything has a function with her. There’s no one button that’s there for decoration. You know what I mean? She’s just like a backhoe. But I will say you can really see her tender side when she’s working with the bugs.

'You miss a hundred percent of the shots you don't take.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: [referring to the worm] His whole body looks like his pants are off.

Marcel: [referring to Connie] It reminds me of Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act, how she helps them to do graffiti in a meaningful way or something.

Marcel: [referring to Connide] She has lost a small piece of a very large puzzle.

Marcel: You know, my cousin fell asleep in a pocket, and that’s why I don’t like the saying, “Everything comes out in the wash,” because sometimes it doesn’t. Or sometimes it does, and they’re just like a completely different person. Because after that, my cousin would just sit by the window and wait for fire trucks to go by.

Marcel: Guess what I use to tie my skis to my car.
Dean: What?
Marcel: A hair.

'You know, my cousin fell asleep in a pocket, and that's why I don't like the saying, “Everything comes out in the wash,” because sometimes it doesn't. Or sometimes it does, and they're just like a completely different person.' Share on X

Marcel: Guess what my skis are.
Dean: What?
Marcel: Toe nails from a man.

Dean: What do you do when you get bored?
Marcel: I move around.

Marcel: It’s always what they say on the days when you have a really keen sense of being lost, or losing something, that it often feels like the sun shines the brightest. And then the next day, there was a really sunny day with a good breeze. And I just remember thinking, “If I was somebody else, I would really be enjoying this.”

'Guess why I smile a lot.' - Marcel, 'Why?' - Dean, 'Because it's worth it.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: Goodbye, Mrs. Kim. The time that you ate a pepper flake, and it made you fly into the wall was one of the funniest yet most serious accidents any of us ever witnessed, and you bore it with great grace and bravery.

Marcel: Guess why I smile a lot.
Dean: Why?
Marcel: Because it’s worth it.

Marcel: There’s all these people, and we’re all looking at the same thing, and we’re all doing the same thing. It’s beautiful. And it feels like, I don’t even know how to describe it. It feels like something. It’s really lovely.

Marcel: The other part of it is I think I find my mind wandering a bit just thinking, what would my family think, and really noticing that they’re not here to share it with me.

Marcel: There must be so many others like me. It’s impossible that there wouldn’t be, and not just my family. They’re out there. Somewhere out there.

'It's always what they say on the days when you have a really keen sense of being lost, or losing something, that it often feels like the sun shines the brightest.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: [as the dog is barking] Every time I do this, that dog goes totally crazy. He sees something truly elegant in the sky, and this is his reaction? What a sad type of idiot.

Marcel: Hi, everybody. It’s Marcel from before, and I’m recording this video because I’m looking for my family.

'I don't want to lose everything in the hope of something that's already gone.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: [referring to the shaded drawings of shells] This is what they look like. Right here, and here, and here. I made this just to give you a sense of who to be on the lookout for.

Marcel: You know, Dean, have you ever thought that your life might be a bit less lonely, and a bit more integrated, if you took the time to connect with somebody, and not just make videos about them?

Marcel: And lastly, this picture here shows the car that Mark drove away in. It is a teal Mishibibi.
Dean: Mitsubishi.
Marcel: Mitsi-ibitsy.

'Sometimes it's easiest to rest when you go off by yourself, and you can still hear the noise of the party, and you feel safe knowing that so many people are around that you can have a rest.' - (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: What a weird thing to try to test to see if someone else is into. Like, of course I’m into peace. No, sorry, I’m a real war person. No, war actually. I sign all my personal letters, “War. Let the battle begin. Marcel.”

Dean: [referring to the nail] What’s that for?
Marcel: It’s just in case we get in a fight.
Dean: We’re not going to get in any fights.
Marcel: You said it was dangerous out there.
Dean: It’s dangerous in a different way, so.
Marcel: And you know what else? I should probably bring this match.

Marcel: [to Dean] How many times a day do you throw up in your car?

'I'm not just one separate piece rattling around in this place, but that I'm part of a whole. And I truly enjoy the sound of myself connected to everything.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: [to Dean] Look, you got a lot of smoocheroonies in your future. I can see it now.

Marcel: [referring to his family] There’s so many places that they could be. Do you think it’s impossible?
Dean: I don’t think it’s impossible.

'She has that thing that's like when you're young, you have no fear, because you haven't injured yourself yet, and you don't even know what risk is.' - Marcel (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) Share on X

Marcel: [referring to the dog] He has got to go. I cannot have him here with Connie like this. It’s not that I don’t like Arthur. Stop, Dean. I’m not kidding.
Connie: [to the dog] Stop that.
Marcel: No! Oh, my God! No! No. Off!

See more Marcel the Shell with Shoes On Quotes

Marcel: Do you always need to be filming?
Dean: No.

Marcel: When I say “jam”, you say “Nan”. Jam.

Marcel: [referring to Connie] She’s not from here. She’s from the garage. That’s why she has the accent. She traveled here by coat pocket when she was really little.

Marcel: [referring to Connie] At this point, the good days are harder to come by with her. And then the bad days are just actually astounding. I’m trying not to treat her any differently, but it’s keeping me on my toes, I’ll tell you that.

Marcel: This is how I live. We just had to work so hard just to do this, just to find new ways of doing things and learning how to survive on our own. And I guess it’s, I don’t want to end up with less than what I have.

Marcel: You know, we’re just flying blind. I don’t even know what we’re supposed to be making here. What is this even a picture of?

Connie: [referring to Marcel] I think he’s afraid of change. Scary. Especially after what we went through. But life’s not going to go on unless if you don’t. If you don’t open up, right? Do you know that, Dean?

