MovieChat Forums > Swiss Army Man (2016) Discussion > The Whole Movie Explained...almost

The Whole Movie Explained...almost

posted 8 years ago by MikeRydal
74 replies | jump to latest

I'm still trying to decide if this is an brilliantly clever movie OR an interesting concept that is weird for the sake of being weird.

The movie (to me) seems to be about a shy, suicidal schizophrenic who has abandoned reality in his quest for love. He created a fantasy relationship with Sarah (The girl he sees on the bus everyday) to whom, he is unable to act upon due to his abject shyness. If you note, at the end of the movie Hank runs back to the beach (where he first discovered Manny) which only seems to be a few hundred meters...Hank was building a fantasy world in, effectively Sarahs' back garden.

I believe, at the start of the movie, Hank is truly trying to kill himself (Not a fabricated fantasy) He discovers an unknown dead body on the beach. Hank, in his possible final moments, sees an opportunity for something he is missing in his life....Friendship. As his loneliness and schizophrenia develop, he becomes more comfortable with the idea of a best friend who is dead, Hanks imagination runs wild and his fantasy becomes more and more elaborate and grandiose..i.e the more Hank rejects reality, the better the friendship he can have with the corpse (Manny)

Beginning the second act of the movie, Hank realizes what is truly missing from his life...Love. He begins to remember Sarah but, knowing he will never be brave enough to even to talk to her, changes his fantasy where Manny takes place of himself (Hank) and Hank plays the role of Sarah. This is the main turning point for Hanks' psyche, He has completely given up on reality due to his unrequited love. Hank has developed a split personality disorder, the corpse (Manny) has become a Mannequin of Hank himself, and Hanks body houses the personality of Sarah. To which he role-plays his perfect scenarios...both saying and hearing the words he's longed for. (would also like to suggest that the name 'Hank' is the name of Jim Carreys' Charlie Bailygates Split personality in 'Me, Myself and Irene')

This is only speculation but, The farting seems to be symbolic of his failure...he may well have broke wind in her (Sarah's) presence to which she may have passingly scoffed at him...He wants to be loved for who he is...a human who, like all humans...farts.

There are also references to an Oedipus Complex in which (in Hanks' youth) has only been able to achieve an erection to the thought of his mother...This is discussed many times throughout the movie, although it seems to be an awkward/funny conversation (or argument with himself) it actually explains a lot about why Hank believes that Love and Friendship are so desperately needed in his life. He see's sex as a very uncomfortable and awkward subject...All indications toward the condition of his mental instability.

Another interesting (yet not so subtle in hindsight) metaphor is that one of the 'Swiss Army Mans' features is a 'Erection Compass.' When he sees a sexually desirable picture of a girl...His hard-on points to places where Hank is able to develop his fantasy, Thus - erections aid his loss of reality.

One interesting subject is the underlying homosexual suggestions...This technically is incorrect...as Hank and Manny are in fact, Sarah and Hank respectively.

During the Bear attack, Hank tells Manny that (when he was alive) He never had a relationship with Sarah...At this, Manny loses all his 'Powers.' It is the bear itself which snaps Hank to reality (if just for a brief moment) this is the first genuine/real interference with his fantasy. Hank manages to fight back by reestablishing his schizophrenia....The bear wasn't dragging Hank away....It was dragging Sarah...As Manny is a schizophrenic manifestation of both Hank and love...It is not Manny that scares the bear and carries Hank back to 'reality' (civilization)...It was Hank and love...Hank in his own bizarre way, had found love.

The final scene is an interesting one. When Manny and Hank reach the garden with the little girl..It is Manny who speaks to her, when we learn it is Sarah's garden, Manny is again a inanimate corpse. An interesting metaphor for Hanks hope.

It's the final scene of the movie that bugged me...Manny 'Jet Skiing' away from people...an actual mass of people witness a 'living super powered corpse.' I think this was too ambiguous and a total curve-ball. Which basically renders my entire understanding of this movie, null and void.

I want to know what other people made from this movie...It's entirely open to interpretation.

