Readers of my site will know that I have been highly skeptical of Michael, Antoine Fuqua’s biopic on the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. I have little patience for films made in collaboration either with the subject or their estate, and this one in particular went through so much legal mumbo jumbo that an entire act depicting the less-cuddly aspects of Jackson’s adult life had to be cut. That said, I do respect a film that knows its audience and delivers exactly what they want. Nobody comes to a movie about Michael Jackson for the unsavory stuff. They come to see the rise of a legendary, transformative musical talent, to groove to one of the most epic catalogs ever produced, to experience a performer whose gift literally brought the people of the world together. By that measure, Michael more than meets its goals, it moonwalks right through them.
If you’re looking for a deep dive into who Michael Jackson was, then Michael isn’t the movie you’re looking for. It has, fairly, been compared to Bohemian Rhapsody or the more recent Bob Marley: One Love for presenting surface level depictions of complicated performers. Again, it’s all about managing expectations, and Fuqua, along with screenwriter John Logan, make it clear early on that this will be a movie for Michael Jackson fans, by Michael Jackson fans.
Michael, played as a child by Juliano Krue Valdi and an adult by Jaafar Jackson, is the underdog hero of his own story. The film captures his hard upbringing as a poor kid in Gary, Indiana, forced into a musical group with his brothers, by his despotic father, Joe, played by an unrecognizable Colman Domingo. Joe, who everyone calls “Joseph” in an almost Biblical kind of way, is portrayed as cruel and demanding, threatening violence whenever someone disobeys or doesn’t perform up to snuff. Michael, on the other hand, is a pure and sweet soul, with a love for animals, Peter Pan, and The Wizard of Oz, all aspects of his young life that we know will be important to him as an adult. It’s clear that of everyone in the Jackson 5, Michael is the only generational talent, and Joe does everything he can to exploit that talent for greater wealth. For Michael, it means not really having a childhood, or friends. He might have all of the possessions that a child could ever want, but none of the emotional intangibles.
There are essentially two halves to Michael, and both are compelling in different ways. The first half finds Michael under his father’s tyrannical grip, but managing to break out with songs such as crossover hits “ABC”, “I Want You Back” (frequently heard in scene transitions, so get used to it), and “I’ll Be There”. Even as Michael was quietly protected by angelic mother (played by Nia Long), producer Berry Gordy (Larenz Tate), and longtime bodyguard Bill Bray (KeiLyn Durrel Jones), Joe’s presence was so stifling that rebellion was inevitable.
The second half of the film is about Michael’s struggles to break free from Joe, and to be free to express himself creatively and as a man. Fuqua, a filmmaker known for muscular action flicks such as The Equalizer trilogy, unsurprisingly focuses on the demanding physicality that comes with producing an album and performing live on stage. No matter how you feel about Michael Jackson, watching him put together the iconic “Off the Wall” album is fascinating, and the concert scenes practically explode off the screen. Jaafar, Michael Jackson’s young nephew, is an uncanny lookalike and perfectly captures the dance moves, voice, body language, sensitivity, and innocence. This couldn’t have been an easy performance to pull off. The scrutiny he’s going to face will be incredible, from fans and non-fans alike. I’m not sure what his career will look like beyond this, but he’s impressive and deserving of more praise than he’s likely to get.
Michael is so wrapped up in rebuilding up the Michael Jackson legacy that it can’t help but be extremely cheesy on occasion. The debut of Bubbles the Chimp, a fully CGI creation, is kinda silly and makes Michael look weirder than I think he actually was. I laughed out loud at Michael’s sudden interest in gang violence and his bringing together of Bloods and Crips to watch the making of the “Beat It” music video. However, the making of “Thriller”, complete with that unforgettable zombie dance number, is still incredible to behold. There will never be another music video like it.
Even with the full backing of the Jackson estate, the rest of Michael’s family are practically invisible. Michael’s brothers don’t have much to do but play his wingmen on stage, or on-lookers to Joe’s violence. We don’t see or hear of any mention of Janet Jackson, and La Toya (played by Jessica Sula) is seen only as someone who understands Michael marginally more than the others, perhaps because she, too, feels like a Black Sheep.
Many of the criticisms are valid. Michael ends with the Jackson 5 “Victory” tour and the launch of “Bad” in 1988, with only a teasing of the next chapter in his life. That will presumably come in a sequel, where we should see the murky aspects of Michael’s life emerge. But you won’t get any of that in this movie, and that’s okay. Michael is purely electrifying, with a soundtrack that is undeniable and a performance by Jaafar Jackson that is deserving of the King of Pop.
Michael is open in theaters now.
