Is Bong Joon Ho up to the challenge with 'Mickey 17'?

The work belongs to the science fiction - black comedy genre, adapted from the novel Mickey 7 (2022) by Edward Ashton. The film is set in the future when the Earth's living environment is increasingly harsh, leading thousands of people to join a space expedition to find the promised land.

Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) is the only employee who is willing to be a "donor". Every time he sacrifices himself to perform a dangerous mission or research, Mickey's memory will be "reprinted" in a new body the next day. The irony happens when in body number 17, Mickey does not "die" as planned. As a result, when he returns to base, he is shocked to realize that he has been replaced by Mickey 18. Many tragedies arise from here.

- Ảnh 1. — *Mickey 17* marks the first time Bong Joon Ho and Robert Pattinson collaborate

The paradox of scientific progress and humanity

Through the image of Mickey Barnes dying and coming back to life, Mickey 17 touches on the painful "pain point" of the cloning industry. Although it was announced in 1996 through the story of the cloned sheep Dolly, the cloning of living things, especially humans, is still controversial. Advanced science helps humanity conquer death, but easily makes them lose their humanity, is the message most clearly conveyed by Bong Joon Ho.

In the film, Mickey's "resurrection" was accompanied by indescribable pain. He gradually lost his human pride, his face was lifeless like a zombie. The elite in the crew began to see Mickey's sacrifice as a natural thing, they even abused his death as entertainment.

- Ảnh 2. — The message of human rights being trampled in the name of science, as well as philosophies about the self, are the guiding principles of the film's script.

The climax is the extreme prejudice of the leader Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo). He curses him as a waste, not a human; even though the great scientific advances on the ship are thanks to the deaths of previous Mickeys. Or like his best friend Timo (Steven Yeun), whenever he is in danger, he is ready to abandon him. On that ship, only his girlfriend Nasha (Naomi Ackie) truly loves and sees him as a human. Only Nasha realizes that each Mickey, although similar in appearance, has different personality traits, and they are all equally worthy of living.

Bong Joon Ho created Mickey as a character who is "as gentle as dirt", representing the lower working class that is always overlooked by other classes, even though they are actually the important link that determines development. The train is like a miniature model of American society, with many flashy promises from those in power, but behind it are the abandoned and trampled fates of people.

Great collaboration with Robert Pattinson

In Mickey 17 , viewers can easily see the chemistry between the British actor and the Korean director. Bong Joon Ho gave Pattinson the opportunity to play a role with many complex and contradictory personalities.

Mickey 17 is not only Bong Joon Ho's chance to debut in Hollywood, but also an important milestone in Robert Pattinson's acting career. After the Twilight series, Pattinson found his place in the American film industry when participating in many "heavyweight" projects, including Christopher Nolan's Tenet and Matt Reeves' The Batman .

When standing in the same frame, the audience clearly feels that the gentle, somewhat weak Mickey 17 and the aggressive, reckless Mickey 18 are two separate people. In the limited duration of the film, Bong Joon Ho is still subtle enough to exploit the depth of these two individuals, bringing intense emotions to the audience in a few important scenes.

- Ảnh 3. — Robert Pattinson continues to show his strength

On the contrary, it is Robert Pattinson who helps Bong Joon Ho's film capture the hearts of viewers. Robert Pattinson's performance in the new film can be compared to a convincing and charming monologue of a professional stage artist. He constantly changes his style, gestures, way of speaking... creating unexpected and exciting reactions.

Impressive premise but lack of breakthrough script

On many international news sites, writers noted that Mickey 17 is a film with an interesting idea, combined with blockbuster-standard visuals. The work has depth and reflects many painful aspects of society, not just a pure entertainment film.

However, when compared to Parasite , Mickey 17 does not have many breakthroughs in the plot. In both films, the leading situations appear in an ideal, heavily staged way. Specifically, in Parasite , Mr. Kim's family can invade Mr. Park's house one by one without any incident. In Mickey 17 , the script does not explain why Mickey Barnes is the only one participating in the "Donor" program, with the easy reason being... not reading the contract carefully.

Furthermore, Bong Joon Ho’s recent films have a minus point when the characters are exaggerated too much, as if they were on stage and not in a movie. The dictator Kenneth Marshall and his wife have an appearance and personality that implicitly mocks incompetent but boastful leaders, surrounded by blind flatterers. However, they are monotonously evil, without the inner complexity of the protagonist. Because good and evil are clear, the ending of the film does not bring surprises to the audience.

- Ảnh 4. — Many situations are idealized or simplified, resulting in a well-crafted script that lacks depth.

Overall, Mickey 17 is a film that marks an important milestone in the careers of Bong Joon Ho and Robert Pattinson. In terms of professional reviews, the film has just received many compliments after its early release at the 75th Berlin International Film Week. However, in terms of revenue, the film is showing signs of difficulty breaking even, having only earned more than 57 million USD after 13 days of showing, while the budget was 118 million USD.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bong-joon-ho-co-len-tay-voi-mickey-17-185250313153106028.htm