The Michael Jackson Movie Fails at the Basic Duty of a Biopic

Key Points:

• The new biopic "Michael," produced under Michael Jackson’s estate, deliberately avoids addressing the sexual abuse allegations against him, focusing instead on portraying Jackson as a solitary musical genius and omitting much of his later life and controversies.
• Director Antoine Fuqua initially planned to include the 1993 police raid on Jackson’s Neverland Ranch but removed it due to legal settlements that prohibit depicting certain accusers, reflecting ongoing efforts to control Jackson’s narrative posthumously.
• The film ends in 1988, before many of the abuse allegations became public, and heavily sanitizes Jackson’s story, ignoring key family dynamics, his early solo career, and collaborators like Quincy Jones, resulting in a portrayal criticized as incomplete and gaslighting.
• Critics argue the biopic fails to reveal the private, complex person behind the public icon, instead presenting a mythologized version that prioritizes Jackson’s brand over a nuanced exploration of his life, including the serious accusations against him.
• Despite the controversy, "Michael" is a commercial success, with audiences embracing the music and spectacle, though some viewers and commentators feel the film obscures the full truth about Jackson’s life and legacy.