Swiss Army Man
Directors: Daniel Scheinert and Dan Kwan
Starring: Paul Dano, Daniel Radcliffe, Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Four stars
Swiss Army Man was dubbed the "farting corpse" movie when it screened at the Sundance Film Festival, amid walkouts and rancour.
This simplistic alternative title makes the film sound like a frat-house gross-out comedy, when in fact it is a strange, surprisingly thoughtful contemplation on the meaning of life – albeit laced with plenty of toilet humour.
With excellent performances from Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe, this is a rare American film that ponders big existential questions while also managing to deliver big laughs.
Radcliffe is making a habit of choosing roles that are as far from Harry Potter as possible – and if he wanted us to forget his youthful wand waving, he succeeds here. His flatulent corpse, Manny, is the titular Swiss Army Man, a reference to the multipurpose utility tool. Not since Weekend at Bernie’s has a corpse been treated with such comic disdain on screen. It’s hilarious watching Radcliffe used as a jet ski, a water dispenser, or weapon.
Theman in need of help hand is Hank (Dano). By giving the character that name, co-directors Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan seem to be making a playful reference to Cast Away, in which Tom Hanks was stranded alone on an island.
On the brink of suicide, he gets a renewed zest for life when he finds the corpse. So begins an unusual buddy adventure in which Hank tries to convince Manny of the joys of living.
While the mix of highbrow ideas with lowbrow comedy is intriguing, the execution suffers under the shifts from laughter to melancholy, and a failure in the plotting to tie all the characters together.
While much is imaginative and stunning, there are also too many “give-me-a-break” moments, especially in the denouement. Nonetheless, even a waft of such post-mortem creativity is more intriguing and imaginative than most of the films you will see this year.
artslife@thenational.ae
