In his directorial follow-up to the Oscar winning ‘Parasite’, Bong Joon Ho provides American audiences a futuristic romp with the uproarious ‘Mickey 17’. Here he teams up with Robert Pattinson in another gonzo performance that’s somehow just perfect for the material. The movie is definitely Bong’s commentary on the absolute ridiculousness of humanity right now, in particular with a skewer of a pervasive callousness. Despite its incredibly satiric nature, there is more sense of hope in this work compared to his other movies that tread familiar themes.

This big budget affair opens on the titular Mickey (Pattinson) waking up on the snowy environs of a planet far from Earth. Through some jarring voiceover work (what is that accent?!), we learn that this is the 17th printed version of the character. Mickey is self-admittedly far from the brightest bulb in the galaxy – he signed up as an “expendable” in order to escape from a homicidal loan shark. He and his “best friend” Timo (a playfully jerky Steven Yeun) tried their hand at opening a macaroon restaurant, believing incredulously that the pastry would somehow eclipse the hamburger. Bong unfurls this backstory in an extremely entertaining way, leaning into the absurd narration and physical comedy.

Mickey is the sole volunteer for his role amongst a larger group of people looking to blast off to an uncharted planet. This initiative to leave home to start an interstellar colony is the brainchild of disgraced politician Kenneth Marshall, who still commands uninformed loyalty from many on this journey. Mark Ruffalo plays him as a megalomaniacal, narcissistic buffoon along with his clingy, equally elitist wife Ylfa (a mad eyed Toni Collette). The performance and the framing are a very thinly veiled representation of our former and now returned POTUS, but it’s actually more like the farcical portrayals of Hitler over the years. It’s a type of role very commonly found in Bong’s other US productions, from Tilda Swinton in ‘Snowpiercer’ to Jake Gyllenhaal in ‘Okja’. Pattinson is also supported by a wry and savvy Naomi Ackie as Nasha, who does seem to truly have feelings for the innocent dope. Rounding out the cast, and providing constant callous black humor are the scientists and doctors who use Mickey as a human pincushion. While he certainly agreed to this status, it doesn’t mean these people have to treat him so inhumanely, but they do, in what becomes one of the film’s strongest comments along with being one of its most darkly hilarious.

The first two thirds of ‘Mickey 17’ are near perfect setups for what is to come. One of the biggest surprises of the movie is its focus on the critters indigenous to the planet Marshall has dubbed Nflheim. They are designed as creepy crawlers resembling pill bugs, but are somehow equally cringe-inducing and cute. They’re dubbed by the invading humans as “creepers” and are afforded as much grace as they are named, but there’s much much more going on with this hive-minded society. While the last third does drag a bit, its reliance on these people’s attitude towards these creatures and each other is a welcome one that renders the preceding events in a profoundly comic way . . .

Written & Directed By: Bong Joon Ho

Rated: R

Running Time: 137 min.

* * * 1/2 (out of 4 stars) -OR- B+