Latest on MJJC

Why is Ghosts So Underrated?

SmoothCriminal1958

Proud Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2023
Messages
39
Points
18
Country
United-States
I've wondered for a while now why Ghosts is so underrated? It has multiple songs in it, has amazing special effects, and is so visually entertaining. Yet, I feel that it is extremely underrated. I know that part of that may have been the time it came out, but also that people always compared any other short films/music videos Michael did to Thriller. It's still sad that it is not well regarded for how good it is though.
 
My 2 cents

- critics just thought he was trying to go back to the thriller success so this increased the view he was a has been
- Michael’s popularity and image by that time dropped significantly since the 80s, the novelty factor was gone which is normal in the cycle of an artist.
- The songs used for the film were simply not memorable enough
- while a good storyline it really wasn’t all that creative and inventive as Michael had played the angle of being misunderstood since the late 80s
- and then a personal opinion, I think it is too long, it really drags and becomes repetitive in the middle, the film needed trimming. I also think the acting was pretty cheesy and unimpressive of everyone involved, I dare to say that MJ was the best of the lot and he isn’t a trained actor in the first place.
 
Certain factors led 'Ghosts' to be easily forgotten, such as:

'Ghosts' was theatrically released as a bonus short film (for example, in certain countries it was screened along with the 'Thinner' film), so that way of releasing it automatically makes 'Ghosts' fall into quick obscurity.

Also, 'Ghosts' was linked to Michael Jackson's child sexual abuse allegations (given that its initial production came to a halt when these allegations broke out).

Note also that Michael Jackson had already been regarded by many people as a weird guy, so depicting himself in that short film as a weird guy simply confirmed the opinions of these people about him.
 
mj_frenzy said:
Also, 'Ghosts' was linked to Michael Jackson's child sexual abuse allegations (given that its initial production came to a halt when these allegations broke out).
Click to expand...
I don’t understand this point. The short film for the Addams Family Values movie (“Is This Scary?” or whatever it was called) was scrapped in 1993, and later brought back as the basis for Ghosts, but what does that have to do with Ghosts being underrated? Until rather recently, very few people were aware that there was any link between the Ghosts short film and Is This Scary.
 
It sounds silly, but one thing I remember thinking when I last watched it was I wish Mike wore something different. He had similar style in BOW, Will You Be There live video.

Sometimes why something can be so iconic and resonate with people is they can identify it with something. Thriller the red jacket, Smooth Criminal white suit, Bad Leather jacket/buckles. Ghosts didn't have that.

I like Ghosts, the choreography is great, the visual effects are really well done. I don't think it was as cool or interesting as the concept for Blood On The Dance Floor personally, but I know Mike enjoyed making "scary" films so I'm glad he enjoyed it.
 
Ghosts initially did get its attention. It was aired and heavily advertised on prime time tv in Belgium straight after the evening news. But after that it went silent, I didn't see it again until the YouTube era began.

I remember some kids at school talking about it the day after, or at least I did and another fellow fan lol.
 
I think, the main reason Ghosts didn't become popular is because it made in really really old fashioned stlyle. I mean, when Michael released Thriller, it was quite modern in 80s, even with zombie setting. It was scary and modern. That's why it become a HIT! But Ghosts looked like it was made in the end of 80s. Also, I agree that this film is too long, and some scenes are pretty repetitive. The main reason, I watch this film again and again, is Michael's charisma. He played 3 characters in this film. I like his outfit in this movie. Still, I consider Ghosts as a good promotion for BOTDF album. For me it is kinda second videoclip for this album 😂
 
Richard76 said:
I think, the main reason Ghosts didn't become popular is because it made in really really old fashioned stlyle. I mean, when Michael released Thriller, it was quite modern in 80s, even with zombie setting. It was scary and modern. That's why it become a HIT! But Ghosts looked like it was made in the end of 80s. Also, I agree that this film is too long, and some scenes are pretty repetitive. The main reason, I watch this film again and again, is Michael's charisma. He played 3 characters in this film. I like his outfit in this movie. Still, I consider Ghosts as a good promotion for BOTDF album. For me it is kinda second videoclip for this album 😂
Click to expand...
I agree with this, it was repetitive in some scenes, and was pretty old fashioned. And YES about Michael's charisma! He does such a great job in it.
 
