Bong Joon-ho, the South Korean director who captivated global audiences with the 2019 social thriller Parasite, is back with a new cinematic offering: Mickey 17. The film, which premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2025, is a sprawling, messy, yet exhilarating political sci-fi comedy that once again showcases Bong's ability to blend genres and deliver sharp social commentary. Starring Robert Pattinson in a dual role as the titular Mickey, the film follows an 'expendable' employee on a space colony who is repeatedly cloned after each death. What begins as a darkly humorous exploration of labor exploitation quickly spirals into a satire of authoritarianism, complete with a character unmistakably modeled after Donald Trump.
Bong Joon-ho's career has been defined by his genre-hopping audacity. From the serial killer procedural Memories of Murder (2003) to the monster movie The Host (2006), from the train-bound class warfare of Snowpiercer (2013) to the intimate maternal drama Mother (2009), Bong has consistently defied expectations. His international breakthrough came with Parasite, which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes and four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. In Mickey 17, Bong returns to the sci-fi terrain he explored in Snowpiercer and later in the Netflix-funded Okja (2017), but with an even more overtly political lens.
The plot of Mickey 17 is as inventive as it is absurd. Mickey is an 'expendable' worker on a colonization mission to the ice planet Niflheim. Each time he dies, his consciousness is uploaded into a new clone, making him effectively immortal but also utterly replaceable. The film opens with Mickey 17 failing to complete a routine task and subsequently being killed. When he is revived as Mickey 18, he discovers that his previous version did not actually die, leading to a crisis of identity and a violation of the colony's clone protocol. This premise allows Bong to explore themes of selfhood, labor value, and the ethics of cloning while maintaining a tone that veers from slapstick to existential dread.
Central to the film's satire is the character of Kenneth Marshall, the colony's egomaniacal leader, who is portrayed by Mark Ruffalo. Marshall is a transparent parody of Trump, complete with a comb-over, a penchant for lying, and a catchphrase: 'We’re going to make Niflheim great again.' Bong has admitted the character is a fusion of 'all the dictators possible,' drawing on both Trump and historical strongmen. The presence of a Trump-like figure in space serves as a biting commentary on the exportation of American-style populism to outer space, a theme that feels both timely and timeless.
Robert Pattinson delivers a performance that critics have described as 'very, very good at playing an idiot.' As Mickey, Pattinson alternates between pathetic cowardice and moments of unexpected bravery. His dual role as Mickey 17 and Mickey 18 allows him to play two distinct versions of the same character, each slightly altered by experience. The actor's commitment to physical comedy and emotional vulnerability grounds the film's more outlandish elements. Alongside Pattinson, the cast includes Naomi Ackie as Mickey's love interest, and Steven Yeun in a supporting role that adds layers of moral ambiguity.
The film's political ambitions are matched by its visual inventiveness. Bong collaborates again with cinematographer Darius Khondji, who shot Okja and Parasite. The ice planet Niflheim is rendered in stark whites and blues, contrasting with the dim, claustrophobic interiors of the colony ship. The creature design, particularly a native species called 'creepers,' evokes the monster from The Host but with a more eco-feminist twist. The film's action sequences are chaotic but controlled, a signature of Bong's style that he perfected in Snowpiercer.
Thematically, Mickey 17 continues Bong's long-standing critique of social hierarchy and exploitation. In Parasite, the divide between rich and poor was encapsulated in a single house. In Snowpiercer, the entire world was represented by a train. In Mickey 17, the colony ship and the planet itself become a microcosm of society, where the expendable class is literally used up and thrown away. The film's most poignant moments come when Mickey 17 and 18 must decide what it means to be human when you can be replicated at will. This existential angle is handled with Bong's trademark blend of pathos and absurdist humor.
Critics have noted that Mickey 17 is 'a bit foutraque' (messy) compared to Bong's tighter earlier works. The film's structure is sprawling, with multiple subplots and tonal shifts that can be jarring. Yet this messiness is also part of its charm. Bong throws everything into the film: political satire, body horror, romantic comedy, and even a musical number. The result is a film that feels alive with ideas, even if some of them don't fully land. The Berlin Film Festival audience responded positively, with many praising the film's ambition and Pattinson's performance.
Bong Joon-ho's journey to this point is instructive. Born in 1969 in Daegu, South Korea, he studied film at the Korean Academy of Film Arts. His debut feature, Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000), was a dark comedy about a dog kidnapper that flopped commercially but earned him critical attention. He gained international recognition with Memories of Murder, which is now considered one of the greatest crime films of all time. The Host (2006) became the highest-grossing Korean film ever at the time, demonstrating that Bong could combine crowd-pleasing spectacle with political critique. Mother (2009) was a taut psychological thriller that further showcased his versatility.
His first English-language film, Snowpiercer, faced production struggles and a controversial release strategy but eventually became a cult hit. Okja, produced by Netflix, brought Bong's environmental and anti-corporate themes to a global audience, though it sparked controversy at Cannes over the streaming distribution model. Parasite marked the culmination of his career, winning the Palme d'Or and sweeping the Oscars. The film's success opened doors for Bong to make more personal projects, and Mickey 17 is the first fruit of that freedom.
The film also fits within a broader trend in Bong's work: his interest in the intersection of technology and humanity. Snowpiercer dealt with a train that sustains the last remnants of humanity; Okja involved genetic engineering; Mickey 17 tackles cloning. Bong does not celebrate technology but rather examines how it exacerbates existing inequalities. The clone economy in the film is a metaphor for gig economy exploitation, where workers are treated as disposable. The colony's leader, Marshall, uses technology to consolidate power, not to liberate.
Musically, the film features a score by Jung Jae-il, who also composed for Parasite and Okja. The music shifts from eerie synthesizers to grandiose orchestral pieces, mirroring the film's tonal swings. The sound design is equally meticulous, with the crunch of ice underfoot and the hum of cloning machinery creating an immersive soundscape. Bong has always paid close attention to audio, using it to build tension and underscore emotional beats.
In a recent interview, Bong explained that Mickey 17 contains 'the fusion of all possible dictators' and that he wanted to explore how societies fall for charismatic leaders who promise simple solutions. The film's release in 2025 comes at a time when democratic institutions worldwide are under strain, and authoritarian populism is on the rise. Bong's satire may be comedic, but its underlying message is serious: the human desire for easy answers can lead to catastrophic choices.
While Mickey 17 may not reach the heights of Parasite in terms of narrative economy, it more than compensates with its ambition and energy. Bong Joon-ho remains one of the most exciting filmmakers working today, constantly pushing boundaries and challenging audiences. Mickey 17 is a must-see for fans of his work and for anyone interested in intelligent, politically engaged sci-fi. The film's messy, joyous spirit is a reminder that cinema can be both entertaining and thought-provoking, and that Bong Joon-ho still has many stories left to tell.
Source: Télérama News