[–] TamalAnwar 8 years ago

You are correct. Exactly my thoughts, but you explained a lot better. If you leave the final scene then it makes sense with reality.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

Since I wrote this, I realized I didn't mention the other psychoses that Hank exhibited...most notably Depression

Having had more time to analyze the story, I have realized the moral. If you're suffering from a condition that shows no physical signs (i.e Mental illnesses - Depression, Loneliness, Poor Self-Esteem etc) You need to seek help. To combat such on your own is futile...Sadly, the movie makes me reminisce of Robin Williams.

Perhaps the film-makers have experienced loss of a loved one through mental health issues and created this story as means to aid other sufferers, either directly or by proxy.

[–] terrencepatrix 8 years ago

Robin Williams didn't commit suicide out of depression, he was diagnosed with Lewy body disease, which is like having Alzheimer and Parkinson combined. Originally he was diagnosed with just Parkinson disease and his health was rapidly declining both physically and mentally...so he decided to end it before it got any worse.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

I'm aware of that. But that was not the initial diagnosis. I said that it made me think of him, not that it was a direct reference. Declining mental health as a reason for suicide.

[–] terrencepatrix 8 years ago

Well since you were trying to use Robin Williams suicide as a point I just wanted to provide context. He wasn't just depressed, he was suffering from a wide variety of symptoms that were very real and physical. He was on a constant slew of medications, had many physical impairments, and was losing his mind and his self to the point he could no longer do the things that brought him joy.

So it wasn't declining mental health that drove him to suicide, his brain was literally failing, which I guess you could call it a decline in mental health but that's a gross over simplification. Not trying to be a dick here but Robin Williams is a national treasure and it needs to be hammered home that it wasn't a mental illness that drove him to suicide but a real physical condition. His brain was literally decaying from protein deposits also known as Lewy Bodies.

[–] tbone280lr 8 years ago

A redundant post. You're point had already been made: you are in love with Robin Williams.

*beep* off, you goddamn *beep* *beep*

[–] terrencepatrix 8 years ago

I really don't care if you think it's redundant, you're just some random idiot on the internet.

[–] chilone (17310) 5 years ago

STFU. Moron.

[–] brodsky_donna-1 8 years ago

You, sir, are a jerk.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

Agreed

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

Quit trolling my commenters, guy...if you disrespect supporters of anything, you become an embarrassment to everything you support.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

I appreciate your loyalty

[–] osmanisalso 7 years ago

Depression isn't real and physical? To say he had a mental illness is not to slight Robin Williams, nor is it inaccurate. Robin Williams suffered from chronic depression and suicide is much more likely in people with chronic depression.

[–] terrencepatrix 8 years ago

Personally, and this doesn't seem to be that popular of a theory, I think the movie makes more sense if you approach it as a fantasy film instead of a psychological one. I agree with the majority of your synopsis but the reveal at the end, where people witness Manny coming to life and farting himself off into the sunset, is magical or supernatural in nature and that it all happened just as we saw it. We've seen so many movies where a lost soul is saved by some miraculous being (hell that's basically what 'Shazaam' was even), instead of some angel or genie though...it's in the form of a farting corpse.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

If that is true then my definition of the movie still holds true. The only variable is that Hank is using Mannys' naivety as a tool...Perhaps that is an unrealized utility of the 'Swiss Army Man'

I do see this film as fantasy, the only issue is ; the fantasy aspects are fueled by schizophrenia. Perhaps the ending is a revalation that film is a combination of both...a Fantasy Psychological Fantasy lol

[–] terrencepatrix 8 years ago

Like I said, I agree with pretty much your entire synopsis. I just find that for me the movie makes more sense being fantasy and Manny being a fantastical entity. I don't think there is any 100% correct interpretation though, I think most theories people have come up with have potential just because the movie leaves itself open to so much ambiguity. There is definitely a psychological component to the film, if not the main theme of it. I just like the idea of taking the old movie trope of some supernatural force taking pity on a mortal and twisting it into something so crass and perverted as a farting corpse who pops compass boners. I think it makes the entire movie far more comical and overall acceptable than some weirdo playing with a corpse for days.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

I saw it as a lighthearted approach to a severe condition. As a disturbing sidenote...it's common for cadavers, found in water, to bloat to excess. The farting could be genuine as the decaying body is expelling methane as it's cells break down....still, it would not discharge at a rate that would propel it through water lol.

