'Mickey 17' Breathes Some Life
Nobody does zany quite like Bong Joon Ho. Mickey 17 is no exception. For a follow-up film from Parasite, Mickey 17 is a bonkers dark comedy that, although it has a long-running time, feels like it's a half-hour shorter than it really is. It takes the idea of Edge of Tomorrow, transforming it into a silly version of it. It's a laugh riot that also carries a meaning to it. It's not just Robert Pattinson respawning multiple times. It's a film about the poor being used by an oppressive ruler, played by Mark Ruffalo, who cares more about his ego than the safety of his citizens.
Mickey 17 is about a desperately poor man entering a program that is more than he signed up for. That is if he was patient enough to read the job description's paperwork. Against his better judgment, he applies as an expendable during a space expedition. The mission is to colonize an ice planet. To test out the planet's atmosphere, Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) is used to check the air without a helmet and discover wildlife that could be threatening. At the beginning of the film, we see a frostbitten-looking corpse. He slowly peels the snow off his goggles, revealing Mickey. He's then met by a colony of gigantic worms who spare his life. The opening scene plays a central part of the story in its third act. We then get a narration from Mickey telling us how he got to be where he is.
Mickey signed up for a program that 3D prints his body in a device that looks like an MRI scanner. The machine not only prints another copy of Mickey but also transfers his memories to each clone. It's a great visual gag when we see Mickey getting printed. His body on the rollers of the machine gets jacked back and forth like an actual printer. It's a subtle but amusing gag. The movie could run the risk of it being a repetitious gag where it keeps killing Mickey off 16 times until we run into the 17th version of him. Instead, the movie gets you involved with the 17th Mickey, who's getting tired of dying all the time. Adding to Mickey 17's problem, there's an 18th version of him. There aren't supposed to be two versions. There are rules against multiples. That is, one must be exterminated. Two cannot co-exist, or there will be too many.
Mickey 18 doesn't take to Mickey 17 very well. The two are at odds, as one wants to kill the other. Hats off to Robert Pattinson for giving each Mickey a different voice. Mickey 17 sounds like a pushover dork but has the looks of a movie star. Mickey 18 is a tough guy who doesn't give a damn about anyone. With a little bit of Batman's gravel in his vocal cords for Mickey 18, Robert Pattinson shapes two very distinct characters. Pattinson is great in everything he does. He never sounds the same in each movie. He's not phoning in his dialogue like Johnny Depp did for Tim Burton. Pattinson is more like a diet Gary Oldman. Where Oldman is almost unrecognizable in some roles, we always recognize Robert, yet he never plays the same character. From Good Times to The Lighthouse to Mickey 17, there's a range in versatility that many fellow well-known actors can't pull off.
The other characters, aside from Nasha (Naomi Ackie) and Timo (Steven Yeun), exaggerate their roles. The rest of the cast rises to the occasion for an over-the-top script. Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo) acts a bit like he did in Poor Things, but at a level where he's almost yelling every line of dialogue. Typically, this would annoy me, but the situations in the film call for him to be larger than life. His wife, Ylfa (Toni Collette), plays her role like she's Cruella de Vil. She is always condescending and cruel and is the voice that commands her husband to do her bidding. The couple comes off like clowns in a movie that is doing more than just clowning around.
There's a not-so-subtle line where Kenneth Marshall declares he wants an all-white planet. Marshall serves the purpose of reminding the audience how quickly things can go south in their country. Run by millionaires and billionaires, people like Mickey are used just to die. Marshal's law doesn't allow room for decency; he thrives on chaos. Bong Joon Ho is making it easy to see who Kenneth Marshall resembles. It's not just one man, but all the other men like him. Mickey is simply the sad loser who gets used to being put under an oppressive system that targets the desperate. Does he fight back? Watch the movie to find out. Although it has dark themes, Mickey 17 is a fun dark comedy. Its social commentary is fairly biting for a funny movie. Does it live up to Parasite? Not even close. It's a derivation of a sci-fi genre that lands well-timed laughs and moments of bombastic energy to make for an enjoyable flick. It might not be the most memorable one. The film lands on a bit of an underwhelming note that's a bit too rosy for the flick's grim tones. But it's Bong Joon Ho's signature style that elevates the film.
