Quick Review: Mickey 17 (2025)
The return of Bong Joon Ho
Introduction:
Mickey 17 is a film that I’ve been excited to see for a good minute now and I’m glad it’s finally here. Ever since Parasite, I’ve been excited to see a new Bong Joon Ho film as I loved Parasite. Besides Memories of a Murder and this though, I haven’t seen any of his other films and I definitely need to change that in the future. With that said, Mickey 17 is finally out after being delayed multiple times and it seems like it has come out at a perfect time with the current political climate in America right now and while I can’t say everything worked for me in this film, I think Mickey 17 is still a good movie that has a lot to say.
Positives:
Mickey 17 presents itself with a story that I really liked. It had an interesting world to build upon and I really liked following this story. I think the films biggest strength though is the performances. Robert Pattinson is definitely a standout and I really loved the way he was able to play the same characters but also make them feel different in their own way. Other standouts were Naomi Ackie, Mark Ruffalo, and Toni Collette with there performances. Mark Ruffalo I especially liked even though his performance could be over exaggerated at points, but seeing that he was trying to imitate a certain someone, I guess it’s not all too exaggerated. I also liked the way the film tackles and communicates its political themes. It reminded a bit of 2021’s Don’t Look Up with the way it handles it, but I think this film does a way better job with handling that material than Don’t Look Up did. It’s pretty much hitting you in the face with what it’s trying to say, but I was never bothered with it and I think the execution of it was done well. The score also is something that stuck out to me. I just felt it was a great score and had some memorable tracks to accompany it. The set designs are really well done and I was never taken out of the movie with how the effects were done. The technical aspect of the film just looks and sounds great. I think the movie overall does do a lot right that I did enjoy.
Negatives:
I think the biggest problem I have with the movie is how much the film is trying to juggle. There’s kind of a lot going on in this story and it doesn’t feel like everything gets completely fleshed out the way it should. I also felt scenes went on too long without any real payoff and it just felt like they dragged on a bit too long for my liking. One last thing that bothered me is I think the third act really drags out when it comes to stuff like that. It has a lot to accomplish and it feels like some of the elements shown don’t get any real payoff from that. I think that’s overall the biggest problem with the movie is it just tries to do a little too much and not everything is able to come together with how much it’s trying to show. With that said though, I still did enjoy my time watching it and with the positives in mind, the film does still work in its favor.
Final Thoughts:
Overall: While not as strong as Bong Joon Ho’s previous films. I think Mickey 17 is still a good time helped with some great performances and a story that I overall liked. It definitely makes me want to check out the other films from Bong that I’ve missed out on because he is a talented filmmaker.
To me, this movie is Robert Pattinson’s, which feels odd as a Bong Joon-Ho movie. Yes, there are familiar elements of genre crossing, class warfare, but in the end the movie works due to the chaotic, comedic performance from Pattinson. You’re right in that the movie has a lot going on but it sticks most of the landings, in my opinion.
I’ve been on the fence about seeing this in theaters and this is very helpful