The Official 'Michael' Bio-Pic Thread

I liked it. But the human nature bad tour audio on the victory tour was something I never expected… 😅😅
The first time I saw the film, I was very disappointed that the Wembley audio was used because I was looking forward to some '84 audio.

Then I got over it the 2nd time and just really took in how nice the scene was. 3rd time it was magic.
 
Biggest cinema in Limerick City tonight

Omni.png
 
Luiz Fernando

@Luiz_Fernando_J
·
1h


But it is the KING OF POP #MichaelJackson’s music biopic #MICHAEL starring #JaafarJackson showing what moonwalking legs can do in the UK, grossing a STRONG $1.7M on 3rd FRI, just a -15.6% drop from last FRI at the British #BoxOffice, despite facing several newcomers + #Prada2 & good weather.It hits a $40.2M 15-day cume in the UK.Eyeing a $6.5M-$7.5M 3rd 3-day weekend in the UK, what would once again beat #BohemianRhapsody’s $6M 3rd weekend - and BoRhap wasn’t facing any new competition.
 
Finally got to see the film. Normally I would've seen something like this days before the official release, but with a 4-month old at home, I haven't had much time. Anyways, without reading other peoples posts about it, here's my review:

Jafaar was OUTSTANDING. He really did a tremendous job. All of the performances were terrific. The acting, how he looked, just everything about him was incredible. I really didn't think anyone could take on this role, but he did just that. He deserves an award.

Colman Domingo did an incredible job as Joe Jackson. He nailed the part and deserves an award as well.

The Jacksons leaving Motown and going to Epic was a big deal and the movie left this out. It was really a pivotal point in MJ's career.

Once MJ was getting ready for his solo album, he met with CBS exec's to talk it over. In the scene, he mentions he's going to work with Quincy Jones and the exec's are all on board and excited. Not how it happened because initially they did not want Jones to be the producer as he was considered too "jazzy". Whatever, slight error but will let it go.

Off The Wall was brief. I don't even recall Rock With You being played in the movie, which was odd.

The Thriller era was just all over the place chronology. I was so confused with Beat It. I didn't even think the Thriller album had been released yet, however he was all of the sudden making the video for it?

And then came the Thriller video and then Motown 25. Again, we're all over the place and not in the proper timeline of events.

Where were the Grammy's in 1984? Won a record number of awards. Which then leads me to why they didn't make a storyline as to why he felt slighted for not winning much for OTW and used that as fuel for Thriller.

The movie should've been slightly longer and end after the Victory tour scene. Why did we have to end on the BAD Tour? Just made no sense to me. And for that matter, I guess we aren't getting anything on the SONY/ATV catalog purchase. Which is SHOCKING because that would've been a major scene for BRANCA.

I'm probably forgetting some things but overall I enjoyed the movie and most importantly, Jafaar did an outstanding job that I think would've made MJ proud.
 
Anyways, without reading other peoples posts about it, here's my review:
Nice synopsis Derek. Also, I must say, you're one of the few people in the last few days actually to talk about the movie itself, instead of just the sales figures.
 
9 May marked my 9th time watching the movie… and counting.

The first viewing underwhelmed a little. But seeing the new generation in my community fall in love with MJ and more importantly, begin asking genuine questions about who he really was as a person made the next eight viewings absolutely worth it.

At this point, I’m fully satisfied with the overall outcome, and I care far less about any inconsistencies within the film itself.

The only lump in my throat remains the allegations especially the 1993 case, and the fact that they cannot properly shed light on that chapter.

What struck me the most, though, is watching youngsters and even millennials who once looked down on MJ begin to understand the pain he went through and finally recognize the genius behind his aura.

“No one can be this famous. No one can be this great. No one can be this perfect, no one can be this dedicated, no one can endure all of that, yet still keep giving the world their absolute best.”

I’ve genuinely heard those exact words from people who once questioned why I’ve always been so drawn to Michael Jackson.

And many just told me: “now we get it!”



Every 45 days or so, I gather with my old friends. This time, I asked the one organizing it to arrange a special Michael cinema gathering, I’m booking the entire theater.

