---
title: "Swiss Army Man: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/swiss-army-man/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/swiss-army-man"
critics_score: 64
critics_reviews: 26
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Swiss Army Man (2016): what the critics said

Critics' score 64 from 26 reviews: 15 positive, 6 mixed, 5 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to Swiss Army Man, though the reviews are sharply divided over its mixture of bodily-function comedy and loneliness. Praise centres on Daniel Radcliffe’s physical performance as a multi-purpose corpse, with Paul Dano’s commitment and the pair’s chemistry also drawing approval. Supporters find the friendship unexpectedly moving and the images inventive, arguing that the film’s absurdity gives it a direct way to discuss embarrassment, mortality and human connection.

The disagreement is over how much feeling and thought the fart jokes can sustain. Some otherwise favourable reviews flag slack pacing or an unsatisfying finale; less persuaded critics find the sincerity forced and the characters thin. The Guardian rejects the combination of juvenile humour and philosophical ambition, while The New Yorker also disputes the praise for the images and performances. The spread is wide: what moves admirers strikes detractors as cloying.

## Empire — Chris Hewitt

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2016. 

The critic describes it as a gloriously inventive fable about humanity that is hilarious, moving and profound, calling it one of the year’s best films. They single out the originality of the images and Radcliffe’s astonishing performance as Manny for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/swiss-army-man-review/)

## The New York Times — Jeannette Catsoulis

Rating Critic's Pick. 23 June 2016. 

The film is a weird and wonderful, disgusting and demented buddy movie in which one man’s dead body nudges another back to life. It is an impossible-to-categorize, stunningly original mix of the macabre and the magical that creates an atmosphere of effluvial enchantment through acting, music, photography and effects.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/24/movies/swiss-army-man-review-paul-dano-daniel-radcliffe.html)

## Slant Magazine — Christopher Gray

Rating 3.5/4. 22 June 2016. 

The film dares viewers to embrace its singular earnestness as a buddy comedy and love story about bodies, language, and connection in the smartphone era. It achieves a visionary achievement in vitality and transparency from its hero but ends with a disappointing, elusive finale.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/swiss-army-man/)

## The i Paper — Matthew Turner

Rating 4/5. 30 September 2016. 

The critic calls it a surprisingly moving and very funny black comedy that blends the profound and the puerile. They single out the inventive direction and Radcliffe’s committed, outstanding performance as Manny for praise.

[Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/swiss-army-man-review-surprisingly-moving-23756)

## The Telegraph

Rating 4/5. 29 September 2016. 

The film poses a critical quandary due to its bizarre premise but the critic recommends it, praising the singular gonzo indie spirit and the energetic performances from both leads.

[Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/swiss-army-man-review-daniel-radcliffes-farting-corpse-rises-to/)

## Total Film

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 29 January 2016. Festival review. 

The critic finds the film sweeter and more sensitive than its premise suggests, with absurd laughs that give way to something deeper and more personal. They single out the emerging friendship between the leads and the emotional payoff for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/daniel-radcliffe-farting-corpse-movie-swiss-army-man/)

## The AV Club — A.A. Dowd

Rating B. 23 June 2016. 

The film announces itself as the bugfuck American comedy of the year, balancing rubbery slapstick and body horror with existential despair and unexpected emotional investment. It benefits from the stars' full commitment and a hand-made, myopic POV that rescues it from preciousness.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/swiss-army-man-is-somehow-even-crazier-than-it-looks-1798188200)

## IndieWire — Russ Fischer

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 23 January 2016. Festival review. 

The Sundance review highlights the film's bizarre premise and the strong lead performances amid its surreal buddy-comedy elements.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/sundance-review-swiss-army-man-starring-paul-dano-daniel-radcliffe-mary-elizabeth-winstead-88224/)

## Sight and Sound — Adam Nayman

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2016. 

The critic highlights the film's inventive mix of silliness and sobriety as a body-buddy comedy, praising Daniel Radcliffe's physical performance as the corpse and its exploration of masculinity, embarrassment and the acceptance of death.

[Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-swiss-army-man)

## Variety — Peter Debruge

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 22 January 2016. Festival review. 

Paul Dano discovers all the tools he needs for survival in Daniel Radcliffe's multi-purpose corpse in this wildly weird comedy that imagines “Cast Away” meets “Weekend at Bernie’s.” It represents an iconoclastic personal vision that delivers gonzo foolishness but drags in places despite inventive sequences.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/swiss-army-man-film-review-1201685807/)

## Los Angeles Times — Robert Abele

Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 23 June 2016. 

The forcefully quirky “Swiss Army Man” expels a lot trying to convince viewers its bruised-emo wilderness yarn is whimsically imaginative, with its odd pairing of a stranded neurotic and a gaseous cadaver. There is more than a whiff of overwrought dude pity to this spottily amusing absurdist adventure that shows style but ultimately has a limited and cloying emotional palette.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-swiss-army-man-review-20160620-snap-story.html)

## Screen Daily

Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 23 January 2016. Festival review. 

