Michael

by Remington Gonser

Photo: Lionsgate Films

Director: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo & Nia Long 
Rated: PG-13 (some thematic material, language and smoking)
Runtime: 2 hours & 7 minutes

 
“Michael,” directed by Antoine Fuqua, is supposedly the first installment of the tale of one of music’s most controversial figures. I’m not here to share my opinions on Michael Jackson himself, but I am here to talk about his biopic.
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We jump right into Michael’s musical career and follow that into the late ‘80s. There’s this idea of streamlining us through his career and how that affected him, rather than showing us deeper into his day-to-day life. This works fine for a biopic, but there were so many interesting parts of his life just cut clean out. I know a lot of things were filmed that ended up on the cutting room floor, so I do hope for a chance to see whether those deleted portions would help support the rest of the film. Also, no Janet…? Really? Okay…

In all honesty, I think this film would be better if it highlighted some of the darker aspects of this period in his life. I think it would actually help to shape Michael’s character. We do see some dark things - don’t get me wrong - but it’s mostly the base level history of Michael Jackson. We get a lot of scenes that are just “this is Michael, and this is why he was great. Remember when he did these things?” And characters observe him and knowingly smile. It just doesn’t really give Michael the depth that his story deserves. We do get a better look at why he was so childlike and how he remained trapped in his childhood whimsy, but I wish we could see more of the grit that led to it.

Michael Jackson is one of the most talented artists to ever do it - there is simply no arguing that. The music in the film helps to prove that. We get a lot of great recreations of past concerts and music videos. Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson’s real-life nephew, really carries his own with the vocals. His whole performance as Michael is amazing. You can tell this role meant a lot to him, and you can see the work he poured into the role. From dancing to getting the voice down to singing, you can really believe that he’s Michael. The hair and makeup throughout is crazy good.

I don’t think there was a single bad performance in this film. Everyone hits on all cylinders. Both young and adult Michaels do a fantastic job of portraying the inner frustration and joyfulness that MJ could bring. Colman Domingo nails this kind of sleazily con-artist type as Joe Jackson. He always seems to be at the end of his rope, trying new schemes to extend his success. Nia Long’s role as Michael’s mother (Katherine) is really subtle, but I feel like she plays really well in that space and with her levels. This is obviously a Michael Jackson movie, so many of the characters seem subtle while Michael is the star. The only other person to really shine is Joe, and that’s because he’s the main antagonist of that portion (and really all of) Michael’s life.

The latter installment(s), if they indeed come to fruition, are going to be a doozy. The 2000’s were really a time to bully and point a spotlight at people for being strange. This latter portion of Michael’s life is where you see most of his controversies. It’s going to be a rough watch, but I am interested to see how they handle that. Obviously, I know that his family will be telling their side of his story as they always have, but I am really interested to see how they show how society’s shift against Michael Jackson affected him.

Overall, it’s a biopic about a musician. It has the songs you know. It paints him in a pretty positive light. It has the key points of his early career that most people know about. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what’s next in this franchise.

I guess you can say… I’ll be there.