STARRING: Robert Pattinson, Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Mark Rufalo and Toni Collette. Written and directed by Bong Joon-ho, based on the novel by Edward Ashton. Budget $118 million. Running time 137 mintues long.
It's the near future, Earth is fucked and man is heading for the stars and Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) and his childhood friend Timo (Steven Yeun) are in deep doo-do. They owe money to a psychotic loanshark who gets his jollies watching torture snuff porn of those who fail to pay him back.
With nothing to lose the two friends decide to hitch a ride on a 4 1/2 year journey to a new planet, with Timo as a pilot and Mickey, with no skills, as an 'Expendable', a cloned indentured worker who can be printed anew every time he dies. They set sail on a star ship controlled by Donald Trump, known in this film as Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo) and his puppet-master wife, Ylfa (Toni Collette) a food, or should that be sauce obsessed foodie.
The first 16 Mickeys meet horrible deaths as they're tested for radiation poisoning, experimented on in medical experimentation or just squandered in a series of near trivial accidents until they reach the new planet, a world stuck in seemingly perpetual winter and popluated by giant sentient woodlice. Over the years Mickey has become quite the fixature on the ship and ended up in a longterm, loving relationship with security officer Nasha Barridge (Naomi Ackie).
Luck shits on Mickey when he ends up at the bottom of an ice cavern about to be devoured by the woodlice now nicknamed Creepers. However, against the odds, rather than kill and eat him, the Creepers rescue him out of the carven and he returns to his ship only to discover that believing him to be dead, Mickey 18 has been printed.
And that's against the law...
A lot has been said and expected of Bon Joon-ho, especially after his superb 2019 movie Parasite, which went on to win Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay much to the absolute chagrin of Donald Dump (the worst president in history) who went on a ridiculous rant about it winning. So, perhaps it's hardly surprising Dump plays a major part in this, Bon Joon-ho's eighth film. Some critics are unfairly comparing this, Mickey 17 with Parasite and finding it wanting. But then that's critics for you, not happy unless they're whinging about something. "Oh, why isn't this just like that was? I liked that and now I have to watch this and it's different." Critics are wankers, every last man-jack of them and I should know, I'm not happy unless I'm not only bashing the bishop but smashing the living shit out of him.
And so to the film.
Well, it's nothing like Parasite, which I found very annoying, I mean that won three Oscars and this is about something entirely different, even though it's made by the same man. So, I couldn't use any of my previous review on that to use on this. I'm going to have to make up new stuff, which is really annoying.
Well this is a much more light-hearted and funny outing than Parasite, it deftly explores notions of what it means to be human, and mankind's relentless decline, climate change and immigration, although the out and out comedy and tongue in cheek approach does lessen the blows. Robert Pattison is excellent as all the Mickeys, giving each a slight spin, but the standout performance is that of Ruffalo's Kenneth Marshall, a Donnie Dump of the ages, an arrogant, oafish, bore and utter asshole just out to make a fast buck for himself while proclaming himself the best at everything. Together with a superb Toni Collette as Ylfa, his wife, they give us pantomine villains we can boo and hiss at with glee.
With excellent special effects, some inspired creature design and CGI in the Creepers and a gripping action packed third act this is a satisfying but emotionally flat comedy romp that feels vastly different from the usual Hollywood comedy fair and coupled with the fact this isn't a franchise, or sequel but something new makes it worth a butchers, even if it is based on a book.
A time machine of a movie that makes the 117 minutes simply fly by, Pattison is great, but Rufallo and Collette steal the film and Naomi Ackie is a delight.
8/10
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