The review describes the film as audacious and oddly emotional but ultimately unsatisfying, noting its wilfully strange take on masculinity and male bonding.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/swiss-army-man-sundance-review/5099225.article)

## The Hollywood Reporter — Leslie Felperin

Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 22 January 2016. Festival review. 

The critic finds the surreal debut enchanting yet irritating and juvenile, but also oddly endearing and audacious in style. Performances by Dano and Radcliffe add tragic fragility and chemistry to the bodily-function humor.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/swiss-army-man-sundance-review-858537)

## Little White Lies — Little White Lies

Rating 3/2/2. 26 September 2016. 

The reviewers find the fart-driven premise ultimately flat and the film self-indulgent, though they acknowledge its originality and the committed performances of the leads.

[Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/swiss-army-man/)

## The New Yorker — Richard Brody

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 16 June 2016. 

This excruciatingly cute fantasy lives up to its “farting-corpse movie” epithet as a shipwrecked man drags a flatulent corpse through the wild and harnesses its bodily functions for survival. The directors smother a hint of an idea about responsible masculinity in bland images, wheedling and sentimental performances, and banal emotions.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/swiss-army-man-2)

## The Times — Kate Muir

Rating ★★☆☆☆. 30 September 2016. 

Radcliffe is game but playing a fart-powered corpse is a step too far in this surreal comedy that ultimately proves discombobulating rather than outrageously funny.

[Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/comedy/article/swiss-army-man-3ktg3z5kx)

## Time Out — Joshua Rothkopf

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 23 January 2016. Festival review. 

The critic dismisses the film as puerile and infantile, criticizing its reliance on fart jokes and banal emotional core despite the committed cast performances.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/swiss-army-man)

## The Guardian

Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 2 October 2016. 

The critic finds the film's juvenile subject matter and fart gags insufferable, especially paired with pretensions of philosophical depth. A dead loss overall.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/oct/02/swiss-army-man-review-daniel-radcliffe-dead)

## HeyUGuys — Nathan McVay

Rating 5/5. 1 February 2016. Festival review. 

The critic praises the film's unique absurdity and heart, highlighting the chemistry between Dano and Radcliffe in this Sundance debut.

[Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/swiss-army-man-review/)

## Den of Geek — Wil Jones

Rating 4 out of 5. 29 September 2016. 

The film is a triumph and the arrival of a strong new cinematic voice, a meditation on life and death that is beautiful, inventive and often hilarious. It singles out Daniel Radcliffe's star-making, odd and subtle performance as the corpse for particular praise.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/swiss-army-man-review-2/)

## Digital Spy — Rosie Fletcher

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2016. 

The film is a poignant masterpiece and one of the most inventive and sensitive of the year, a bold and original debut that has something important to say. It singles out Daniel Radcliffe's perfect, brilliant performance as the corpse and the astounding visuals for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a808538/swiss-army-man-review-turns-out-the-farting-corpse-movie-is-poignant-masterpiece/)

## Collider — Adam Chitwood

Rating B+. 22 June 2016. 

The critic praises the film's originality and ambition as a unique meditation on life and death, highlighting the terrific and fearless performances by Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe that make the strange premise sing despite some overreach in the finale and overly juvenile humor.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/swiss-army-man-review-daniel-radcliffe/)

## /Film — Angie Han

Rating 7.0/10. 24 June 2016. Festival review. 

The critic appreciates the film's blend of absurdity and beauty, praising Radcliffe's performance and the exploration of loneliness and bodily functions.

[Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/542299/swiss-army-man-sundance-review/)

## The Wrap — Dave White

Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 24 June 2016. 

The debut feature from the Daniels is visually inventive but more fun to look at than listen to, with an overly earnest script full of familiar indie oddballery and post-adolescent insights. Radcliffe’s physical performance and the directors’ commitment to ambiguity stand out as highlights amid complaints about a precious folk soundtrack and forced sincerity.

[Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/swiss-army-man-review/)

## The Playlist — Russ Fischer

Rating C-. 23 June 2016. 

The critic finds the film a big swing but ultimately unsatisfying, with committed performances but tonal issues and juvenile elements that fail to connect emotionally.

[Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/daniel-radcliffe-paul-dano-surreal-fight-survival-swiss-army-man-review-20160623/)

## Polygon — Russ Frushtick

Fi1m's normalised score 45/100 (inferred from the text). 22 June 2016. 

The film takes chances with lofty themes made digestible through flatulence and delivers occasional visual and auditory highlights via strong music and art direction, but the script fails to sustain its runtime with weak, shallow characters and blunt, boring dialog sequences.

[Read the review](https://www.polygon.com/2016/6/22/11994202/swiss-army-man-review-just-passing-through/)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/swiss-army-man.md