Via Rotten Tomatoes
By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
Robert Pattinson has come a long way since the “Twilight” franchise, seemingly improving his craft with every performance. He gives one such fine performance in “Mickey 17,” a science fiction adventure from the creative mind of Oscar winner Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”). Infused with dark comedy, this is a storyline that is unique with a deep cast that generates enough entertainment for a satisfying trip to the theater.
Caught up in a dire financial situation with his friend Timo (Steven Yeun), Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) looks to escape Earth and their debt collectors by joining an expedition to colonize an icy planet. Unfortunately, with no real skills to speak of, Mickey is only able to get a spot on this space journey as an “expendable.” He basically becomes the scientists’ testing dummy, given the most dangerous and unwanted jobs, enduring horrific deaths, but then reprinted the next day with his memories downloaded to his new body.
After 16 grueling deaths, the 17th version of Mickey somehow survives an alien encounter with a vicious looking species, only to return to his room aboard the spaceship to find they already regenerated him an 18th time. The expedition’s political leaders, Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo) and his wife Ylfa (Toni Collette), forbid multiples, declaring it a death sentence for all copies. A serious incident involving the home planet’s native species threatens the entire crew of colonists, putting the Mickeys on a temporary reprieve as they try to figure out how to save everyone including themselves.
While not as rich in complexity as 2019’s “Parasite,” which won four Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director, “Mickey 17” has its fair share of creativity and dark humor to make it an appealing watch for audiences. Writer/director Bong Joon Ho adapts the novel “Mickey7” by Edward Ashton into a clever sci-fi film that accentuates the desensitized outlook of death. He purposefully eliminates compassion and humanity directed at the main character, effectively turning him into the equivalent of a lab rat. Bong further devalues this main character with subtle cinematography and a very nondescript look that denotes his low social stature. This sets the stage for him being viewed in a hopeless and pathetic light, giving him an underdog mentality that is overlooked and underestimated by the other characters.
With this setup, Bong Joon Ho telegraphs the obvious conclusion, leaving no room for guesswork and somewhat losing audience interest as the film approaches the final act. However, he does assist in buoying the entertainment value with his inclusion of dark comedy. The humor is reminiscent of “Idiocracy,” especially with the scientist characters portrayed to be fairly lazy and incompetent and the political characters flamboyantly over-the-top. Coupled with well-written dialogue, this creates comical situations that mimic current society.
This film is elevated by outstanding acting performances, led by Robert Pattinson who has the difficult task of playing the multitude of Mickey variations. The British actor flexes his range, perfectly demonstrating how his character slowly evolves or devolves with every death and regeneration. His growing sense of subservience and depressing acceptance of his morbid situation mixed with a broiling inner rage underscores the depth of his various characters, making him an intriguing must watch. With an increasing amount of quality character performances from “The Lighthouse” to “The Batman,” Pattinson is proving to be quite a talent not to be overlooked.
The supporting cast complements Pattinson’s performance nicely, especially Naomi Ackie who was impressive in last year’s “Blink Twice.” She plays the main character’s love interest, who comes across very one-dimensionally at first but reveals a growing depth as the film progresses. Like he did in “Poor Things,” Mark Ruffalo imbues his character with eccentricity, making the failed politician on Earth with ambitions of being king on the new planet comically satirical. Then there’s Toni Collette, who hilariously plays the callous wife of Ruffalo’s character, manipulating him to do her bidding at every turn.
As satirically funny as this film may be, “Mickey 17” disappointingly strays from its creative concept to strangely pursue a common “Avatar” style plot. Still, there’s enough ingenuity, humor, and stellar performances to make this latest sci-fi excursion from Bong Joon Ho worth a trip to the theater.
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