fciocca

"Mickey 17" is set in the future where the Earth is experiencing a global crisis: the planet is quickly dying due to global warming. In order to find a more suitable place to repopulate and build a new society, the politician Kenneth Marshall financed an expedition to find a suitable environment. Between the vacancies available, it is possible to candidate as Expendable. People with this title are assigned very likely deadly tasks, because they can be reprinted in a matter of a few hours, with all their memories intact. The protagonist of this story is Mickey Barnes who applies for this role.

It is clear that for a normal person, death is a permanent state from which you do not come back from. But the next cloned copy will eventually live again, with all the details of the previous fatality intact on their brains. It is a compelling concept that generates a lot of questions as in fact no one really knows what we feel when we die. The movie tries to reply to this question, but it is a tough one because some of the deaths experienced by Mickey are quick and pretty much painless, while others are long and extenuating. The character is not able to provide a definitive answer, despite trying, as every experience is different.

The director explored really well the controversial theme of cloning: despite having backup of the brain, every copy has differences on their behaviors, and the more the character is regenerated, the more his authenticity and personality are gradually fading, until it will be eventually lost.

Despite all the seriousness, this movie has some brilliant comedic moments, which is a perfect contrast. Toni Collette ("Hereditary", "Knives Out") and Mark Ruffalo ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", "Shutter Island") delivered an amazing and truly exhilarating performance. Marshall is a man full of himself, moved just by the money and his image. While Ylfa is pretty much a fake and overly controlling person that is obsessed in having everything under control, as things have to go exactly how she wants. It is clear that their marriage is a farce. The soundtrack is funny, even in the more tense moments. I enjoyed this choice as it highlights the absurdity of certain sequences that at times have some shades of black humor.

The third act of the movie is a bit weak and it took a big detour from the original concept. The ending is rushed and it does not do justice to the plot. It is not a bad finale, but it feels pretty standard and uninspired. However, the versatile acting of Robert Pattinson and the overall script writing quality easily outweighs the issues mentioned previously. If you are looking for a sci-fi film that breaks the usual schemes of the genre, this might do the trick. My final rate is 7.5.

"Flow" is an animation movie about a cat that needs to overcome his fear of water in order to survive in a hostile world. Along the way he will meet other stranded animals. By unifying their forces they will be able to overcome all the hostilities that nature will serve them, understanding that their diverse skills are the real strength. There are moments of conflict, but they manage to solve them, making their friendship stronger. This is a tale that teaches a wonderful lesson and delivers it in an unconventional way: using the universal language of natural sounds. In fact, the movie does not have a single line of dialogue, the director relied entirely on the noises of the animals and their facial expressions. The stylized animation conveys the different emotions effectively. Personally I felt really attached to the protagonist. His entire personal journey was wonderfully portrayed, as we see a steady and regular improvement. He gets more adventurous, by taking more risks and gaining experience from his mistakes.

The movie is pure visual poetry. The different landscapes are stunning, appealing and mysterious. The environments have something mystical and alien, but at the same time familiar. It is an Earth in ruin that was completely taken over by nature, that cyclically is reclaiming it. The audience can see different biomes and how natural elements are interacting with each other, generating some beautiful moments. This animation film is truly a rare gem and it deserves all the attention that it got. It lasts a little less than one hour and a half, but it just flows wonderfully (no pun-intended). Narratively speaking it always kept me engaged alternating calm and intimate moments with tense scenes, where I was actually wondering if the group was going to survive. I cannot really find any flaws and this is why my final rate is 10 out of 10.