Swiss Army Man (2016)

It seemed like an appropriate time to revisit Swiss Army Man, after recently watching The Death Of Dick Long (2019). Director Daniel Scheinert shares directorial duties with Daniel Kwan for this Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe helmed madhouse. Dano plays a suicidal man who spends the film trying to explain the values of life to a near corpse (Daniel Radcliffe) who washes up on the beach of the seemingly deserted island Dano is on. Radcliffe’s character, we slowly begin to realise, is a sort of human Swiss army knife. There’s not really another way of explaining it, but if you want to see the man who played Harry Potter engage in repeated acts of flatulence, use his erect penis as a sort of compass, and vomit water at will, then this is the film for you. Despite that rather crude explanation, Swiss Army Man is a beautiful film. It tugs at your heart especially in the final third, and the performances from Dano and Radcliffe were awards worthy. Dano is excellent in everything he’s in, but it’s worth noting Radcliffe’s climb since the Harry Potter franchise. That might sound mad; he’s one of the biggest stars in the world, but the Potter films ranged from poor to very good, and the acting was questionable at the best of times. Radcliffe’s choices since the end of Potter have been really interesting, and great credit must go to him for that. 7.7/10