[–] terrencepatrix 8 years ago

Yeah...and they can actually flop around a bit too as muscles and tendon start to dry out and decay which causes them to retract making the limbs move.

[–] defendyourheroine 8 years ago

I feel like you may have a few aspects incorrect. The following is how I interpret the film.

At the beginning, Hank is on an island. A deserted island. I didn't really catch this at first because it's only seen in one single shot, but it's true. He has tried and tried and tried to send messages for help, but he has finally realized, no help is coming.. and so he has decided to kill himself. That's when we meet him. I don't think Hank was necessarily suicidal before being stranded. Yes he was lonely and I agree that he ran away and got into this situation because of his shyness and the seeming lack of love in his life.

I agree. He finds Manny and is temporarily excited by the prospect of a new friend, but he gives up on this and goes back to hang himself up until Manny starts to bubble off into the water.. That's when Hank see's Manny as a way off the island.. and he rides Manny like a jetski until they crash..

They find themselves washed up on the shore.. MAINLAND this time (but not obviously so).. And Manny having just helped him escape, he brings him along for the trip. probably also relating to his loneliness..

Hank is trying to stay alive.. collect water.. find food.. etc.. and he is failing. But then Manny starts to show usefulness that Hank never thought of.. They begin their friendship.

To bring Manny up to speed, Hank begins to teach him about the world as he knows it, revealing a lot of how hank thinks of the world and his place in it. Now, let me clarify here. Hank does NOT get erections/masturbate thinking about his mother.. What is pointed out in the film is that he CANNOT masturbate without thinking of his dead mother and so it makes it a problem for him.. It's not his mother that gets him hard, it's the other way around.. he gets hard and he then thinks of his mother...

Then they fall down the hill and the phone falls out in front of Manny.. Manny begins to beg him to show him the picture again in order to remember her and get his erection compass up and running again..
So Hank complies.. He tries to recreate everything he knows of her for Manny (which isn't much. the only memory of her is from the bus.)... so he builds the bus and they play out Hank's memory... but they get to a point where Hank regrets his inaction and decides to steer the recreation into new territory.

In my opinion, it's not until this point that Hank start to create a fantasy world with her. Up until that point, Sarah is just a girl Hank sees on the bus who he is too shy to speak to.. and he regrets this. So, from there, they end up building this new narrative of what the world could have been like/what Hank would like his reality to be.

I'm not sure where you got the "erection compass points to areas he can further develop his fantasy". Nothing seems to support this other than that Manny becomes more active as he progresses, but you could easily say, "by Hank simply carrying the dead body, it drove him crazier.. maybe he carried a dead body and maybe he went crazy.. but not necessarily because of either... correlation doesn't mean causation is my point.
I think Manny's special powers are actually special powers. Manny DOES end up bringing him back to civilization after all. He DOES get him off a deserted island.. And if Hank only knew Sarah from the bus and only had the one picture of her, then how did Manny magically guess her name and lead Hank to her instagram later on?

The ending is what sort of makes it weird. Hank grabs Manny and runs off into the woods... The police and Sarah and the news people follow him...

And they make it to the beach and past everything incredibly fast, thus suggesting that the entire film took place in the woods RIGHT BEHIND Sarah's house... BUT in the director's commentary they explain that that was just a result of the edit. They talk about how they tried to edit this sequence multiple different ways, but they settled on the cut that kept you in the moment more so than accurately depicts distance.. I agree this is unfortunate..

THEN.. You said that they end up on THE SAME BEACH that Hank met Manny on, but this isn't true. They met on the island. This might be the same beach they washed up on after jet skiing, but it's not the beginning beach.

