Mickey 17

Let me say right up front: the best thing about this production might be its visual design, including the promotional materials and packaging artwork. The poster alone, with the cloned Mickeys with Xed out eyes, is both clever in its own right and immediately conveys a crucial aspect of the story, before the movie even starts. So there was obviously a lot of terrific ideation and conceptualization going on here. Does that translate into a great movie? No, not great. Good, I think; "mostly interesting" is a judgment I’m comfortable making. But it takes its time getting to a point where the elements begin to come together and make for a compelling narrative. In fact, it is hard to know what to make of this story in the early part of the film—something about the tone seems hesitant, maybe even a touch indifferent. And there are certain distractions that take the viewers out of the story: the personality of one key character seems to contradict everything we are told about our hero’s (quite literal) process, plus the political satire is so over the top and obvious (even if spot-on) that it draws focus from the core plot. The villain is evil, for sure, but he is not really the author of Mickey’s predicament, so the characterization potshots feel like intrusions, to a certain extent. Finally, though, the big questions that the script has in mind push their way to the fore, and when they do the story becomes more effecting and ultimately satisfying. I don’t know if multiple viewings—pun intended—would help make this flick work better, but at least there’s something original—rather than recycled—on offer here. That’s more than you usually get from movies these days.