"Swiss Army Man" is a 95-minute full feature film from this year (2016) and it is the first long movie by writers and directors Daniel Scheinert and Dan Kwan. It is basically a two-man show starring Paul Dano ("There Will Be Blood") and Daniel Radcliffe ("Harry Potter"). The former is stranded on an island and the latter plays a corpse who becomes best friends with Dano's character. But it is never clear at all what is going on inside this film. Is it all a delusion from Dano's character? It seems likely as we see not only him interacting with a corpse, but the corpse even moves and replies back to him. Sounds to me as if Dano's character completely lost his mind on the island and we see the direct effects and consequences. So from that perspective (and from others too), it is actually a somewhat realistic film, but all the filmmakers' ambition when it comes to authenticity is lost quickly because of the way they try to make it entertaining and funny. The jokes are about farting (it is not funny for over 20 minutes the same again and again, even if it may be true biologically), about thinking of your mate's mother when masturbating, about boners and about vomiting into each other's faces and drinking the puke afterward. So yeah, the comedy approach here is high school humor of the worst kind.
And the film also comes short in terms of the dramatic impact it is trying to make. This becomes especially painful to watch when the film is trying to make a difference and teach a lesson when it comes to romance as it ends up drawing the conclusion that if you want romance, then do not fart loudly in public. Yes, it is a very strange movie. If there is anything good about the film, then that it is certainly different and you may never have seen something like it before. But it is as different as it is bad. The two lead actors are fairly solid, but they are also suffering from the script here and it makes them look ridiculous, especially in those scenes in which Dano is playing a girl all of a sudden. It is very easy to recognize that Kwan and Scheinert wanted to launch their full feature film career with a blast here, but their take on storytelling and creative freedom went wrong from start to finish here. This film has nothing on "Cast Away" or "All Is Lost". Instead, you can maybe call this film the little retarded (yes I say that word, no pun intended!) brother of the ones I just mentioned. And finally, a word on the ending. It was supposed to be uplifting and full of free spirit, but the way they worked their way towards it (if there was a way at all) is nothing that made any sense whatsoever. Yes there are a handful ways to discuss this ending or interpret it (was he retarded and never on an island in fact just wandering around the country?), but this is only the case because the film lacks focus and convincing storytelling from start to finish. It can be an achievement to get the audience to discuss your movie/ending, but it is not a success here because the only reason the ending is difficult to understand is because it's all so vague and shoddy from Scheinert and Kwan. A definite contender for worst film of 2016 from what I have seen so far. And I have seen a lot. Stay far, far away from "Swiss Army Man".
And the film also comes short in terms of the dramatic impact it is trying to make. This becomes especially painful to watch when the film is trying to make a difference and teach a lesson when it comes to romance as it ends up drawing the conclusion that if you want romance, then do not fart loudly in public. Yes, it is a very strange movie. If there is anything good about the film, then that it is certainly different and you may never have seen something like it before. But it is as different as it is bad. The two lead actors are fairly solid, but they are also suffering from the script here and it makes them look ridiculous, especially in those scenes in which Dano is playing a girl all of a sudden. It is very easy to recognize that Kwan and Scheinert wanted to launch their full feature film career with a blast here, but their take on storytelling and creative freedom went wrong from start to finish here. This film has nothing on "Cast Away" or "All Is Lost". Instead, you can maybe call this film the little retarded (yes I say that word, no pun intended!) brother of the ones I just mentioned. And finally, a word on the ending. It was supposed to be uplifting and full of free spirit, but the way they worked their way towards it (if there was a way at all) is nothing that made any sense whatsoever. Yes there are a handful ways to discuss this ending or interpret it (was he retarded and never on an island in fact just wandering around the country?), but this is only the case because the film lacks focus and convincing storytelling from start to finish. It can be an achievement to get the audience to discuss your movie/ending, but it is not a success here because the only reason the ending is difficult to understand is because it's all so vague and shoddy from Scheinert and Kwan. A definite contender for worst film of 2016 from what I have seen so far. And I have seen a lot. Stay far, far away from "Swiss Army Man".