Review: Mickey 17 – “Witty and timely.”

Robert Pattinson stars as the titular Mickey 17 and Mickey 18, two duplicates of the original Mickey who had signed up to travel to the planet Niflheim led by the charismatic orange-faced Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo). If this sounds like a mouthful, that’s because it is, but director Bong Joon-Ho’s steady hand keeps the film from collapsing under its own weight.

Set in the not-too-distant future, cloning technology has developed to the point that people can be 3D printed with ease. Mickey is desperate to leave Earth and volunteers to be used as a lab rat on the space voyage to Niflheim. Each clone flops out of the machine, and Robert Patinson does a brilliant job in physical comedy each time he gets printed.

Mickey 17 runs into trouble when he manages to survive falling down an icy crevasse and returns to base to find Mickey 18, a somehow more confident and aggressive version of him. The two Mickey’s compete for the affections of their girlfriend Nasha (Naomi Ackie is brilliant) and to be the one Mickey who gets to live as “duplicates” are banned. The film shifts between comedy and thriller before Bong Joon-Ho focuses on the social commentary of a failed politician leading his red-hatted followers into space.

There’s no subtlety about who is being parodied or the points it wants to make, which is refreshing for a film to be clear in its inspiration and papers over the cracks in character motivations. Kenneth Marshall is fun to watch as he motivates the crew while cutting their rations and not to expend calories by having sex, promising a “boom” in sexual activity when they land in Nifleheim. The film was due to release last year, probably assuming a Trump loss, but I think its release now makes the film more hopeful of what a Trump term will ultimately lead to.

Mickey 17 has a lot going on: aliens, cloning, revolutions and human testing, to name a few. Witty and timely, I think it’s a film to see on the big screen, away from your phone. Fans of Bong Joon-Ho will not be disappointed, while more casual viewers will certainly be in for a wild sci-fi comedy/thriller ride.

Mickey 17 hits cinemas on 7th March 2025.