Rent Mickey 17 (2025)

Overlong, OTT, Bloated, Unfunny, Misfiring Attempted Satire. Based on a 2022 Sci-fi Novel. - Mickey 17 review by PV

Based on a 2022 sci-fi novel, this movie is not for me - I find the director massively over-rated too (who has a track record of silly monster movies in Korea, I see).

It is too long, silly, tiresome, misfiring satire - esp with Mark Ruffalo doing his best Trump impression - and eye-rollingly tiresome.

Not original - cloning etc done since Brave New World in 1930s and MANY times since. Various bodyshock dramas, films about twins etc.

It may appeal to sci-fi fans but I suspect the novel is better - imagining stuff is often better, esp re alien life forms etc. BUT only enough here to sustain a short story WHICH actually was the author Edward Ashton's original intention for the story.

The director here wrote the screenplay with the author - always a danger sign. EDITS NEEDED. Fresh eyes to slice off the flab and give the script focus. THIS is a bloated director's cut really and the Oscar-winner (for the over-rated Parasite) can obvs greenlight ANYTHING in Hollywood, which is NOT always a good thing. Because it leads to misfiring big-budget bloated pet projects like this.

The only new original idea here is the 3D-printing of people concept. The rest has been done.

Predictable CGI which is as OTT as the whole bloated movie, and some absurd, silly scenes - which were LAUGH AT not LAUGH WITH.

As another review said this socalled satire is just not funny and does not hit the target - ever. It's an OTT mess, a panto really with cartoon characters. A comic strip.

There is GREAT satire out there in novels and films too - find it; avoid this misfiring blobmonster mess of a movie.

Strictly for scifi fans only. 1.5 stars rounded up.

Hit-and-miss but worth a look - Mickey 17 review by Alphaville

On an expedition to an icy planet, Mickey’s job is to be expendable for scientific purposes then ‘re-printed’ ready for the next job. Hence Mickey 17. But when Mickey 17 is presumed dead and Mickey 18 is printed, there are now two of them. What follows is an original and interesting concept set in a visually interesting environment. However, it falls far short of director Bong Joon-ho’s best (The Host). What could be fascinating is often ruined by over-acting, mugging to camera, dumbed-down slapstick and failing satire. Mark Ruffalo’s Trumpish leader especially is cringingly unwatchable. It’s also far too long with an underwhelming third act that seems never-ending. Still, it beats two-people-standing-in-a-room-talkies any day.

A little confusing - Mickey 17 review by Ernie

I think this film is about what it means to be human and have a soul. Mickey in an effort to escape takes a job where he has no value in that no effort is ever made to save him. Naturally a problem arises when the base think he's dead and "print" another one. So it descends into who dies etc. I could of course be wrong and its just a weird film.