Then yes, Manny farts of into the distance which further supports his magicalness.

I feel like this film is about what society deems as "normal" and dealing with not fitting the bill.
Everything that makes Manny special, is something that people in society would call "weird".
Hank has a number of weird attributes as well and feels disconnected, which led him to run away in the first place.
then at the end, he comes back to society for it to treat him just as badly.. Sarah is looking at him like, "why the *beep* do you have a picture of me in you phone!?" and his dad is calling him retarded again.. and so he's like SCREW IT! I'm going back! I don't need society's approval! I can be me just fine without them!

So overall, I think the film is a contemplation on fulfilling society's expectations vs doing your own thing. Accepting your eccentricities and quirks and becoming ok with one's self instead of trying to live up to societal standards..

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

There is no confirmation that Hank is on a deserted island (If an Island at all) there is no establishing shot of the whole area (also, where was it revealed that he had made multiple attempts to contact for help?). The director could well have suggested the concept of a deserted island as a metaphor of Hanks' loneliness. The suggestion though, is a valid one.

In regards to his mother, you are correct...Still the concept of sex is in unison with his mother. Though not directly connected, the two concepts are symbiotic which suggests the Oedipus Complex.

Manny knows Sarahs' name because Hank does, As Manny is an hallucination created by Hanks' psyche. As far as the 'horny compass' goes...that's open to speculation, my theory was based on observation without confirmtion.

I would like to know how you found a directors commentary...as this film is not available with such as yet (wink, wink lol)

I agree, there is no confirmation it's the same beach as the opening. That conclusion was based following the path that Hank carries Manny...Passing previously established shots in reversed order.

I agree with some of your insights and it impresses me how this movie has created so many different interpretations...Many layers, clever movie.

I still feel I'm right...but the ending contradicts my theory....and does support yours. I'm not saying I'm wrong, or yourself. That's why I started this post, I like the idea of calling this movie a fantasy psychological fantasy lol

[–] defendyourheroine 8 years ago

The opening is a series of shots of the ocean with trash floating in it.. all with "help me" "I'm so lonely" "stranded" written on them...
There IS an establishing shot. it's when we first see hank.. its a far shot.. it's only there for a second but it's there.

I feel like an Oedipus Complex has to consist of you *beep* your mom or you killing your dad. I guess I see where you have a mix of sex and moms.. but when Oedipus finds out it's his mom, he gouges his eyes out.. We don't really have that here..

How would Hank know her name if he's only seen her on the bus?.. But I guess also.. how would Hank look up her instagram wth ONLY a first name... i guess this is a bit of grey area.

It's on iTunes, dude. there's even a version of the movie with no music which makes it seem extra creepy.

Yea man.. I feel like this movie has a lot of stuff packed tightly together and so, many different interpretations can be made. I appreciate a lot of your breakdown though. I'd maybe like to think since there's so many ideas crammed together in this film, maybe it's not like other movies where the whole world needs to have consistent parts. Swiss Army Man is allowed to be this crazy-fever-dream-psychological-buddy-comedy-adventure-fantasy.. and it's the best of it's kind.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

I definitely missed the establishing shot...does it show the entire boundary/coastline of the island?

You seem to be confusing the Oedipus Complex with the actual story of Oedipus. It can manifest itself in different ways. In Hanks case (as you rightly said) it prevents him from having a sex-life of sorts, It's highly possible that Hank did desire to hubba hubba with his mother...I'm trying to remember if it was mentioned if she (Hanks mom) died...If so, it could contribute to his eternal inability to bust a nut....Think about it...if you could never have the big 'O' again....what would you do?

Also...Is Sarah's name ever confirmed? Hank could have fabricated it....It could even be his mothers name....I need to watch this movie again lol.

[–] defendyourheroine 8 years ago

Yea, it shows all the edges of the island.. check out the trailer.

