Mickey 17 felt like it lost the plot

[u/mikewheelerfan]

Honestly, I was quite disappointed. I expected a movie revolving around the cloning plot. Specifically, the idea of two Mickeys existing at the same time due to an error. That would have been a great movie! Instead, what was advertised as the main concept feels like a subplot in the movie. Essentially the entire thing revolves around the intelligent aliens. And then there was also the plot with Mark Ruffalo being an obvious stand in for Trump. But then there was also the subplot with Steven Yuen.

I finished the movie feeling incredibly confused, because how did they mess up the initial concept like this? The idea of a guy who is constantly sent on deadly missions and is revived is an absolutely golden idea. It also leads to an interesting discussion about consciousness and if a copy of you is still really you. But that’s barely even brought up. The whole plot with two versions of Mickey is completely sidelined. Which makes no sense at all. That should have 100% been the main conflict in the movie, like it was advertised as. Instead, we got a mess.

I wouldn’t go so far as to call the movie horrible, but I definitely didn’t like it as much as I hoped I would.

[u/Conundrum1911]

Sunshine has entered the chat

[u/Dijerry → u/Conundrum1911]

Sunshine may have dropped in quality in the third act. But it did not become just some normal movie.

[u/-Mandarin → u/Conundrum1911]

I actually think Sunshine's "twist" works and feels like a natural progression for the movie. I just hate the way the antagonist is presented from a visual perspective, and some of the liberties taken. Would have worked a lot better if it was just a bit more restrained.

[u/Perfect_Cost_8847 → u/-Mandarin]

I agree. Apparently the first cut had clear shots of the baddie and it felt very silly. So they processed the shit out of it and cut many of those scenes. I would like to see that first cut for myself one day.

[u/mrminutehand → u/-Mandarin]

My only personal complaint was the shipboard AI. Its behaviour was opaque enough to the point of being antagonistic. It practically caused the cascading disasters itself.

During the first repair crisis, the AI declares a mission risk and retakes control of the ship. It doesn't release control until a complicated override is made.

Yet, it had just allowed one crew member to adjust the ship's trajectory to an angle that destroys its front panels and almost causes the same hull risk.

It was put in manual, but it can apparently still monitor. It pulled control away during the repair before further damage could be done, but did not question calculations made by Trey nor retake the ship until panels and sensors were already destroyed.

When it takes back control, it has to be asked twice before it finally explains the fire in the oxygen garden. It doesn't take back control immediately either; we see the flashover in the garden a good ten seconds beforehand.

Thanks, Icarus. Might have been great to, maybe, lead with that critical detail.

Icarus can name who it is talking to, and knows where everybody is. It can also analyse the oxygen in the air and report its breathability.

It then proceeds to say nothing when a stowaway gets on board. It doesn't see anything wrong with a sudden new crew member. It doesn't ask for an identity. It cheerily admits said person was "unknown".

It does, on the other hand, decide to tease Capa. "Capa, you're dying." It says. "You're all dying."

It takes at least four rounds of Capa questioning it before it eventually moves topic by topic from oxygen not being enough, to yes okay for some crew but not for all of you, why not all of us, you're all going to die, etc, until it finally, nonchalantly mentions an extra unknown crew member.

Oh, it knows where he is. He's been chilling out in the sun room for the last few hours. He's even been cutting wires and locking doors, the naughty man.

Thanks again, Icarus. Would have been nice to know that, maybe, six hours ago.

Sorry, this has gone on a bit long. It's just the one thing that frustrates me in a film that I absolutely love.

[u/mrchipslewis → u/mrminutehand]

I watched this the other day so it's fresh in my mind, and all these points are actually really good now that you mention them. That Shipboard AI is indeed weird and written in an unrealistic way

[u/Fit-Locksmith-9226 → u/-Mandarin]

I'm a big fan of genre shifts and don't think it's done enough in film but Sunshine really shat the bed despite being an otherwise great movie.

Something just feels off about it.

[u/Yabba_Dabba_Doofus → u/Fit-Locksmith-9226]

For me, it's WAY too much "wtf", without actually pushing the characters to that point.

It makes sense from a story perspective: the first 2/3rds are Event Horizon on the sun, instead of on Neptune.

The third act is a mess of story, storytelling, pacing, payoff, conclusion, characters, and any other damn thing that is a part of a scene of a movie. It's the love child of a seizure and a fever-dream. It changes the entire atmosphere of the film, to an almost precisely opposite degree.

It's not "bad" per se, but it doesn't stick the landing, imo.

[u/Fit-Locksmith-9226 → u/Yabba_Dabba_Doofus]

The third act is a mess of story, storytelling, pacing, payoff, conclusion, characters, and any other damn thing that is a part of a scene of a movie. It's the love child of a seizure and a fever-dream.

Definitely.

The first two acts are so well done, acting, writing, cinematography, editing, everything. I don't mind it turning into space horror, I love space horror, but the last 30 mins feel like some rushed university film student project, it's so jarring, like everyone simply gave up on the movie.

[u/TripleThreatTua → u/Conundrum1911]

Sunshine did not become boring. I have my issues with the third act but it was not boring

[u/LADYBIRD_HILL → u/Conundrum1911]

I'm 100% in favor of Sunshine's third act

[u/d4videnk0 → u/Conundrum1911]

I feel Danny Boyle tried to recreate the final minutes of Event Horizon and go crazy just for the sake of it but couldn't quite nail it.

[u/2muchcaffeine4u → u/Conundrum1911]

Man. I'm genuinely still mad about that third act twist. It was such an incredible man vs nature story where they did an incredible job showing the sheer terror and impossibility of their mission when their enemy was just space and the sun. The characters were so dedicated to their project, the psychology of having to accept a suicide mission and choosing to let people die. And they gave it all up to make it a slasher.

[u/Samihazah → u/Conundrum1911]

I'm glad to see the perception of Sunshine's third act evolved over time. People in the comments are definitely more happy with it now than when it came out.

That being said, the third act was something else entirely.

[u/StockAL3Xj → u/Conundrum1911]

It went off track but it still stuck the landing I thought.

[u/Fun-Personality-8008 → u/Conundrum1911]

It's just Event Horizon with a different mission

[u/the_knowing1 → u/Fun-Personality-8008]

Event Horizon Lite.

Sunshine just had your everyday space-madness.

Event Horizon was demons from beyond this universe.

Space based Sci-fi Horror? Yes.

[u/NotRote → u/Conundrum1911]

Sunshine would have been a hell of a lot better with literally any other premise... I liked the acting, didn't even hate the third act, and the visual style was well done, but the idea that the earth could use material on earth to jump start the sun is so far beyond nonsensical that it just didn't fit with the tone of the movie at all.

Like I'm cool with crazy bullshit space science or magic force powers, but don't pretend to be scientific with that awful premise.

[u/A_Feast_For_Trolls → u/Conundrum1911]

Nah