Spicy, Funny, Rated R-Sci-Fi Turns Death Into A Running Gag With Brutal Consequences
Written by Robert Scucci | Published
If human clones are 3D printed, I can finally start a band with carbon copies of myself that may not have any compositional differences. Actually, I’m kidding, because I can find a way to disagree with myself when boredom sets in from having so many agreeable versions of myself floating in my lane.
This is not how things work Mickey 17 (2025), but it is close enough to make the base undisturbed immediately. Here, we have a boy who signs up for an increasingly dangerous journey to a mysterious ice planet that will always lead to his death, followed by a new body duplicate and his backup-based memories restored so he can do it all again and again.
Mickey 17 it might sound like a dystopian nightmare, and it is, but it’s also one of the best dark comedies to come out this year thanks to Robert Pattinson’s commitment to being tossed around like a rag doll and thrown down a flaming garbage chute whenever his body finally comes out of him.
A story about the dangers of colonization, and what happens when you are reduced to a renewable resource, stripped of your humanity, and treated as disposable. When you have a new body primed and ready to go while your previous iteration is still alive, however, you quickly learn that being alone with your partner isn’t as fun as you might think.
Mickey Barnes, Mickey 17, Mickey 18 … Same But Different
Mickey 17 centers on Mickey Barnes, the best kind of slacker, whose brilliant plan to avoid a loan shark in the not-so-distant future involves volunteering to help colonize the ice planet known as Niflheim. In order to do this, he agrees to be “costly,” meaning that his physical body will be killed countless times, only for a new one to be created and his consciousness incorporated into it. Mickey is, for lack of a better phrase, stuffed into the meat grinder over and over again as the body count slowly piles up.
When Mickey 17 is abandoned by his friend, Timo (Steven Yeun), Mickey 18 is drawn into the power of the incompetent and corrupt politician Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo) and his controlling wife, Ylfa (Toni Collette). Here’s the problem: Mickey 18 is angry and doesn’t know that Mickey 17 was saved by the same creatures, known as creepers, who were originally sent to photograph them for study in Niflheim. Naturally, the two boys are scornful, but things get even more complicated when they both become romantically involved with Nasha (Naomi Ackie), who was already involved with Mickey 17.
After the expected sexual exploration you would expect from this type of setup, another problem arises in the form of Marshall’s vow to eliminate any duplicate clones, which he refers to as replication. Although it is logical to think that your consciousness jumping from body to body can be very disturbing, Mickey 17 proposes a way to work. He suggests that he and his successor be allowed to live and exchange jobs for efficiency. After all, they are trying to colonize a planet full of strange creatures, and all this futuristic technology has to be expensive.
Knowing firsthand that the creepers are not hostile monsters but compassionate and intelligent creatures, Mickey hatches a plan that threatens to upend the entire system. This creates tension between him, his partner, Nasha, Marshall, and Ylfa, while putting the colonization effort in jeopardy.
Delightful Deadpan
As Robert Pattinson continues to take roles that are not changed, Mickey 17 feels like the next logical step for him in his career. His ability to remain completely deadpan during situations that can only be described as absurd is one of the reasons he succeeds here. As the social order crumbles in the year 2050, you can hear him smile as the various iterations of Mickey “blow it up” and willingly put themselves in dangerous situations, seemingly for the love of the game. Having put up with a terrible system for so long, he has very little left to lose, as long as new bodies keep rolling out the printer.
At the same time, his spending creates problems that threaten to completely shut down the integration process, at least until those in power realize that there are many ways to exploit their subjects. Public comment on Mickey 17 it’s clear, but it doesn’t sound preachy, or overly descriptive. You are allowed to exist in this world, see the power structures in play, and watch the results unfold without the themes being hammered into your skull.
The real joy of Mickey 17 it comes from watching so many Robert Pattinsons deal with this bleak, domineering nightmare, all tired, lonely, and deep about it. The result is a steady stream of gallows humor soaked in absurdity. A sharp exercise in exploitation and exploration, Mickey 17 fully commits to its satire, and you can stream it right now on Max.
