I avoided trailers for this movie like the plague. The reason? I was reading Edward Ashton’s novel Mickey 7 and wanted to experience it fully. But it turns out that both source material and movie are quite complementary. Mickey 17 is a dark comedies with a side of existential dread. Directed by Bong Joon Ho – yes, the Parasite guy but I know him as the Snowpiercer guy since that was the only one of his movies that I’ve seen -, this film stars Robert Pattinson as Mickey, a disposable worker on a space mission who’s literally paid to die and be reborn. Intriguing, right?

The premise is a bit wild but it’s a sci-fi movie: Mickey is an “expendable,” someone who gets regenerated with most of his memories intact every time he dies. But when one regeneration goes wrong, chaos ensues. The movie takes the book’s philosophical musings and reframes them into a biting commentary on today’s society – think class warfare, abuse of power, and the dehumanization of labor, all wrapped in a darkly comedic package.

Rob Pattinson is the standout here. He plays multiple versions of Mickey, but we really only spend time with two, and each one feels distinct, nuanced, and deeply human. It’s a masterclass in acting, and he absolutely carries the film. Mark Ruffalo, on the other hand, is good but leans a bit too much into cartoonish parody. His character feels like a direct jab at certain real-world figures, which, while effective, could’ve been – or maybe should have been – more subtle.

The humor is dark, the commentary is sharp, and the story is both familiar and full of surprises. It’s a film that doesn’t shy away from pointing fingers at the wealthy elite, failing economic systems, and the precarious lives of the working class. Bong Joon Ho’s disdain for modern societal structures is palpable, and he uses humor to make the pill easier to swallow.

Overall, Mickey 17 is fun, thought-provoking, and eerily relevant. It’s not perfect, some of the satire feels a bit on-the-nose, but it’s definitely worth watching. If you’re into dark comedies with a message, this one’s a must-see.

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