I cut it really close to see Mickey 17 in the theatre, it was down to just two showings over the weekend, I finally made time to go and see it and I am glad that I did. Brought to us by the very talented Bong Joon Ho, whose incredible movie, Parasite wowed audiences all over the world. Mickey 17 is a sci-fi dark comedy that is based on a book called Mickey 7….. I have not read the book so I have no idea why there is a jump from 7 to 17 for the movie.
How to Download Mickey 17
Mickey 17 was released on March 7, 2025. You can expect it to become first available for download or streaing on Max and then other digital platforms. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and check the current availability.
The Movie Review
The Cast and Performances in Mickey 17
We have a great cast here. Robert Pattinson (Twilight series, The Batman) plays the dual role of Mickey 17 and Mickey 18. Mickey has left Earth to go and work as an expendable on a planet that is being colonized. An expendable is someone who works till they die and then they bring them back to life via cloning. In the movie, we follow Mickey 17, the most recent clone of the original Mickey.
The Plot Twist and Sci-Fi Premise
However, there is a problem. Turns out that Mickey 18 was brought to life as it was mistakenly thought that Mickey 17 was dead. This is actually very illegal and the two Mickey’s have to try and figure out a way to coexist so that they can both survive. Robert Pattinson is just fantastic in this dual role. It speaks to what a great actor he is as he is playing against himself so for most of the movie, was performing against nothing not once, but twice for many of the scenes.
The Missed Potential of the Previous Mickeys
I do love the premise, but I kind of wish that we got to see a bit more of the previous Mickey’s. We get a quick recap/voice over that fills us in, but this would have been fun to go more in depth with. Although, the movie does come in at over two hours, but I feel even just an extra ten or maybe even five minutes with the previous Mickey’s would have been fun.
Mickey 17 vs Mickey 18: Character Differences
Mickey 17 and Mickey 18 are quite different. Mickey 18 is way harder and more ruthless than Mickey 17 is and it did make me wonder if all the other Mickey’s had the same personality as Mickey 17 or if they had their own personality quirks too. No spoilers here, but the movie does do a good job of explaining most of the sci-fi shenanigans. I loved the stuff with the aliens on the planet and this was probably my favorite aspect of the movie.
Dark Comedy and Supporting Characters
With that being said, Mickey 17 is not just a sci-fi movie, it is also a dark comedy and this is where the rest of the cast comes into play. As I said, we have a great cast and Robert Pattinson is great as the lead. Steven Yeun and Naomi Ackie are great too, but man do Mark Ruffalo and Toni Collette steal the show here.
Villainy at Its Best: Ruffalo and Collette
Again, I do not want to go into spoilers, but Mark Ruffalo and Toni Collette are our villains and they play a dastardly political duo where Mark Ruffalo has his eyes on power. They are so over the top that they border on being cartoon style villains. You can just tell that they were having an absolute blast here and you could also argue that Mark Ruffalo was trying to play a more exaggerated version of a politician like Donald Trump.
Final Thoughts on Mickey 17
I thought that Mickey 17 was a lot of fun, I know there are the easy comparisons with the 2009 Sam Rockwell movie, Moon, but I feel they are two very different movies. This is one of the best sci-fi comedies I have seen in a very long time and I am glad I was able to catch it before it ended its theatrical run. If you love sci-fi and comedy, this is well worth your time, even if you are into one more than the other, this is still worth a watch.
