Swiss Army Man - Blu-ray

Film: Stranded on a deserted island, Hank (Paul Dano) has abandoned all hope of rescue. But just as he is about to end his life, a dead body (Daniel Radcliffe) washes up on the shore of the island. Completely unexpectedly, the bloated corpse becomes a salvation for Hank, as this undead version of a Swiss Army knife helps him not only get off the island, but also survive the difficult journey through the wilderness towards saving civilization. An unlikely friendship develops between Hank and corpse Manny as they journey together beyond the boundaries of what is commonly referred to as common sense. But is Hank really crazy?

To put it bluntly: Swiss Army Man is a very special film. The humor and the very playful, whimsical imagery are truly not everyone's cup of tea. But even then, if you're not comfortable with this unusual mix of comedy, drama, romance and fantasy, you have to give this film credit for simply never having seen anything like Swiss Army Man before - and what film can you say that about these days. Works with such originality have become an absolute rarity, which can't be overstated. Does that mean you have to like the film? Of course not, but even if you think it's terrible and not funny at all, you should be glad that there are still films out there that aren't completely mainstream, sequels, reboots or remakes.

If you can get into the special humor and the almost morbid-fairy-tale style of storytelling, you really get a particularly brilliant film here. It's not just the scenes that give Manny his titular name that make this quirky work so special. Although some scenes make you wonder what the makers have been smoking to come up with such really crazy ideas. But it's also the quieter, very imaginatively staged moments that give this Robinson variation its very special touch. If you feel that I'm beating around the bush a bit here, you're right. But I don't want to go into detail about these very special moments, because everyone should experience them completely unprepared. Because then this film is definitely a real experience!

The two actors transport the crazy story perfectly on the screen. Daniel Radcliffe, in particular, proves once again that he gives his all in order to play free of his Harry Potter image. As a farting all-purpose corpse, he is allowed to deliver tart slapstick interludes, but also a few somewhat profound moments - and he really does it with bravura. Therefore: If you always complain about the fact that there's nothing new to see in the cinema anymore, if you have a soft spot for weird and artfully playful comedies and if you don't mind some crude, inappropriate humor, you shouldn't miss this movie. Absolutely worth seeing!!!

Picture + Sound: The picture of the Blu-ray pleases with a very special color scheme, a good image sharpness and coherent contrasts. The sound thrives on the music, some very well-executed sound effects and the powerfully mixed dialogue. Overall, it can be said here that the special imagery and the very special sound design come into their own very well in the home theater!

Extras: The main film is available with two additional soundtracks. In addition to an informative and very amusing audio commentary recorded by the two directors with their production designer Jason Kisvarday and sound mixer Brent Kiser, the film is also still without the music track. The Daniels provide the reasoning for this in a delightful intro: they want to show how important the music is to the film and how bad it is without it. Great!

There follows a behind-the-scenes look worth watching (approx. 16:42 min.), as well as some promo clips about the actors (approx. 1:23 min.), the Daniels (approx. 2:36 min.), the music (approx. 1:12 min.), the special effects (approx. 0:57 min.), and about the Manny doll (approx. 3:14 min.). Three dropped scenes (approx. 5:54 min.), an interview with Daniel Radcliffe (approx. 6:33 min.), two trailers, and a highly interesting, in-depth Q&A about the sound of the film (approx. 66:46 min.) round out the good bonus material.

Conclusion: Swiss Army Man is original, quirky, wicked, poetic, bonkers and simply unique. Certainly not to everyone's taste, but those who can get into it will be rewarded with a quite wonderful blend of brute comedy and playful drama. The Blu-ray presents the film in good picture and sound quality. When it comes to the bonus material, the audio commentary, behind-the-scenes look, and an in-depth Q&A about the sound are particularly pleasing. Overall, there is for this disc a clear: Absolutely recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp