By Ellite Times Team 
A Job Worse Than Any Other
If you thought working a 9 to 5 was bad, then you will certainly sympathize with Robert Pattinto’s character in Bong Joon Ho’s Mickey 17, who has to die for a living. This sci-fi thriller, based on Edward Ashton’s novel ‘Mickey 7’, bares the grim reality of being an “Expendable” colonist like Mickey Barnes; a colonist whose existence revolves around brutal missions that result in death, only to be revived by a ‘human-printing’ machine. Unlike the majority of corporate redundancies, in Mickey’s case, it is quite literal.
A Creative Take on Sci-Fi Horror
Dark humor and sharp social criticism are woven throughout Mickey 17 and it adds a whole new dimension to Bong Joon Ho’s work; who’s also known for his immaculate storytelling in Parasite, Snowpiercer, and Okja. This new work dives deeper into a single Mickey: an Expendable colonist who lives only so long as he can be paid for his suffering in brutalized existence, raising the never-ending question as to why employ as systematized savagery is enacted by capitalism without morality? As if cosmic radiation or catastrophic bodily disassembly isn’t enough, Mickey is forced to endure grotesque deaths at the hands of soulless Capitalism.
The Duality of Mickeys: A Performance Powerhouse
Mickey’s 17 and 18 is a character division Pattinson showcased with distinctively different energie. One being an age-old, exhausted slave of a worker and the latter, a defiant rebel. It is no secret that Phillip did bring extraordinary chemistry with the actress taking the role of the Nasha- Mickey’s love interest, Naomi Ackie, and him back, which ultimatelly rounded out the wear of high-concept absurdity.
Villains Drenched in Satire
Mark Ruffalo turns Kenneth Marshall, the self important captain of the mission, into a wholly blustering parody. Toni Collette does the same Ylfa, his equally obnoxious wife. They are archetypes of indisciplined authority, drapped in red baseball caps shouting along to boastful tunes, and of course, politics which the film does not shy away from mocking. We cry for, not corporate lust dressed up with devastating mixed zealotry and political anger. Bong skillfully makes a satirical examination of a power set up where consumtion becomes everything.
An Overload of Visuals and Narratives
Mickey 17 is a visually appealing film where Darius Khondji, the cinematographer, creates a captivating and grim dystopian world. Still, the film suffers from attempting to do too much at once. Though it is true that the audience is kept at the edge of their seats because of Bong’s unpredictability, the plot does become overly complicated at times. The addition of moral dilemmas forcing “creepers”, the native creatures of planet Niflheim, into the narrative adds yet another cluster of chaos, but at times is too distracting from Mickey’s journey.
A chaotic, yet intricately thought out masterpiece.
As erratic as it was ambitious, Mickey 17 has surely left an impact. The film delivers biting critiques of society through the extravagant lens of science-fiction, but at times seems to collapse under its chaotic essence. It may not capture the storytelling elegance of Parasite, but is still entertaining, and intellectually stimulating—primarily due to Robert’s performance.
Not only is the film chaotic, but it is much more revealing. It provides insight to the viewers that in the world of Bong Joon Ho, the docile meek inherit the earth, but only after enduring an endless cycle of death and corporate exploitation.