Richard76 said:
I think, the main reason Ghosts didn't become popular is because it made in really really old fashioned stlyle. I mean, when Michael released Thriller, it was quite modern in 80s, even with zombie setting. It was scary and modern. That's why it become a HIT! But Ghosts looked like it was made in the end of 80s. Also, I agree that this film is too long, and some scenes are pretty repetitive. The main reason, I watch this film again and again, is Michael's charisma. He played 3 characters in this film. I like his outfit in this movie. Still, I consider Ghosts as a good promotion for BOTDF album. For me it is kinda second videoclip for this album 😂
Click to expand...
he played 5 characters
 
SmoothCriminal1995 said:
It sounds silly, but one thing I remember thinking when I last watched it was I wish Mike wore something different. He had similar style in BOW, Will You Be There live video.

Sometimes why something can be so iconic and resonate with people is they can identify it with something. Thriller the red jacket, Smooth Criminal white suit, Bad Leather jacket/buckles. Ghosts didn't have that.

I like Ghosts, the choreography is great, the visual effects are really well done. I don't think it was as cool or interesting as the concept for Blood On The Dance Floor personally, but I know Mike enjoyed making "scary" films so I'm glad he enjoyed it.
Click to expand...
Yeah, his outfit could have been more recognizable instead of just a white shirt and black pants, I still think it looks nice, but it's just not super iconic or memorable.
 
Richard76 said:
Narrative, vibe, scenery, characters behavior. Nothing of this looked modern
Click to expand...
They were going for a gothic horror feel. Gothic horror was the genre that was popular in the 1930s to 1950s, michael’s clothes were 18th century ish or older, I’m not a fashion expert, his character lived in a castle or mansion not a modern house. It was all a deliberate choice.

I think it is acquired taste and a more modern influenced style could have made a difference indeed
 
SmoothCriminal1958 said:
I've wondered for a while now why Ghosts is so underrated?
Click to expand...
I watched it for the first time in years, based on this topic.

* I am impressed by the (additional) music in the short film (Nicholas Pike)
* the visual effects are great: much better than what could be achieved when Thriller was made
* The acting is cartoon-like. The actors act like caricatures. They over-act to the level of cringe, and MJ does too in parts. He definitely could've made a far more understated approach to his acting and he should have left the "Hello?!" bit on the cutting-room floor.
* The main fat guy's voice didn't sound realistic to me in the early parts of the video (MJ probably wasn't the best choice for the voice). It didn't match the voice I'd expected coming out from him.
* when the town's folk get scared at first & they want to leave, the big doors close on them. None of the people try to open the door, they just stop when it closes. None of them struggle to get out, as a normal person would.
* There are a lot of pauses in the music where they are hitting on othe floor and other things which I felt made it drag along. Only small bits of it were entertaining.
* I have a great deal of respect for the make-up wizards and the guy sitting in the make-up chair too. Just looking at the end of the video, I got tired for MJ, just looking at him get made-up. It's astounding the amount of work and patience (and money) that goes into a production like this.
* I noticed a small audio glitch at 24:44 watching it on YouTube (at a decent volume)
* the end credits show "Ghosts" as "Ghost". Just careless! I noticed some other credit oddities too. Amazing that this wasn't caught before being released.

What I remember from the last time I watched it years ago was that the acting was bad, and it didn't really leave me with a great impression, over-all. That still stands today.
 
Maybe it's just that the majority of people prefer Thriller over Ghosts. But I like the film and the song
 
I had the same issue with his outfit and hair when it was released; it looked too much like what he already had done.. But I guess that probably has something to do with picking up after it was stopped in '93, maybe practical.

Also the acting was annoying, and in a way I understand the '80's' remark from Richard; it's very over the top. In Thriller there were at least no annoying 'cute' children. And I guess the whole setting wasn't really fresh to begin with, a bit too much like Edward Scissorhands
 
Just watched it again last night. In the 93 ‘demo’ video certain vfx were already completed (removing his face to reveal the skull, him smashing his face and disintegrating onto the floor). So yeah the outfit was for continuity reasons. I find the 93 acting/supporting cast to be slightly better (read less corny) than the 96 version.
 
Victorious said:
And I guess the whole setting wasn't really fresh to begin with, a bit too much like Edward Scissorhands
Click to expand...
(Cough cough) addams family which was the intention to be filmed (is this scary) he just completed what he already started. Those six that are in the final product. Hince the hair wet & wavy vs dry & straight. (Pulling the eyes & skin, dropping the jaw, pulling face off,bashing head & hands...) all those elements are straight from 1993 & every other scene was reshot. You can actually watch is this scary & see the exact parts thats in the film.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top