After exploring the lives of musical icons with hit films like Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocketman, and A Complete Unknown, Hollywood has brought the King of Pop’s story to the big screen with director Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic, Michael. Actor Jaafar Jackson plays the lead role as his uncle, Michael, with the film depicting the musical icon’s life, from his time performing with his family in the Jackson 5 to his groundbreaking solo career.
Given the extraordinary legacy and controversy Jackson left behind, Michael had to meet some high expectations to present the superstar’s story on the big screen. Since it is intended as the first part of a Michael Jackson film duology, Michael presents a strong start to his story, exploring his complex character, strained relationship with his family, and extraordinary achievements as a musical artist.
Michael’s character
The first act of Michael shows actor Juliano Krue Valdi portraying the singer as a child. He does an exceptional job of portraying the wonder and turmoil within the young star. We then cut to adult Michael Jackson, with Jafaar fading away as he invokes the spirit of his late uncle. The dazzling visuals and blinding choreography also make Jafaar’s musical performance just as incredible as the real Michael Jackson’s.
While the song-and-dance performances are spectacular, Michael works just as well as a deep character study. Much like his hero, Peter Pan, Michael Jackson is presented in this film as a kid who didn’t grow up. Because of the work forced upon him in his youth, he couldn’t mature like other kids. He could hardly even connect with other children his age because they only saw him as a celebrity. Thus, he surrounded himself with animals he calls his friends, essentially turning his family home into Jumanji.
However, like his hero Peter Pan, Michael Jackson is portrayed as a kid who couldn’t grow up like everyone else because of the work forced upon him in his youth. He could hardly even connect with other children his age because they only saw him as a celebrity. Thus, he surrounded himself with animals he calls his friends, essentially turning his family home into Jumanji.
We also see that Michael’s pursuit of perfection as a celebrity artist made him very insecure. Not only does he try to hide and treat his vitiligo, but he also undergoes cosmetic surgery to make his face symmetrical and to make his nose smaller. The way he tried to preserve his youthful appearance through surgery only highlighted his struggle to grow up like everyone else.
The Jackson family
Given that the movie centers on Michael Jackson, it doesn’t delve as much into his siblings’ stories. Nevertheless, it does explore the troubled upbringing he had and how his parents shaped him into the complicated man he is.
Specifically, the movie explores the toxic, abusive relationship Michael had with his father, Joe (Colman Domingo), who tries to profit off his children’s talents, saying that he would rather not work in a steel mill for the rest of his life. Joe puts tremendous pressure on his children to be perfect, successful performers, hoping to turn the Jackson family into a popular brand like Coca-Cola.
Ironically, Joe pushes his family to perform in a Pepsi commercial that led to the accident that burned Michael’s scalp, showing the destructive influence he had on his children. This aligns with the dynamic Michael had with Joe in real life. We even see how Joe punished his son by whipping him with his belt.
Simply put, if Michael is Peter Pan in this film, then his father is Captain Hook. Domingo makes Joe a memorable presence in the film with his manipulative charm and fearsome aura. While Joe is presented as a terrible father, his actions are shown to be driven by a desire to escape the economic hardships Black people like him experienced in America at the time.
Meanwhile, Fresh-Prince of Bel-Air star Nia Long gives an endearing performance as Michael’s mother, Katherine. Though Katherine sits back most of the time, watching her husband walk all over their family, she eventually stands up to him and supports their son’s decision to perform solo. Likewise, KeiLyn Durrel Jones helps create some heartfelt moments as Bill Bray, Michael’s security guard and the closest thing he had to an ideal father figure.
Michael’s impact
Part of what made Michael Jackson such an icon was the groundbreaking impact he had as a Black artist. The movie devotes ample time to exploring how Michael broke down racial and cultural barriers with his work in the music industry.
For example, we see Michael hiring members of the Bloods and Crips to star in the music video for Beat It, hoping to spread love and unity through music. The real Michael Jackson did this to quell the violent rivalry between the two gangs, reportedly spending $150,000 out of pocket to make the video.
We also see Michael break new ground by having MTV air his music and his Thriller video. This came at a time when MTV avoided playing music by Black artists, reportedly to avoid scaring certain viewers and air music that “the entire country” would like.
Thus, we see Michael tear down that wall with some help from a CBS Records exec, who’s played by Mike Myers in another memorable cameo after Bohemian Rhapsody. We see this daring move elevate Jackson to even greater success, cementing his status as a superstar.
Michael’s child abuse allegations
Let’s address the elephant in the room. Michael was originally supposed to address the child abuse allegations made against Jackson. However, Variety reported that the filmmakers had to reshoot the third act of Michael, as they couldn’t legally depict one of Jackson’s accusers, Jordan Chandler.
Instead, the third act of Michael focuses on the singer’s recovery from his pyrotechnic accident and his final tour with the Jackson 5. The movie does leave the door open to explore the second part of his controversial life in the proposed sequel, ending with the tagline, “His Story Continues.”
We can all agree that, to make a biopic about Michael Jackson, the allegations made against him must be addressed. They were a major part of his life, and they remain a significant part of his public image almost 20 years after his death. But after seeing the final cut of Michael, it was clear that these allegations, along with his history of drug abuse, would be better explored in the sequel.
Since the first movie depicted the first half of Michael’s life, its focus is his pursuit of independence as he tries to start a solo career and break away from his father. The investigations made into Jackson’s alleged child abuse are a whole other storyline that wouldn’t be explored enough in just one-third of a movie. Exploring these allegations in the first movie would have also diverted focus from Michael’s character arc.
Michael does try to counter the negative image surrounding the singer by portraying him as a flawed but kind-hearted person. We see Michael visiting wounded and terminally ill children in hospitals, spending time with them and signing autographs, something he did in real life.
The filmmakers’ decision not to address the allegations against Jackson now is sure to be controversial. Nevertheless, from a storytelling perspective, these allegations would be better explored with the rest of Michael’s life in a second film.
All in all, Michael succeeds in exploring the good and bad parts of Michael Jackson in the first part of his life. We see how the singer left an insurmountable impact on pop culture as a Black artist, all while experiencing a troubled upbringing as a child star with an abusive father. It’s clear that more needs to be explored about Jackson on film, but Michael sets the stage with a dazzling and enthralling musical blockbuster.
Michael premieres in theaters on April 24.