By definition, an Oedipus Complex is the desire for the parent of the opposite sex (Electra Complex for female children desiring the father). Hank didn't want to have intercourse with his mother.. The closest to this is that maybe he wanted to jack off so often that they could die at the same time, but he never wanted to have sex with her.
She did die a few months later he said.
If I could never have the Big O again.. as a result of thinking about my mother... I don't think I would have any desire to have sex with her.. And if he couldn't masturbate because of the thought of his mom, then how do you figure he'd want to have sex with her? If he wanted to have sex with his mom.. then wouldn't you think it would be easy to masturbate with her in mind?

I watched through the ending and couldn't find an instance of anyone but hank or manny calling her by name. But we do know that he has her instagram somehow.. and so probably knows her name from that.. but then, still.. how did he get her instagram? That whole aspect is just very unclear. It could very well be that he did not obtain her name through Manny.

But Manny did in fact save Hank from a deserted island....

Unless of course the island was in Hank's head.. but there are no other instances of the world itself being manipulated by Hank's mind.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

You're really pulling at the Oedipus thread lol.

I still don't think he was on a desert island. I remember, later in the movie, a Police officer mentions that bodies wash ashore on that beach regularly...Could this not be proof that the 'Island' is monitored? alas, inhabited?

I've also come to realize the name 'Manny' could have 2 meanings....1 for Mannequin (which I explain in the main post) and 2...Manifest, as Manny is a manifestation of Hanks' imagination.

Annoyingly, still more to think about lol.

[–] Frantastic_Miss_Fox 8 years ago

but then, still.. how did he get her instagram? That whole aspect is just very unclear.

If he took that picture of her on the bus, he could've image searched it online and found more pictures of her. Unfortunately, as weird as I find it, that is a thing that can be done.

[–] defendyourheroine 8 years ago

the island shot is the first shot of the trailer too.

[–] gmcdonnell_1969 8 years ago

If he's on an island then how does he end up on the same beach at the end? It's also a bit of a coincidence that he manages to get washed up (with the aid of the corpse) quite close to where the woman he is infatuated with lives. I've just watched the trailer and it actually shows a large rock in the middle of the sea. When he finds the body that same rock is seen in the background. That is not the island he is on if it's shown behind him. I think you are given the impression he is stranded but as the film progresses you realise he is actually committing suicide. The rubbish on the beach means nothing as throughout the film he finds discarded debris. When they find his "lair" at the end do you really think he made all that in a few days?

[–] Frantastic_Miss_Fox 8 years ago

I don't know if it's clarified by the directors in the commentary you've seen or not but I disagree that he was on an actual island at the beginning. Despite the establishing shot (which I think was partly a curve ball), I think the island was just a metaphor for how Hank felt. He felt isolated and lonely and helpless and his mind decided that he was stranded. I know we see the rubbish with 'Help' and 'I'm so lonely' on them but I think he probably made those anyway as I think he was already/had already declined into his fantasy. Hank had probably been staying on that beach for a while, the news report at the end said that he had been lost, and I think he just imagined that it really was a deserted island. The police and ambulance people at the end were saying that jumpers washed up on that beach all the time, which is an indication that Manny was a jumper nearby who ended up on that beach. That makes sense, plus I don't believe that Manny was ever able to be used as a jet ski to get off of another island. Plus him being on a random desert island, finding his way back to the mainland, and just happening to arrive at the beach/woods that are that close to Sarah's house would just be too much of a coincidence. I find that happening even harder to believe than the jet ski corpse.

Sarah is looking at him like, "why the *beep* do you have a picture of me in you phone!?"

In all fairness, I would probably react the same way if a guy stumbled into my back garden, carrying a dead body, and he turned out to have a picture of me as the background on his phone.

I think the dad still treated him terribly though and I agree with the rest of your thoughts in regard to the ending:

I feel like this film is about what society deems as "normal" and dealing with not fitting the bill.
Everything that makes Manny special, is something that people in society would call "weird".
Hank has a number of weird attributes as well and feels disconnected, which led him to run away in the first place.
then at the end, he comes back to society for it to treat him just as badly.. Sarah is looking at him like, "why the *beep* do you have a picture of me in you phone!?" and his dad is calling him retarded again.. and so he's like SCREW IT! I'm going back! I don't need society's approval! I can be me just fine without them!

