Swiss Army Knife Male
In "Swiss Army Knife Man", probably nothing is certain. I'm not even sure what kind of movie it is. When the movie opened with farts to amuse the audience, everyone thought it would be a comedy. But when the audience finally understands the sad truth, there are probably not a few people who think this is a tragedy. And when the protagonists sing exciting songs along with the development of the plot, there will be a moment when people think that this is a musical, and I should not be the only one. Or, is this a thriller? I have to say that this story is more or less allegorical, and the root of this fable, isn't it our daily life as a human being?
comedy? tragedy? musical? Thriller drama? I cannot use any of these types to define "Swiss Army Knife Man". Because, like so many great movies in history, trying to put it into a certain category will only insult this work that makes people think about it. Different audiences are destined to have different interpretations and opinions on this work, but this is exactly the hallmark of a good film.
Unique, independent movie magic. Probably only these two descriptions are the consensus that different audiences can reach after watching the movie.
The protagonists Manny (played by Radcliffe) and Hank (played by Dano)
"Swiss Army Knife Man" tells the story of Hank (Paul Dano) trapped on a deserted island before he finds a farting corpse Manny (Daniel Radcliffe, right, it’s you) before committing suicide in despair. Harry Potter...), so the two embarked on the adventure story of returning from a deserted island to society and civilization. Why is it called "Swiss Army Knife Man"? Because Manny has too many other functions besides the constant fart, such as being able to make fires, such as cutting down trees, such as being used as a motorboat, being used as a drinking fountain, and so on. This pale corpse, like a Swiss army knife, can satisfy Hank's various needs. Yes, the movie brought the audience into an unreal world from the beginning, but the audience will accept these absurdities because of the wonderful performances of the two actors.
Dano’s performance to Hank once again confirmed that this thin man is definitely one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood today. Starting from the autistic brother in "Little Sunshine" 10 years ago, I never doubted that he would become a powerful faction. Although everyone thinks that he cannot be compared with Daniel Day Lewis on the same stage in "The Blood Is Coming", in my opinion, the 23-year-old is already remarkable. And his pitiful interpretation in "Love and Mercy" is not an exaggeration to say that it was the most underrated performance of the previous year. The paper-like body of Dano is always chosen to perform various strange and mentally problematic roles. This is probably why he was chosen to play the role of Hank this time, right?
Hank is a strange person, and as the audience, our perspective and entry point in this movie is precisely Hank. So when he encounters this omnipotent corpse that makes people laugh, I believe that the first reaction of many viewers, like me, is that this can't be true, and his perspective is not reliable at all. We can even guess from the flashbacks interspersed in the movie that he might even be a person with mental problems. But even so, we will still be moved by Hank's sincerity and caring. He will take into account the feelings of others, he will find ways to make others happy, and he will try to look at the problem from the perspective of others. These are the qualities that make Hank worthy of salvation in the end in normal movies. And Dano's natural and vivid performance of Hank gave the audience more emotional sustenance for this role, hoping that he can finally get out of the predicament.
And the other protagonist of the movie, this shriveled but versatile corpse, Manny, is completely different from Hank, whether it is true or not. Hank is constantly troubled by his own existence in the movie, but Manny is like a piece of white paper, just beginning his own existence, and he is full of curiosity about the world. He wants to know what all these are around him, he wants to know what he feels in his heart at the moment, he wants to know the rules of this world. In a sense, the Manny we saw at first was like a newborn baby who didn’t understand anything, but quickly understood the laws of the world, and became as corrupt and dirty as we are, just like us. Will be eroded by humiliation and self-doubt. Manny can feel joy from the simplest things, but it is precisely because of this that when he finally understands the world and finally knows how annoying he is, the audience will feel more spiritual shock. . Radcliffe's interpretation of Manny is so difficult but so vivid. He can't make any movements, all his feelings can only be expressed from the dialogue, but he can still turn Manny's joy into a gloomy and gloomy moment.
