“Mickey 17” A Different, Witty Sci-Fi Flick
- Matt Palmer
- Mar 18, 2025
- 3 min read
In “Mickey 17,” a disposable employee is sent on a human expedition to colonize the ice world of Niflheim.
After one iteration dies, a new body is generated with most of his memories intact.
When I first started seeing the trailers for “Mickey 17,” it automatically went on my list of anticipated movies of 2025. And, after checking out the latest movie from “Parasite” director Bong Joon-Ho, I can say that “Mickey 17” can be rather entertaining at times.
“Mickey 17” delivers a blend of science fiction thriller and dark humor. Some of the premise can be rather interesting as the “expendable cloning” part of the movie’s story is one of the major highlights of this movie.
Robert Pattinson is also another major highlight of this movie. He gives a rather quirky performance throughout some of the movie which can give you a good little chuckle. And as soon as the Mickey 17 character runs into the new Mickey 18, some of the comedic timing between Pattinson and, well, the other Pattinson is great. The Mickey/Mickey moments can also bring the entertainment value up a bit.
We also get to see some of the other versions of Mickey as they had their own little experience, which is both highly entertaining and a little humorous. The scenes that features both Mickey’s and the alien species on the ice planet known as “Creepers” adds a great level of the sci-fi thriller aspect.
A little bit of the dark humor doesn’t always land at times. The characters of Kenneth Marshall and his controlling wife Ylfa Marshall can get a tad annoying at times. I get that some of this movie can serve as a satire, but those two characters can be a little too
over the top at times.
Overall, “Mickey 17” does a decent job keeping you entertained with some of the sci-fi sequences and a few humorous moments. Like I said, some of the satirical humor that is scattered throughout the movie doesn’t always stick with the landing.
Cast: Robert Pattinson (Mickey Barnes); Steven Yeun (Timo); Michael Monroe (Matthew); Patsy Ferran (Dorothy); Cameron Britton (Arkady); Naomi Ackle (Nasha Barridge); :Toni Collette (Ylfa Marshall; Mark Ruffalo (Kenneth Marshall).
Writer/director: Bong-Joon Ho (Parasite)
Trivia: “Mickey 17” is a film adaptation of the Edward Ashton novel “Mickey7.” A film adaptation of the novel was announced to be in development prior to the novel’s publication in 2022. Bong was intrigued by the concepts presented in the book, though he made many changes to the characters, including modifying Mickey’s personality to be a little more simple-minded.
MPAA rating: R for violent content, language throughout, sexual content and drug material (running time 137 minutes)
While it's well known that Pattinson plays multiple versions of Mickey due to the cloning process, what many don't realise is that director Bong Joon-ho insisted on filming certain key scenes without Pattinson knowing which version of Mickey he was playing until just before shooting. This method was meant to capture the confusion and existential dread of a clone struggling with his own identity, leading to some of the film's most unsettling and raw performances.
The planet is called Niflheim. In Norse mythology, this is a realm in a permanent state of Winter, the afterlife for those who do not die a heroic death.
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