This Movie Is Still Bombing at the Box Office
By Movieguide® Contributor
Bong Joon Ho’s MICKEY 17 continues to bomb in theaters.
The movie follows an “unlikely hero, Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson)” who “has found himself in the extraordinary circumstance of working for an employer who demands the ultimate commitment to the job…to die, for a living.”
But viewers aren’t loving it, likely due to its instances of violence, use of strong language and immoral worldview.
According to part of Movieguide®’s review:
In the English language movie MICKEY 17, Oscar winning South Korean filmmaker Boon Jong Ho adds Christianity to his usual Marxist attack on capitalist society. MICKEY 17 tells a science fiction story about a young man who unwittingly agrees to be killed and cloned repeatedly as part of a system designed to detect deadly diseases and other fatal dangers on a new planet that’s being colonized. Leading the expedition is a Christian company founded and led by a religious fanatic and controversial politician from Earth who bears a disposition strikingly similar to Donald Trump’s. Things come to a head when the politician puts the whole colony in danger.
MICKEY 17 tells a story that’s often exciting, comical and weird (in a fun way). However, Mark Ruffalo’s performance as the evil Christian politician is so over-the-top that it helps turn MICKEY 17 into a ham-fisted, hateful piece of Marxist propaganda. As such, the movie not only attacks capitalism, it also viciously attacks Christians. MICKEY 17 also has abundant foul language, many “f” words, intense violence, and some lewd scenes. Discerning moviegoers will reject it.
READ MORE: MICKEY 17 REVIEW
According to Variety, MICKEY 17 “will likely lose between $75 million to $80 million during its theatrical run.”
The outlet added that after only two weeks in theaters, MICKEY 17 “has earned $35.7 million domestically and $92.2 million worldwide. The film was projected to end its theatrical run with $175 million to $180 million worldwide — including $52 million domestically and $123 million internationally. But those estimates were recently revised down to $143 million worldwide — including $46 domestically and $97 million internationally. MICKEY 17’s breakeven point is roughly $300 million.”
Why has MICKEY 17 plummeted at the box office? The answer is simple, moviegoers are looking for family-friendly and faith-oriented movies they can watch together. People are searching for things that make them feel good, and MICKEY 17 has the opposite effect.
Anthony D’Alessandro with Deadline agrees.
“MICKEY 17 is Byzantine and cold in its execution. That’s why it isn’t bringing in a bigger audience. It’s no GRAVITY (also a Warner Bros release, which opened to $55.7M). Women were drawn to Sandra Bullock and George Clooney in GRAVITY, and the film had a lot of heart, working both as a popcorn epic and arthouse narrative,” D’Alessandro wrote.
READ MORE: IT’S NO SURPRISE THIS MOVIE IS BOMBING
- Content: +1Share:
- Content: +2