Find beauty in meaninglessness
But if there is no director and screenwriter of the two Daniels (seems like I can't think of a better term, after all, they are not brothers, but the names are Daniel), Manny and Hank will cease to exist. It is certainly commendable to be able to write such a novel and adventurous script, but the biggest imprint left by them who were born in shooting short music films is the ability to capture the unusually beautiful scenes and the intoxicating similar harmony singing. Soundtrack.
Although the themes of "Swiss Army Knife Man" included friendship, loneliness, meaning of existence, etc., what surprised and moved me most was the film's definition and discussion of the ugliness and beauty of this world. And the most outstanding of these is undoubtedly Hank and Manny's use of a bunch of meaningless in the jungle, which is regarded as ugly waste in society, and reproduces the beautiful pictures in life. Many times in the movie, waste products are used as props to reproduce scenes in life, and the things that everyone discards in life are constructed into unexpected scenes. Especially the reproduction of the bus scene, the ordinary and boring picture in life becomes so gorgeous and moving. When Manny looks at the simple but beautiful scenery outside the "car window" constantly passing by, I believe everyone will sigh for this overlooked scenery, right? Of course, the fresh pictures of this movie are all due to the photographer, after all, he made a movie with a budget of 3 million into 30 million as unparalleled. But the first to find these beautiful and thought-provoking pictures were probably two Daniels.
As for the soundtrack, I always say that the necessary condition for a good movie is a brilliant soundtrack or sound effects, and the seemingly cheerful soundtrack of "Swiss Army Knife Man" not only fills the audience with energy, but also makes the final slightly sad ending of the movie even more pronounced. It hurts people. Daniels revealed in the interview that they are not the usual route of filming and then scoring, but the other way around, first scoring the music and then composing the script based on the song. This can explain why if you listen carefully to the lyrics of the soundtrack, you can hear a lot of themes that the movie wants to express.
Crazy ridiculous but fascinating
Speaking of the theme of the movie, in addition to the aforementioned friendship, loneliness, and the meaning of existence, there are many more different interpretations for different people. For example, Manny is not a real existence but merely an extension of Hank's thoughts. I believe that most viewers will not have too many objections. But this is just one of the many interesting and profound metaphors in the movie. You can think of "Swiss Army Knife Man" as a caring relationship between broken-hearted friends, or as a montage of loneliness and hope. But you can also just think of it as a journey between a wanderer and a corpse that keeps farting. You can think of it as a discussion about the perception that humans and society feel humiliated by certain behaviors, or as a cruel movie about the final confrontation of the obscene stalker, or even more of it. An aria about human nature itself. It can be everything, it can also be nothing. After all, if there is no diverse subject matter, how can this movie be worthy of the name "Swiss Army Knife Man". It's like I said at the beginning, the good thing about "Swiss Army Knife Man" is that no one can say for sure what it is. But if you can accept its weird settings and laugh at it, you can probably enjoy this unique journey.
Of course, there should be many people like me who think the ending is confusing and unreasonable, right? But at least we can see their efforts to explore the most essential issues of human nature from a unique perspective from the lens of the director. From the perspective of not having a perfect ending, "Swiss Army Knife Man" also has an independent film color. It's like many other movies that will only be shown at the Sundance Film Festival and then cannot be shown. It has a curious opening structure, but in the end it can't end with the same shocking and exciting plot. But this is just nitpicking. After all, an independent film that can match the level of completion of "Burst Drummer" is probably seen in ten years.
In my opinion, "Swiss Army Knife Man" just took me into this unique world and actually made me feel worth the price. This is also the most fascinating aspect of independent films: you don’t need to tell a story from the most common angle like the science fiction blockbusters and superhero movies that flooded the movie market this year. Instead, take an unusual path. The way people are fascinated makes different audiences feel resonance. This is probably the reason why I think this is the best work so far in the first half of 2016 when there is a lack of original movies.
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