Director: Daniel Scheinert, Daniel Kwan
Starring: Paul Dano, Daniel Radcliffe, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Antonia Ribera, Timothy Eulich, Richard Gross
Running Time: 97 Minutes
Rating: 15
Release Date: 30/09/2016
Stranded on a desert Island Hank (Dano) is about to hang himself when he spots a dead body (Radcliffe)Â washed up on the beach. Half crazy from loneliness he begins to kindle a friendship with the body and, weirder still, begins to use the corpse as a literal tool to survive the wilderness.
Ever since I saw the trailer for this film I wanted, no, NEEDED to see it. The use of music and the weird premise had me hooked and I couldn’t wait until I could see the bizarre oddity that everyone, whether they liked it or not, was talking about.
In retrospect, maybe I needed to manage my expectations. I had such an idea of what I wanted the film to be that I didn’t stop to think that I might be disappointed if it turned out differently. Very few films match the expectations I feel beforehand. Most come just short or exceed my preliminary assumptions, so I was either going to love this or feel let down.
As it stands, I do feel a little disappointed. Not because I was sold a lie as what to expect. It was indeed gross, funny and surprisingly emotional. But it was also full of itself, unnecessarily long and indulgent.
I guess what I didn’t expect from this film were the things that I wouldn’t like. I was so hyped for the things I knew I would enjoy that I didn’t account for what it would do in the bits in between.
The biggest trouble is that it overestimates its own self-importance, outstaying its welcome and going to areas you didn’t sign up for. I’ve heard this said before, but it would’ve made a better short film had it focused solely on the Swiss Army Man aspect of the story.
Instead, it drifts into weird musings on masturbation and love, which come across weirdly because we recognise the lead character is a bit of a stalker. Yes, by the end we’re meant to care about this twisted relationship between a man and his corpse, but it doesn’t mean you forget that he did some pretty creepy stuff in the name of love.
I’m all for psychological musings on life and death, but here it comes across as too serious and pretentious a subject matter for a film that’s essentially ridiculous. You can have emotion, sure, but when your protagonist is sort of a creep, it makes you recoil from any sympathy you feel for him.
The disappointing final act is drawn out so much that when it seems to reach a natural end it just drags itself towards another. Even for a film that features farting jet power and an erection compass, it seemed to stretch storytelling credibility as the film trundled on.
However, I’m getting too bogged down in my disappointment because I really did enjoy a lot of stuff here. The score, from Manchester Orchestra, is sublime as it incorporates its melodies into the voices of the actors. It tells the story and it moves the film on in delightful ways.
The cinematography (Larkin Seiple) is also quite nice and during the scenes set on the bus, the lighting really captures your eye.
Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe are fantastic and I genuinely respect the hell out of the latter for his dedication to choosing interesting projects for his career. This is the most ridiculous, eccentric movie premise in some time and his performance is Oscar worthy to the point where getting a Best Actor nod would genuinely be hilarious.
Even if I’m a little down on it, I respect what it was trying to do whilst going against the main stream. There’s nothing like it and I only wish I liked it that little bit more.
In the end, I don’t hate it and enjoyed it’s imaginative use of Manny the corpse and I really loved the score. Radcliffe’s performance is masterful and though it wasn’t the film I wanted it to be, something less art house and more chamber piece, I enjoyed it enough.
Whatever you think, it’s memorable and will definitely get people talking about it for years to come.
That’s gotta be worth something.
Verdict
