Rating of
3/4
hehe
Matthew Brady - wrote on 11/08/26
Making a movie about Michael Jackson is no easy feat. How do you capture the legacy of this man in a film's runtime? He was one of the most complex figures in music history, and he hasn't had a boring moment in his life. The amount of craziness is hard to comprehend—his style, his aura, his heehee.
The movie itself is fine and not the worst thing ever. It follows the music biopic formula we are already sick to death of. That's the safest part of it all, but the safe part isn't that they didn't address the abuse allegations; they just followed a repetitive pace you've seen before. Apparently, they filmed a scene or two addressing the allegations, but for legal reasons, they weren't allowed to air them. So I feel like I watched half a movie, as this just ended suddenly in 1988. I sensed a sequel to this movie is in the pipeline, given how well it's doing at the box office and with audiences. Or even a third one.
I can say it was great to hear half of his greatest hits (1960s - late 1980s) in the cinema with the speakers. I found myself bopping along to some of the music, especially Thriller. The movie ends with a concert featuring Bad, so people will leave satisfied. Of course, the music and dance moves are amazing because…well, it's Michael Jackson, and that's already good to begin with. The film is a series of recreated music segments. That's probably why audiences are eating this up. Putting all of that aside, nobody is talking or thinking about anything else that happens in the film.
Jaffer Jackson plays the titular role (and his uncle in real life), and he absolutely nails it. At times, he looked and sounded like him. If the performance didn't work, this whole thing would fall apart, because he is easily the best part and nowhere near the issue.
So yeah, that's Michael. It's not terrible, just very safe. However, one of the biggest things I took away from this release is that even 17 years after his death, his star power endures. He is the king of pop.