Connie: [referring to Marcel] I want him to dive in life, you know? I’m not going to be here forever.

Dean: What kind of sports do you watch?
Connie: They like running after balls, or squash them.
Marcel: Kicking.
Connie: Put them over like a net sometimes, they do that. But the net is a hole, so it comes right out.
Marcel: Right, so it’s just like, why do you put it back in?

Connie: [referring to his ex-wife] Who decided to leave? You or her?
Dean: It was pretty mutual.
Connie: You don’t fool me. It’s never mutual.

Connie: Are you heartbroken, Dean? He’s laughing, so maybe he’s not so heartbroken.

Connie: [referring to Marcel] He was acting calm, and collected, and I knew he was like the front, Mr. Serious Face, Mr. Cucumber, but inside, butterflies.

Marcel: There’s definitely a storm rolling in. I can feel it. I can feel it because my shell feels tight.

Connie: It’s a big wide world.
Marcel: I don’t want to lose everything in the hope of something that’s already gone.
Connie: You break my heart if you don’t.

Connie: Let’s forget about being afraid. Is Lesley afraid?
Marcel: No. Lesley is fearless.
Connie: It may be good, it may be not, but just take the adventure. Don’t use me as an excuse not to live. Hmm?
Marcel: But what if everything changes again?
Connie: Marcello, oh.
Marcel: Yeah.
Connie: It will.

Marcel: Woh. Those gentlemen were not wearing bee-odorant.

Connie: What are you doing to him?
Makeup Artist: Now, I’m just sort of giving Marcel a little bit of bronzer just to kind of warm up.

Makeup Artist: Do you want to see what you look like?
Marcel: Oh, my God.
Makeup Artist: Don’t you look rested?
Marcel: Yeah, I look like I like only drink olive oil.

Marcel: Nana, make the noise.
Connie: Tik-tik-tik-tik-tik-tik-tik-tik-tik-tik-tik…
Marcel: All these stories and more on 60 Minutes.

Connie: This book I had for many, many years. But I had not noticed this part that I would like to read you. “The trees are coming into leaf, like something almost being said. The recent buds relax and spread. Their greenness is a kind of grief. Is it that they are born again and we grow old? No, they die too. Their yearly trick of looking new is written down in rings of grain. Yet still the unresting castles thresh in full-grown thickness every May. Last year is dead, they seem to say. Begin afresh, afresh, afresh.”

Marcel: [referring to Connie] Sometimes she goes to the toilet and sits on the rim.

Marcel: [after Connie’s death] Have you ever done that before, like when there’s a party in your house? Sometimes it’s easiest to rest when you go off by yourself, and you can still hear the noise of the party, and you feel safe knowing that so many people are around that you can have a rest.

Marcel: [referring to Connie] She was exactly what you would want a grandmother to be. She had a vibrant past, and a colorful personality, and she didn’t get sanded down by life.

Marcel: Do you like sitting halfway on a chair?

Lesley Stahl: Good things come in small packages, an old idea, but one you’ll see tonight in a new light. In the only interview he’s given since becoming an Internet phenom, Marcel the Shell shares his unique perspective on what we take for granted. He adds new meanings to the simplest of ideas. Marcel, a one inch-tall shell, reminds us of the true value of community, the transformative power of friendship, and the most ingenious use for a tennis ball.

Lesley Stahl: For years, Marcel and his grandmother Connie shared this old house with their pet lint, Alan, and an ever-changing array of human guests. But all that changed when an amateur filmmaker moved in.

Lesley Stahl: Marcel, how long has it been since you’ve seen your family?
Marcel: Well, I don’t do the clock the way that you guys do the clock. But I think I’m watching the changes in the trees, and the flowers that have bloomed, and the blossoms that have fallen. The buds that have come and bloomed again. So I couldn’t tell you, but the space in my heart gets bigger and louder every day.
Lesley Stahl: Dean, do you know how long?
Dean: That’s two years.
Lesley Stahl: Two years?
Dean: Yeah.
Marcel: Oh, that’s nice to know.

Marcel: And he had just like the same kind of man face, like two eyes, that kind of thing. A mouth and all the teeth.

Lesley Stahl: [as Marcel finally finds his family] What followed was something we rarely see. A family reuniting.

Marcel: She is really good, especially for such a little one. But you know what it is? She has that thing that’s like when you’re young, you have no fear, because you haven’t injured yourself yet, and you don’t even know what risk is. You just zoom around all the time.

Marcel: It is different now after living alone for so long. I find that sometimes being in a big group is, can be overwhelming to me.

Marcel: I found myself coming down here more and more. Such a lovely smell from the dryer sheets. And I like it because there’s a window that is always opened a little crack there. I would stand there, and sometimes I’d tell her things, ask for advice, or just let sounds come out of my mouth. And one day, I was just sitting, and the wind blew in, and it blew just over the top of my head in such a way. And the wind blew over, and it made a beautiful whistling sound.

Marcel: It felt just like her to lead me to a place where I would experience something new and special. It connected me how I felt like to everything, because if I wasn’t there, the sound never would exist. And I felt like everything was in pieces, and then I stood there, and suddenly, we were one large instrument.

Marcel: I like to go there a lot because it reminds me that I’m not just one separate piece rattling around in this place, but that I’m part of a whole. And I truly enjoy the sound of myself connected to everything.

Dean: [mid-credits lines, referring to the flowers] I wanted to make the place nice. A friend was coming over.
Marcel: Ah, a friend.
Dean: Yes, I had a friend.
Marcel: What kind of a friend?
Dean: She is a girl.
Marcel: Really?
Dean: Would you like to see the rest of the apartment?
Marcel: Would you like to change the subject? Yes, I want to see it.

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