Michael

By Joanna Langfield

After some reported nips and tucks, Antoine Fuqua’s bio pic of The King of Pop feels like an attempt to balance fan service with an understanding of a serious artist. The overall results are wobbly, but who can’t appreciate the few moments that actually do soar?

Produced by some of the Jackson family (and starring one of its members), what often feels like a concert film sprinkled with a few historical notes also pulls off a bit of a surprise. Many of us are already familiar with the abusive stories about the notorious Joe Jackson. We also knew about the group’s beginnings, the splintering off of front man Michael, and his dazzling rise to the top of the music world. All of that is chronicled, however awkwardly, in this movie. And yes, we also heard about Jackson’s own possible abuse of children, a much discussed topic that eventually found its way into a courtroom, where he was found not guilty. All of that is not in this movie, but was shot, then edited out, reportedly, for legal reasons.

So, let’s look at what is in the film. There’s Jaafar Jackson’s loving performance as his now deceased uncle, an appropriately irresistible Juliano Krue Valdi as young Michael, and reliable work from Colman Domingo and Nia Long, as the Jackson parents. There are some weird chronological mistakes, a brief glance at the essential Berry Gordy and no mention at all of sister Janet. There’s gotta be a story there!

But, tucked amongst the entertaining parade of song performances (using the original vocals) is also an insistent look at Michael, the artist, who, as he is developing his solo act, insists on avoiding interviews, wanting his privacy. While we get to see Bubbles the Chimp and a few nods to his charity work, the film takes an equally intentioned beat to highlight the quite serious artistry at work here. We see a motivated man who handles business partners with the same determination he brings to creating the music, videos and stage shows that made him not just a great talent but an international superstar. And that’s interesting.

Maybe the promised sequel will deal with the more salacious, but this chapter, uneven as it is, has other things on its mind.