Mickey 17 review: 'A unhinged, directionless journey through space'

After a long wait, Bong Joon Ho's Mickey 17 has finally arrived, and its nothing like anyone would have expected.

After his blistering success with Parasite, fans eagerly waited for Bong Joon Ho’s next outing and what it would entail. But for a while, it was up in the air whether we would ever see his next release. 

After repeated delays and barely any footage, it was starting to seem like one big collective fever dream.

Yet, here we are. Mickey 17, starring Robert Pattison as well as some of Hollywood's biggest stars has finally arrived. Is it the release anyone would have expected after Parasite? No, definitely not. Is that a good thing? I’m not sure.

Things are not going well for Robert Pattinson's innocent and weasley Mickey. He owes money to a big kingpin and has nowhere else to turn. So when he and his friend, a term I use loosely, Timo (Steven Yeun) are given the chance to get off the planet and have a fresh start, he takes it without hesitation. 

However, he maybe should have read the fineprint a little bit closer.

Unbeknownst to Mickey, he has signed up to be an expendable. A role where he dies, again and again, and again in increasingly worse ways, all for the sole purpose of helping progress humanity in the most twisted way possible.

If things weren’t already complicated enough, after a rare mission where he survives, Mickey 17, gets home to see there is a new version of himself, the nonchalant and independent Mickey 18. Which is apparently where they draw the line.

It is up to Mickey 17 and 18 and his ferocious girlfriend Nasha (Naomi Ackie) to stop the impending execution of Mickey by Donald Tr…

Wait. Checks notes, Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo). My mistake.

It's not uncommon for Bong Joon Ho to walk the lines of genres in his movies to the point where you can't quite pinpoint what it exactly is. However, that line is as blurry as it’s ever been in his newest outing.

The majority of the 137-minute run time feels empty. Almost like we are also meandering through space with brief moments of excitement. Which usually would become quite a chore to sit through, if it wasn't for the excellent cast he had assembled.

Yeun’s unhinged portrayal of Timo always produces a laugh. In fact, my only complaint was that I wanted him to be more pivotal to the wider plot. Ackie, equally as unhinged, is having a great time in this movie and provides just as many bad-ass moments as she does funny ones. 

Everyone in the cast is bringing their most deranged selves to each of their characters. Which if nothing else is a treat to watch unfold.

Having to act with yourself has proved to be a difficult task. Just ask Adam Sandler in Jack & Jill. Yet, with his usual charm and commitment, Pattinson shines as Mickey. The

chemistry he has with himself is great and the way he effortlessly portrays the nervous coward as Mickey 17 to the blasé extrovert as Mickey 18 makes for some truly hysterical moments.

One thing is clear though, Joon Ho, does not like Donald Trump. Ruffalo’s performance as the controversial President, Kenneth Marshall, is uncanny. Some moments it felt like he was doing a stronger impression of him than Sebastian Stan was in The Apprentice.

As the film progresses, you realise that Joon Ho clearly imagined him losing. Watching a disgraced politician leave Earth to conquer a planet in space because they had lost two elections is something we could all picture Trump doing, but would have been a lot more poignant if he had actually lost.

Outside the clear distaste for Trump, it still has great moments littered throughout. Especially in its third act when things really kick into gear. Somehow, despite so many seemingly pointless things going on, it all comes to fruition in an exciting and satisfying showdown.

Which is a credit to Joon Ho’s ability to direct. If only the rest of the movie was as engaging to watch as those final 30 minutes were.

It's an ambitious story which is grand in its messaging, but that is also the film's biggest downfall. He touches on many things which seem like the makings of something truly compelling, just to leave them, which ultimately left me wanting more.

It may be better with time. The loud objections about Trump will only age better and better as we go through his four years. Give it time, and we may even look back at this film similar to how we look at a Simpsons episode prediction.

But the many juggling plates of styles and story direction stop this from being another masterpiece. Which is no sly. An average Joon Ho movie is much more fun and thought-provoking than most directors' best work.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2