#HarryPotterAss
But man oh man, is this so much more than Daniel Radcliffe farting (I mean, don't get me wrong, it is still DEFINITELY about that as well). This is a film drenched with imagination and, most surprisingly, a tender heart which shines through every fart and raccoon decapitation...
Much like my favorite films of all time (for example, Synecdoche, New York), this astonishing debut from the co-directing wunderkinds "Daniels" (Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan) ends up being about EVERYTHING (what it means to be alive; the purpose of life; the genius of the Jurassic Park soundtrack) and I can only assume, given the title, their subsequent movie, the much heralded and discussed Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022), which I'll be reviewing Friday, is about this too? I can't wait to find out. All of the movies should be about this (this = EVERYTHING). I honestly don't know why you'd want to do it a different way. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
The setup for Swiss Army Man is as preposterous as its title is clunky. But, as we learn from one of the picture's myriad lessons, the innate fear humans have that they will be perceived as weird or 'not normal' is something all of us should be constantly fighting against. The message might seem hippy-dippy but it's true: what is it exactly which we gain through conformity? What's the R.O.I. on that vs. being your own weird self? The film excels, and doesn't fall trap to the expectations of that premise, because it doesn't really offer a clear answer. Paul Dano is in handcuffs in the end, and for what? The crime of being lonely and strange? This is a cruel world and seemingly only animated cadavers with magical powers have the ability to truly escape it. But even that has a built-in excuse: they're already dead.
The film is told from the perspective of Dano, who plays a down-on-his-luck, approaching middle-age man named Hank who's found himself on a deserted island. With his options, resources and resolve drained, he's about to commit suicide. Until he notices a body washed up on the shore. This, we learn, is Manny, played by Daniel Radcliffe. Slowly, as Manny learns to talk and eventually walk, various superpowers via the strangeness of his dead body are discovered, aiding these two travelers in their voyage through the wilderness and — really — a tutorial for being alive. He has the aforementioned super-farts, the ability to convert rainwater into drinking water by tapping on his belly, an erection-compass, he can be used as a gun (see above), and more. For the vast majority of the film, it's just these two. The whole thing hinges on their performances and they certainly deliver. Radcliffe especially shines in what will likely be the weirdest role he ever encounters and I'm pretty sure he rode naked on horseback for a play or something. Dano is reliably great too, playing an outcast loser, a character he was born to play and play perfectly.
But even if these portrayals had been total duds, the movie wouldn't have been all lost. Because the ingenuity and creativity and skill on display by Daniels is simply uncanny for first-time (feature) filmmakers. Shit, for ANY filmmakers. And equal to their technical abilities behind the camera is their writing. The script is fresh and obtuse and constantly surprising. And the real underdog element in this film is its ingenious soundtrack, scored by two members of the indie band, Manchester Orchestra: Andy Hull and Robert McDowell. Incorporating vocal arrangements sung by Dano and Radcliffe themselves, the music weaves in and out of the humming and mindless singing you'd imagine one would do if they were lost in the wilderness with a talking corpse. I can't recall a better use of diegetic sound and to even call it that seems like a slight; this was like breaking the fourth of wall but for audio. It literally gave me chills, like this partial a cappella cover of one hit wonder cheeseball classic "Cotton Eye Joe" merging with Jurassic Park's main theme...
I'm sure this clip without any further context is weird lol (and I love that)
As I mentioned earlier, there are so many themes and different angles of unpacking what this film means and is trying to say. I think you could write a 10,000-word essay on the topic. But after just this initial viewing, I think I'd like to sit with them some more. This is the type of film that, if it's gonna grab hold of you, it does so in the first few minutes. You're onboard for the ride, wherever it may go. My advice is simply: don't think. take the ride.
And I'll admit: the wheels come off towards the conclusion. And not in the manic, wonderful way in which most of the movie unfolds. These travelers’ assimilation back into reality is painful and extremely subdued in comparison to the previous 90 minutes. Ultimately, ending it in the way that they did — making Manny real, his superpowers: REAL, and the REAL world's realistic response to this — felt like the right choice. This is a film about believing in magic, especially when you're at the end of your rope and magic feels like the only thing that might save you. And in that sense, the film itself is magic, pure and true.
CHRONOLOGICALLY
⫷ EPISODE 517 - (YOU ARE HERE) - EPISODE 519 ⫸
⫷ EPISODE 517 - (YOU ARE HERE) - EPISODE 519 ⫸
Swiss Army Man is a 2016 American absurdist black comedy film written and directed by Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan (in their respective feature directorial debuts). The film stars Paul Dano, Daniel Radcliffe, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. It was released on January 22, 2016.
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