So overall, I think the film is a contemplation on fulfilling society's expectations vs doing your own thing. Accepting your eccentricities and quirks and becoming ok with one's self instead of trying to live up to societal standards..

[–] clareparkinson788 8 years ago

I basically agree with everything you said. Except after thinking about it, I don't think the ending was as out of place as I first felt it was. I reckon it was just his imagination again as in the rest of the film. The people looking on weren't looking in awe as a dead body farted off into the horizon.... they were just wtf faces as a crazy dude chucked a corpse into the ocean x

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

That's a possibility, I guess...seems incredibly cryptic if you're right tho.

[–] piwara 8 years ago

The video camera point of view kinda implies that it's actually happening, and is not just a figment of imagination.

[–] Geovibe 8 years ago

This is the best post I've read on this movie so far.

So I wanted to focus on the ending and give my initial thoughts for a possible explanation. Hank returns to civilization after being profoundly changed by his entire experience, only to find that civilization still thinks he’s odd and his behavior is weird and he should keep all his abnormal ideas to himself.

But Hank has gone too far and his journey has changed him to such a degree that returning to civilization is nothing but a rude awakening. He decides to go back to join his companion in ‘their own little world’.

The normal people follow him to see what the hell he’s doing. In the end, they realize that farts are normal and a dead guy motoring away in the water is certainly out of the norm, but you know what, its actually nothing to be ashamed of.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

It's the exposition of the 'Swiss Army Man' to the public which baffles me. I'm beginning to think the film makers were just d*cking with us with that ending.

I'm not saying that as an excuse not to think...I have thought and that seems like the most rational explanation.

[–] gypsylittledove 8 years ago

Worst movie I ever saw...It had too many gay references for me but worst of all it was stupid. We turned it off half way though it as it never got better and we lost interest. A waste of time, I'm glad I did not pay for this movie or I would have demanded a refund.

[–] arslanistic 8 years ago

i was sort of on the fence about it but reading your synopsis i totally agree with everything you said....

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

It's very difficult to follow, I appreciate a challenging movie, but there are still very indecipherable moments...Most notably, that ending....Why would the filmmakers put that in?

[–] stcaball 8 years ago

My interpretation is the same as yours, but as you say, the ending 'doesn't fit'.

The island could be real. It is shown in the beginning; and Hank is in that island due to a storm (I do not think so) or because he has gone there directly to commit suicide (it is more likely). Then, he sees the body, and full of gases, Hank uses it as surf table (no propeller mode) to reach to the mainland. In his mind, it is a jetski. The rest of the movie is this way, in his mind, this body (now his friend, or projection of himself, better) has superpowers.

But in the ending, if the body can sail in front of witness (and the little girl can see Manny moving in the backyard too), this means that all is real? A naive corpse, out there in the ocean, teaches us not to be ashamed ourselves with our weirdness...?

Or maybe the filmmakers didn't want to give us a 'logical' explanation and, as Sarah says at the very end... 'What the ***?'

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

Another thought is...what's to say that Hank wasn't successful in hanging himself?

It's totally possible that the whole film is his final few moments as he comes to make peace with his frustrations.

[–] hal-9010 8 years ago

Through the whole movie I was thinking it would take this spin in the final scenes. It did not. But had this been the idea all along then the final scenes should either be him in a heaven of sorts or simply dead, fade to black (or white). The end of Hank. The ending is however not ending Hanks story, it is only ending Hank's and Manny's story, and so I am more for your Interpretation.

One thing I found odd in the final scene was the approving smile from his dad... it was out of place and I think this is how the moviemakers ttell us that we once again are in Hanks fantasy world in those final frames.... and if so, it all fits with your explanation.

