A cat supposedly has nine lives. But what if there was no limit at all? That’s the premise behind “Mickey 17.”
This isn’t a new idea – the sci-fi flick “Moon” used a similar premise – except it was the twist that came near the end of the story. Here, it begins up front. “Moon was a stark drama – this is slapstick in space, with Mickey as a slightly simple slacker whose now on his 17th iteration thanks to a human 3-D printer and insertion of ever updated memories.
Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson – “The Batman”) and his buddy Timo (Steven Yeun – “The Walking Dead”) have gotten themselves in deep trouble with a loan shark who kills those who fail to pay back with a double-blade chainsaw. Desperate, they volunteer to be crewmen on a space freighter headed to colonize a planet 4.5 years distant. The enterprise is being led by a charismatic former politician Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo – “Poor Things”) and his manipulative wife Yifa (Toni Collette – “Goodbye June”). These two live in luxury while the rest of the hundreds of crew members struggle with minimal, loathsome food and boring tasks.
Arriving at the frozen planet Niflheim – in Norse mythology the afterlife for those who do not die a heroic death, Mickey falls into a crevasse and is given up for dead. However, the natives of the planet – tardigrade (water bear) like creatures, named by the human colonists “Creepers” – rescue him and he returns to the ship. To his horror, during his absence a new Micky – number 18 – has been printed and has taken his place. This Mickey is a more cynical and aggressive version who quickly realizes that the Marshalls, who follow a corporate/religious philosophy will see the simultaneous existence of two Mickeys as an abomination. A series of humorous events result.
South Korean writer/director Bong Joon Ho (“Snowpiercer”) has expanded on the 2002 novel “Mickey 7” by Edward Ashton. Questions of the meaning of humanity, the value of human life, the conflict of indigenous versus alien, and the hollowness of authoritarianism are all here to be explored.
Pattison gives an excellent performance (or performances since he plays both Mickey’s with different characterizations). He displays a comic flair different for the romantic (“Twilight”) and stoic (“The Batman”) interpretations we’ve seen in past roles. Ruffalo and Collette, on the other hand, play their parts as crude caricatures of a buffoonish strongman who needs guidance from his wife. Remove the wife and you have a broad reference to Donald Trump, although Bong insists this is not true. There is even a Steven Miller-ish chief advisor.
This is an amusing film that follows in a long line of stylish, provocative work from Bong, and while not his best, it is well worth your time.
Runtime: Two hours, 17 minutes
Availability: Second run theaters, streaming on many services
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