Mickey 17 – Bong Joon Ho’s Fascist Satire (Early Review)

The month of march opens with one of the more intriguing films of the year, Mickey 17. Bong Joon Ho’s latest explores the concept of humanity through a sci-fi satire of fascism and colonial politics, exposing audiences to a reality that is a bit too real yet is separated by the vacuum of space. The sci-fi genre has historically excelled in its exploration of current themes through the lens of a near or distant future serving as an allegory for today. Here, Bong utilizes the genre to pronounced effect, taking audiences off Earth and onto a ship helmed by a fascist regime hellbent on colonizing an unknown planet.

Their first steps towards innovation run through a man named Mickey (Pattinson), otherwise known as an expendable. Expendables are essentially human crash test dummies who feed the wheel of progress. This could mean testing poisoned air, the fauna, the limitations of the human body, and more. These tasks were not without risk, thus making Mickey the perfect man for the job. Putting his life on the line every time, he did not always survive. After each subsequent death, a clone of Mickey is then printed out, using the memories of the previous incarnation, before sending the clone to the next suicide mission. Mickey’s life proved to be a bleak one, however, Bong approaches this with his signature brand of tragicomedy, not forgetting the tragedy underlining it all. A tragedy that is further sold through Pattinson’s fantastic performance as Mickey, a transformative yet strange performance that constantly tows the line between tragedy and comedy where he gets to the heart of what makes Mickey so human.

One day, executing his latest suicide mission, Mickey shockingly survives and returns to his ship, only to discover another Mickey in the place where he sleeps. Expecting the latest Mickey to not survive, the cycle continued to push forward, despite the fact that the previous Mickey incarnation survived his last mission. From there, the film explores the notion of multiples and the existential nature of the expendable program as Mickey discovers his own humanity while seeking to carve out a life for himself, rather than the next version. That plan, however, was not without obstacles, with the biggest being Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo), the ships fascist overseer, and his wife Ylfa (Toni Collette). The two were dead set on the colonization and domineering over a populus away from the authority on Earth, with Mickey right under their thumb. As the threat of multiples looming large, Mickey must navigate not only the ship, but himself, proving that his life has worth.

An adaptation of the book ‘Mickey 7’ by Edward Ashton, Mickey 17 encounters much of the same pitfalls when it comes to adaptations, as it struggles to handle its themes and subplots within its runtime, resulting in a clunky pace and messy structure. Had it either cut one of its subplots, or added more time to better flesh out the source material. For the most part, the final product feels uneven, struggling to cohesively explore its elements to the fullest. Where the film truly shines is within its commentary on the human soul and existential plight Mickey faces as Bong explores these themes in tandem with his signature class commentary. He initiates a dialogue, not unlike films such as Parasite, but in a way that is more overtly comedic and broader than his other films.

As the film starts to find its stride, the film changes its focus to a satire on fascism and dictatorships through the farce of Marshall, played hysterically by Ruffalo. Much in the vein of Poor Things, he taps into that style of performance as a character that is equal parts Donald Trump and Tim Heidecker. Ruffalo captures the absurdity through mannerisms and careful jaw positioning, all while Ylfa makes sure he says the right thing. He and Collette bring the film its most overt comedy, serving as farcical representations of their respective roles. The satire, although funny, comes off as a bit too direct before it begins to falter later on.

In the end, Mickey 17 is a film where everything within it works. It’s funny, tragic, well-acted, well directed, well shot, etc. But it is also one that crumbles under its own weight; to cover everything, it struggles to support one consistent thesis and elevate, ultimately keeping the film to being great. The result may be a fun yet messy film with a prescient narrative but for everything it does right, it all makes for a lesser effort from Bong Joon Ho. That being said, a lesser effort from Bong is still plenty reason to celebrate, his excellence as a filmmaker nevertheless shines through.

still courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

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Brad Simon

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