** I am normally not a praying man, but if you are up there, please save me Superman **

[–] PinbackWiggly (375) 5 years ago

The dad's approving nod and the little girl laughing and Manny jetting away with a smile, I agree, told me that we were no longer in reality but back in Hank's fantasy world. He's being led off to most likely a psychiatric hospital (I'm not sure they can put you in prison for having a picture of a woman on your phone and a weird shrine in the forest behind her house). In his mind though, it was a happy ending. Wherever he goes, he will be ok because everyone believed him and forgave him.

[–] piwara 8 years ago

This. It's the only way to explain the movie...fully.

[–] w-62704 8 years ago

I dont think hank was schizophrenic at all, if all the stuff about munny came from his imagination then why:
- manny didnt speak at the first meet, hank was ready to hang himself 2 times, if i was at his place i would definitly make manny speak at that time.
- be scare and punch manny when he said ‘okay buddy’.
- he could escape the island only with a dead body and his imagination.

There is also the first witness. That little girl who did see manny alive (really funny scene by the way)
for me the final its to make understand that hank wasnt crazy at all and to make understand a bunch of society people that impossible is possible. And if we think that way as a film who explore hank emotion and great friendship via a dead body with super power. The final have the right to be like this.

Only the name "sarah" bother me. May manny have the power to read mind ...

By the way i wonder what manny say to hank before leaving to the ocean.

Or hank really hang at the first time and he is dead since the beginning (yeah bad plot)

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

Interesting angle

I've also come to realize the name 'Manny' could have 2 meanings....1 for Mannequin (which I explain in the main post) and 2...Manifest, as Manny is a manifestation of Hanks' imagination...Could support your approach.

[–] lethalblonde 8 years ago

In regard to the idea of a "witness," the little girl said "he" though, when she told her mother about the getting lost in the woods and needing help--she didn't say "they." Which leads me to believe the only person she spoke to was Hank.

I'm definitely in the camp that does not believe Manny literally, physically did anything during this story--he was just a companion that was animated only through Hank's mind, because of his desperate need for connection. Fairly early on, I started to see everything Manny said as things Hank had said or was saying to himself. All of his doubts and fears and desires were reflected in Manny's words. Interestingly enough, his delusion/hallucination was what brought him back from suicide to the real world instead of further away from it. The more animated Many got as Hank explained to him what life was, the closer Hank was to getting back to life and instead of living in the sheltered, pretend world he'd created for himself in the woods. That's how I see it, anyway. And I think the same way Lars lets his Real Doll girlfriend in "Lars and the Real Girl" drift away in the pond and "die," Hank lets Manny go, and, I believe, imagines that last motor through the water and the resulting reactions in the onlookers.

Never settle with words what you can accomplish with a flamethrower.

[–] KazKazui 8 years ago

The ending reminds me a bit of "Take Shelter". You think the whole time that everything is in the head of the main character who develops a mental disorder, but in the final scene his family also sees the storm and black rain coming.
My interpretation for the ending of Swiss Army Man is that we, the viewer, start to get into Hanks head. We start to see what he sees or wants to see - which doesn't mean that it really happens.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

Exactly....Then that ending happens lol

[–] leedslunatic 8 years ago

I thought it was him slipping off back into his own reality? The handcuffs click, he closes his eyes and boom he is imagining that perfect ending. The ''what the *beep*'' quote was a genuine wtf at the whole situation, of this clearly 'sick' man.

I mean, couldn't the whole 'don't use the word retard' be because he has some sort of illness that his father obviously cannot understand and feels embarrassed about? Hence the 'what are you trying to do to me' comment he gives, then follows up with 'don't be a retard' or something like that. I hope i'm right or else the Writers/Director really *beep* us in the ass with that ending.

[–] MikeRydal 8 years ago

I like your angle there. the idea of the ending being Hanks' resignation from reality...good call sir!

[–] KazKazui 8 years ago

What I meant is, maybe that's what he's seeing in the end, what he WANTS to see, but I'm not sure if this really happens in reality.

[–] leedslunatic 8 years ago

My point exactly. If it's perfectly plausible that he is often slipping in and out of his own reality throughout the film, why not the ending as well?