Six years on since his satirical thriller Parasite surpassed all expectations and won the rounds at that year’s Oscars, South Korean director Bong Joon-ho makes his return to the big screen with Mickey 17, a wild, big-budget adaptation of the novel Mickey7, by Edward Ashton. Though it retains the same satirical bite, Mickey 17, which stars Robert Pattinson, Naomie Ackie, and Mark Ruffalo, establishes a very different tone to that of Parasite, which gives it a refreshingly unique feel.
Mickey 7 uses its out-there humour and sci-fi concepts to tell a tale that simultaneously is incredibly fun whilst also commenting on issues around capitalism, the environment, and colonialism. It effectively shines a light on our contemporary political climate, but still tells its own story, exploring some really intriguing ideas throughout.
Pattinson plays Mickey, a down-on-his-luck guy who’s gradually come to see his whole life as one grand punishment. Chased by loan sharks and out of options, he signs up for a job no one else has, as an “expendable,” on a mission led by failed politician Kenneth Marshall to colonise a new, ‘pure’ world. As an expendable, Mickey – whose mind is uploaded to a bio-printer – is given the often-fatal jobs that no one else can do, and is even used as a lab rat, in the knowledge that he can then be immediately brought back in a new body. And he continues going through this, cycling through body after body, throughout the long voyage towards the colonist’s new home.
Pattinson is great here, cementing himself as easily one of the most interesting and versatile big-name actors working currently. Pattinson particularly gets to stretch his acting chops in the second half of the film, when his survival of a near-death accident leads to multiple versions of himself being printed out. Pattinson is able to effectively differentiate the two different roles he’s given, to the point where viewers are easily able to discern between the sweet but goofy oddball that is Mickey Number 17, someone who at once seems dim yet likeable, and his far more assertive, aggressive duplicate, No.18.
The film itself is less effective at showing us why exactly these two versions of the same character differ so much, or in ever fleshing the character out beyond these few differences. We are shown in an earlier scene that there is an error in the brain upload for No.17, due to carelessness on the part of the lab technicians, but it’s a moment largely just played for laughs. The setup is a brilliant one that feels very reminiscent of the 2009 sci-fi film Moon, which featured a similar premise based around corporate exploitation of cloning. Much like Moon, Mickey 17 effectively highlights the differences between the two copies, to the point where the audience is easily able to discern between them. However, it doesn’t go as far in showcasing why this should be, or in using these differences to go any deeper into who these characters are under the surface.
The rest of the cast are equally impressive here. Ruffalo is clearly having a lot of fun here, giving his best Trump impression – even down to the scar from a would-be assassin – in his role as the sleazy, image obsessed Marshall, a brilliantly realised character who is at once an amalgamation of modern and contemporary fascists, and the most despicable examples of the religious right. Naomi Ackie is also particularly impressive here as love interest Nasha, imbuing the character with a real burning sense of rage against injustices which, because of how both versions of Mickey are portrayed, is not something we get as much of from him.
The film is able to deftly weave in its themes of corporate exploitation and self-identity with a consistently comedic and absurdist time throughout, that helps to sell the more outrageous aspects to the plot. There’s some great world building throughout, in its portrayals of the Earth that’s been left behind, the political and social controversies surrounding body duplication, and the icy planet on which the settlers land, as well as how its inhabitants, the Creepers, are realised. These creatures, and the attempt to save them from extermination, all make for a really creative third act. The Creepers themselves make for a highly memorable depiction of alien life, and are very much reminiscent of Jung-hoo’s previous masterpiece, Okja, which similarly highlighted issues around animal rights and environmental exploitation.
Mickey 17 may not always be as deep as it could be, and often lacks in subtlety, with some characters that verge just short of parody. But in a cinematic landscape that seems ever more obsessed with endlessly regurgitating reboots for established IPs, it is incredibly refreshing to have a film that feels as unique and distinctive as this one does. This is what science fiction should be doing, exploring its concepts to tell stories which can reflect on the real-world and give viewers an experience different to anything else they may get elsewhere.
REVIEW SCORE: 4.5/5
