Starring: Paul Dano, Daniel Radcliffe, Mary Elizabeth Winstead
OUR RATING: ★★★★☆
Story:
Quirky indie comedy drama written and directed by Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert. Swiss Army Man centers on Hank (Paul Dano), a man stranded on a deserted island, having given up all hope of ever making it home again. However, everything changes when Hank finds a corpse named Manny (Radcliffe) washed up on shore. When the corpse turns out not to be entirely dead, the two become fast friends and Hank teaches Manny about the world once again. The two then go on an epic adventure that will bring Hank back to the woman of his dreams Sarah (Mary Elizabeth Winstead).
Our Favorite Quote:
'Sometimes you might be lucky enough to bump into the one person you want to spend the rest of your life with, and that is love.' - Hank (Swiss Army Man) Click To Tweet
Best Quotes
Hank: You know, I’d always hoped that right before I died my life would flash before my eyes, and I would see wonderful things. But as I was hanging up there I didn’t really see much of anything, but I did see you.
Hank: This is crazy. I thought you were dead.
Manny: Am I dead?
Hank: I don’t think so, you’re talking.
Hank: [after dragging the seemingly dead body of Manny into a cave] I need you to help me get home. Okay, buddy?
Manny: Okay, buddy.
[Hank screams in shock and hits Manny in the face]
Hank: [to Manny] You’re a miracle, or I’m just hallucinating from starvation.
Hank: You’re special.
Manny: I’m special.
Hank: You’re like the multipurpose tool guy, and that’s why I need you to help me get home.
Hank: When there’s seven billion people on the planet you might be lucky enough to bump into the one person you want to spend the rest of your life with.
Hank: Sometimes you might be lucky enough to bump into the one person you want to spend the rest of your life with, and that is love.
Manny: Okay. You want to go home so you can have love?
Hank: Yeah.
Manny: But you ran away because nobody loves you.
Hank: Manny, the phone is on low battery with no signal. We’ve got to turn it off so we can find help once we’re closer to home.
Manny: I have a lot of questions about all the things you just said.
Manny: I’m sorry, Hank. I’m just saying the things in my head.
Hank: Well, you can’t just say everything that comes into your head. That’s bad talking.
Hank: It’s moving!
Manny: What’s happening!
Hank: Manny, I think your p**is is guiding us home. It’s magic.
Hank: People don’t like other people’s farts.
Manny: Is that why you don’t fart in front of me?
Hank: I just like to do it alone, or hold it in, that’s what you’re supposed to do.
Manny: That’s so sad.
Manny: If my best friend hides his farts from me, then what else is he hiding from me, and why does that make me feel so alone?
Hank: Poop is when your body takes everything it doesn’t want and squeezes it out your butt.
Manny: Oh, God. I’m disgusting. My body is disgusting.
Hank: Before the Internet every girl was a lot more special.
Hank: If you don’t know Jurassic Park, you don’t know s**t.
Hank: We sang, and we danced, and it was beautiful.
Hank: How do you expect anyone to want to talk to you if you sound retarded? I sound like my dad.
Manny: I’m scared because I fear if I die I might really miss you.
Hank: Oh, you’re the worst.
Manny: So this is the life I’d forgotten.
Hank: The important, for now, is to find what was your life
Manny: What is life?
Hank: This is just the beginning.
Manny: But maybe everyone’s a little bit ugly. Yeah, maybe we’re all just ugly, dying sacks of s**t, and maybe all it’ll take is one person to just be okay with that, and then the whole world will be dancing and singing and farting, and everyone will feel a little bit less alone.
Trailers:
We have come to a point of crisis in the timeline of cinema history. We are now consistently bombarded with remakes, comic book blockbusters, sequels, adaptations and CGI animations. Cinema was once considered a unique art form but originality is now a term we rarely hear these days. But when it does resurface its little head, cinephiles rejoice and we are reminded that film-making can still be magic. And I think we may just have the strangest and most unique film of the decade – Swiss Army Man.
Trying to describe this film in one sentence is near impossible. But I will try to break it down in the simplest terms. Hank (Paul Dano) is a troubled young man stranded on a desert island. Moments before attempting suicide, a body on the beach (Daniel Radcliffe) catches his eye and hope doesn’t seem so lost. What happens next, as well what happens over the next 90 minutes, is a thing of utter wonderment and frankly, sheer insanity. And I loved every single minute of this film.
Word got out earlier this year that numerous people at Cannes walked out of the screening of Swiss Army Man. On paper, you’d think you understand why. Manny is a corpse that uses flatulence to jet ski himself across the ocean, uses his erections to guide Hank home, and projectile vomits water so Hank can stay hydrated. Again, on paper this sounds ridiculous. But on screen, it was astoundingly entertaining. And I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face. To all the Cannes bailers, you missed one hell of an experience. The journey these two characters take is gorgeous, side-splittingly hilarious and in some parts, incredibly devastating. Despite being dead, Manny is practically a newborn, and as Hank guides him through his endless questions about life, love and everything in between – he also learns more about himself and the life he left behind.
First time directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, known collectively as Daniels, have turned what would have been an incredibly bizarre pitch into an exploration of humanity, growth and both the ugliness and beauty of the world we live in today. And if all of that doesn’t tickle your fancy, then telling you that the soundtrack is the best you’ll hear in years might do it.
On top of the incredibly unique story, beautiful direction and distinctive soundtrack, the performances by Dano and Radcliffe are spectacular. Dano is fantastic in everything he does, but Radcliffe is a thing to cherish here. His post-Harry Potter career has flourished, but this will be the film that will wipe The Boy Who Lived from your memory, and will remind you that we are in fact watching a method actor with no limitations. Just watch his physicality in this film and you’ll understand why.
Swiss Army Man is like nothing you’ve ever seen before. There is not a single film I can think of to compare it to. You’ll just have to go and experience it for yourselves. If you’re a firm believer in true storytelling (and farting gives you the giggles) then this film is not to be missed.
Rating: 5/5