Because of scheduling conflicts, the date kept getting pushed back until we finally all agreed on one:
25 June

Pure coincidence, and it even falls on a Thursday, just like 25 June 2009. How random is that?

Really looking forward to watching it with them. Most of them respect MJ, a couple are actual fans, but I’m definitely the only hardcore one in the group.

What makes it even more interesting is that one or two of them used to throw shades at MJ back in the day, maybe just to get under my skin. They stopped after his passing though as I became far more vocal and uncompromising whenever it comes to defending MJ.

Now I’m eagerly curious to see their reactions.


Keep Michaeling Y’all ❤️👑🖤

P.S. still haven’t watched the movie solo yet.
 
The film really is too sanitized. Even back in 1984, MJ was a fairly controversial figure. Louis Farakkhan called him a bad role model for black youth. Don King suggested he was ashamed of being black. And a lot of people were gossiping about his plastic surgeries and sexual orientation, so much that MJ even threw a press conference in September to quell the rumors (of course, he didn't even bother showing up to the press conference, instead sending Frank Dileo to deliver his message, which only made things worse).

The film doesn't mention MJ's sexuality at all and rarely even discusses his plastic surgeries. MJ was so offended by Don King's comments that he nearly sued him before Branca talked him out of it. Why couldn't we get a scene of that instead of MJ and Branca suing Pepsi (which never happened)? Why couldn't we have gotten a scene of MJ being confronted by his fellow Jehovah's Witnesses over the "Thriller" video? Instead, the Jehovah's Witnesses aren't mentioned anywhere.

The main issue with the film isn't that it doesn't cover the child molestation scandals from the 1990s and 2000s; it's simply that it doesn't cover any of MJ's controversies in the 1980s, instead pretending that his life during that decade was mostly smooth sailing.
 
Last edited:
The film really is too sanitized. Even back in 1984, MJ was a fairly controversial figure. Louis Farakkhan called him a bad role model for black youth. Don King suggested he was ashamed of being black. And a lot of people were gossiping about his plastic surgeries and sexual orientation, so much that MJ even threw a press conference in September to quell the rumors (of course, he didn't even bother showing up to the press conference, instead of sending Frank Dileo to deliver his message).
So what? Let it be sanitized. After decades of media haunting, maybe a small fight back is long overdue.
 
But it just comes across as being pretentious and dishonest. Not at all a good film.

Honestly, I would've devoted very little time to MJ's childhood beyond one or two flashbacks. Have the adult MJ watch kids play outside and flashback to enviously watching other children play outside a recording studio. He also flashbacks to Joseph whipping him and his brothers during rehearsals, and Joseph calling him "Big Nose".

But the film never actually shows that MJ felt he missed out on his childhood. It only implies he has arrested development without showing why, which only raises the question of why his brothers are normal and he isn't. Just one scene of Joseph whipping him and calling him "Big Nose" isn't enough.
 
But it just comes across as being pretentious and dishonest. Not at all a good film.

Honestly, I would've devoted very little time to MJ's childhood beyond one or two flashbacks. Have the adult MJ watch kids play outside and flashback to enviously watching other children play outside a recording studio. He also flashbacks to Joseph whipping him and his brothers during rehearsals, and Joseph calling him "Big Nose".

But the film never actually shows that MJ felt he missed out on his childhood. It only implies he has arrested development without showing why, which only raises the question of why his brothers are normal and he isn't. Just one scene of Joseph whipping him and calling him "Big Nose" isn't enough.
I see your point Spaceship. There are countless valid suggestions and criticisms out there whether from fans or fair-minded critics. I personally noticed several drawbacks and missing milestones myself. But ultimately, we were never going to get a film that satisfies the entire spectrum.

I started disregarding most of that after witnessing firsthand how positively the movie has influenced both average MJ listeners and even a good number of haters.

I’ve seen casual listeners turn into genuine fans, and people who once dismissed MJ begin giving him a fair chance and revisiting him with a more open mind. More importantly, I’ve noticed many starting to analyze him more fairly as an artist and as a person.

Sure, all of this could have been even more impactful had they touched on certain topics more deeply. But despite that, the final outcome is still far better than I ever expected.
 
I’ll be making my way back to watch one last time on Tuesday, in the best screen my odeon has to offer. The isense laser projection and Dolby atmos.

