Jaafar Jackson (as Michael Jackson) in 'Michael,' directed by Antoine Fuqua. LIONSGATE/UNIVERSAL PICTURES FRANCE
LE MONDE'S VERDICT – WORTH SEEING
Expectations were low for the long-awaited Michael Jackson (1958-2009) biopic, a project inevitably weighed down by its official status and steered by members of the musician's family. From the outset, Michael appeared to be a sanitized project, steering clear of thorny issues, even though Michael Jackson himself embodied controversy.
How to approach, how to recount the life of a man who was a living god of music and dance, but who was also (as the four-hour 2019 documentary Leaving Neverland left little doubt) accused of sexually abusing several minors? Faced with this dilemma, the film Michael chose to cater to fans, some of whom refuse to acknowledge the predatory side of their idol. Michael Jackson's daughter Paris lamented this decision in an article in The Guardian: "A big section of the film panders to a very specific section of my dad's fandom that still lives in the fantasy, and they're gonna be happy with it."
Indeed, they will be. The film traces the rise of the King of Pop, portrayed here by his nephew Jaafar Jackson: his childhood in Gary, Indiana; his early fame with the Jackson Five; and his emancipation from the family circle when he launched his solo career with two masterpieces produced by Quincy Jones, Off the Wall (1979) and Thriller (1982). The film ends in 1984, during the Jackson Five's farewell tour.
