---
title: "Shell: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/shell/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/shell"
critics_score: 68
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Shell (2013): what the critics said

Critics' score 68 from 7 reviews: 3 positive, 4 mixed, 0 negative.

The reviews lean towards qualified approval of Shell, with praise clustering around its remote Highland setting and the close connection between landscape and character. Critics repeatedly admire the visual composition and the way the scenery sharpens the portrait of cramped lives and frustrated desire. Chloe Pirrie’s performance draws particular praise, while several reviews find sensitivity, intelligence and promise in the film’s sparse approach and willingness to take risks.

Reservations centre on pace and the final act. Several critics find the move towards melodrama abrupt or at odds with the patient storytelling that precedes it. The Evening Standard is more troubled by the slowness, suggesting that the drama sometimes all but stops. Enthusiasm varies considerably, though none of the seven assessments is negative: HeyUGuys offers the strongest endorsement, praising Pirrie and the bold storytelling while still finding the conclusion weakened by its abruptness.

## Empire — Guy Lodge

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 8 March 2013. 

Lodge finds the film a moving character study that avoids familiar British miserabilism with sly humour and visual poetry. He especially praises the startling cinematography, which reveals an alien beauty in the remote Highlands.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/shell-review/)

## The Guardian — Xan Brooks

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 14 March 2013. 

Brooks finds the film haunting and spellbinding, though it slips into melodrama at the end. He praises its sharp portrait of cramped lives and desire in the Scottish Highlands.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/mar/14/shell-review1)

## Screen Daily — Fionnuala Halligan

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2012. Festival review. 

The accessible page does not reveal Halligan’s verdict. It also hides any specific praise or complaint from the review.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/-shell/5047043.article)

## Time Out — Cath Clarke

Rating 3/5. 12 March 2013. 

The review presents Scott Graham’s debut as promising. It singles out its dark-hearted, risk-taking qualities, likening them to Andrea Arnold’s films.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/shell)

## Total Film — Tom Dawson

Rating 3/5. 1 March 2013. 

Dawson finds the film brooding and artfully composed, but says its melodramatic resolution jars with its patient, sparse approach. He praises how closely the British film entwines place and character.

[Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/shell-review/)

## Evening Standard — The Standard

Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 15 March 2013. 

The critic finds the film sensitive and intelligent, but so slow-burning that it sometimes seems to stop. They praise Chloe Pirrie’s performance and the beautiful scenery.

[Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/shell-film-review-8536120.html)

## HeyUGuys — Ben Mortimer

Rating 4.5/5. 17 October 2012. Festival review. 

The critic calls the film excellent overall, though its abrupt final act weakens the conclusion. They praise the bold storytelling choices and especially Chloe Pirrie’s performance.

[Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/lff-2012-shell-review/)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/shell.md