My only hope is that one day the estate will have the good sense to put a Michael Jackson tour on the big screen. A good show or a hybrid of parts from different shows but during the same tour.
 
9 May marked my 9th time watching the movie… and counting.

The first viewing underwhelmed a little. But seeing the new generation in my community fall in love with MJ and more importantly, begin asking genuine questions about who he really was as a person made the next eight viewings absolutely worth it.

At this point, I’m fully satisfied with the overall outcome, and I care far less about any inconsistencies within the film itself.

The only lump in my throat remains the allegations especially the 1993 case, and the fact that they cannot properly shed light on that chapter.

What struck me the most, though, is watching youngsters and even millennials who once looked down on MJ begin to understand the pain he went through and finally recognize the genius behind his aura.

“No one can be this famous. No one can be this great. No one can be this perfect, no one can be this dedicated, no one can endure all of that, yet still keep giving the world their absolute best.”

I’ve genuinely heard those exact words from people who once questioned why I’ve always been so drawn to Michael Jackson.

And many just told me: “now we get it!”



Every 45 days or so, I gather with my old friends. This time, I asked the one organizing it to arrange a special Michael cinema gathering, I’m booking the entire theater.

Because of scheduling conflicts, the date kept getting pushed back until we finally all agreed on one:
25 June

Pure coincidence, and it even falls on a Thursday, just like 25 June 2009. How random is that?

Really looking forward to watching it with them. Most of them respect MJ, a couple are actual fans, but I’m definitely the only hardcore one in the group.

What makes it even more interesting is that one or two of them used to throw shades at MJ back in the day, maybe just to get under my skin. They stopped after his passing though as I became far more vocal and uncompromising whenever it comes to defending MJ.

Now I’m eagerly curious to see their reactions.


Keep Michaeling Y’all ❤️👑🖤

P.S. still haven’t watched the movie solo yet.
That's so beautiful to read, have fun! 😊

I see your point Spaceship. There are countless valid suggestions and criticisms out there whether from fans or fair-minded critics. I personally noticed several drawbacks and missing milestones myself. But ultimately, we were never going to get a film that satisfies the entire spectrum.

I started disregarding most of that after witnessing firsthand how positively the movie has influenced both average MJ listeners and even a good number of haters.

I’ve seen casual listeners turn into genuine fans, and people who once dismissed MJ begin giving him a fair chance and revisiting him with a more open mind. More importantly, I’ve noticed many starting to analyze him more fairly as an artist and as a person.

Sure, all of this could have been even more impactful had they touched on certain topics more deeply. But despite that, the final outcome is still far better than I ever expected.
This and I also think they wanted to have the film not to be too dramatic to make it accessible for everyone, also families with children. Which...is good, because maybe there will be many new, younger fans.
 
My only hope is that one day the estate will have the good sense to put a Michael Jackson tour on the big screen. A good show or a hybrid of parts from different shows but during the same tour.
Oh yes... I already thought about writing mails to some cinemas if they could show concerts, Ghosts, Moonwalker, etc. 😍
 
In sweden Moonwalker has been screened on rare occasions in Gothenburg the last 10-15 years, obviously just a one night thing but it has happened :)

For the Bad Tour if the entire tour had been shot with the same quality as Another Part Of Me it would been possible to run it in cinemas in like a year or so in the middle of part 1 and 2 of the biopic. Its difficult when the quality is not there in HD though, not sure how they are going to work that out. Its possible to still run it of course.
 
Last edited:
In sweden Moonwalker has been screened on rare occasions in Gothenburg the last 10-15 years, obviously just a one night thing but it has happened :)
Yeah, in Munich, too last year...of course exactly at the time I wasn't in Germany 🤡.

Is there maybe a website that has updates on screenings like these? Maybe some weeks in advance so one can prepare for it?
 
Every 45 days or so, I gather with my old friends. This time, I asked the one organizing it to arrange a special Michael cinema gathering, I’m booking the entire theater.

Because of scheduling conflicts, the date kept getting pushed back until we finally all agreed on one:
25 June.
Now I’m eagerly curious to see their reactions.
Wow, please tell us how it went when the time comes!
 
Back
Top