Michael
Biopics are always dicey. Chances are, there is an agenda behind-the-scenes to tell the story in a very particular way, so that the artist- or interested parties- get a particular vantage point portrayed in the film. Sometimes, like “Ray,” “Walk the Line,” or “Rocketman,” it can be successful and give us an unflinching look at the highs and lows of an artist’s life. Other times, the agenda is laid out plainly, and the complex nature of a life gets lost. It’s not really a surprise that “Michael,” about the early life- and pop culture apex- of Michael Jackson, kind of goes the way of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” about Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. Both were produced by Graham King, and both had people behind-the-scenes that had very clear ideas of how they wanted the story to play out (the remaining band members of Queen, and Jackson’s family and estate). The result feels less like a narrative than a feature length music video with some dramatic moments that play out.
Let me say this outright- Jafar Jackson, making his film debut, is the absolute least of this film’s problems. As his uncle, who passed away in 2009, he does a terrific job of getting into the physical embodiment of Michael- especially when he’s on stage (or in the studio)- and he does as good a job as John Logan’s screenplay can allow when it comes to getting us inside the King of Pop’s head. The sad thing is, I worry Jackson will not be allowed to prove himself as a performer OUTSIDE of playing his father, be it by Hollywood or fans of the film and Jackson himself. I’d like to see him create a unique character all his own.
Like a lot of Gen Xers, I was a Michael Jackson fan, which is to say, I loved his music, and the inventiveness of his music videos. Certainly, the allegations of his abuse of children- laid out painfully, in particular, in the 2019 documentary “Leaving Neverland”- had dulled my feelings on him as an individual by the time he died, but to this day I still occasionally listen to some of my favorite songs of his like “Human Nature,” “Gone Too Soon” and “Give in to Me.” Because the most high-profile of the allegations against him came to light starting in the 1990s, and this film ends as he’s getting ready to start the “Bad” Tour, I didn’t necessarily expect “Michael” to get into the allegations in any meaningful way, especially with his estate helping produce the film. The sad thing is, there’s not really much in the 128-minute film that made it hold my interest, outside of waiting for the next song to come up. “Bohemian Rhapsody” suffered the same fate.
We start in Gary, Indiana, when family patriarch Joseph (Colman Domingo) is starting to train the brothers- Michael (played as a kid by Juliano Valdi), Jermaine (Jayden Harville, played as an adult by Jamal Henderson), Marlon (Jaylen Lyndon Hunter, played as an adult by Tre’ Horton), Tito (Judah Edwards, played as an adult by Rhyan Hill), and Jackie (Nathaniel Logan McIntyre, played as an adult by Joseph David-Jones)- to be a group. We see early performances, and we see the abusive tactics that Joseph used to keep them- and especially Michael- under his thumb. We see them get recruited by Motown Records, and in the studio with Berry Gordy (Larenz Tate). Michael stands out. Cut to 1978, and “Off the Wall” is coming out. Then, “Thriller.” Michael is beginning to break away into a phenomenon all on his own, but Joseph continues to try to control him, until Michael flips the script.
Yes, the story of The Jackson Five and Michael’s solo career is one of a prodigal talent that took over pop culture, and was quirky (we see the beginnings of what became Neverland Ranch, as well as him getting Bubbles the chimp). But as with “Bohemian Rhapsody,” it feels like stops on the road of a story to get to the next song to play on the soundtrack. Outside of Michael and Joseph, we don’t really get a feel for any of these characters as individuals, not even mother Katherine (Nia Long), bodyguard Bill Bray (KeiLyn Durrel Jones) or John Branca (Miles Teller), who would become his attorney. Domingo does what he can as Joseph, but it really does feel like caricature. There’s no weight to the storytelling, which Fuqua (“Training Day,” “The Magnificent Seven”) is capable of, but this feels like storytelling mandated by producers who just want to give audiences the greatest hits.
Like with “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the best parts are when we are seeing Michael in the middle of creation, especially when it comes to “Thriller.” We see him meet with the Crips and the Bloods during their feud to pitch being a part of “Beat It.” We see him on the set of the “Thriller” music video. And we see them as they force MTV to start playing Michael’s music videos. We also get other moments, but those- and Jafar’s performance- are the only rays of light in a film that wants to remind us of what it was like listening to Jackson’s music for the first time, rather than dealing honestly with the complicated nature of his iconography and life. Maybe the proposed sequel will do that, but I’m not holding my breath.
