Rammed with every music-movie cliche, an almost mute supporting cast and a Michael who only produces endless smiley blandness, this is a frustratingly shallow film<\/p>\n
Antoine Fuqua\u2019s demi-biopic of Michael Jackson gives you the chimp, the llama, the giraffe \u2026 but not the elephant in the living room. It\u2019s like a 127-minute trailer montage assembling every music-movie cliche you can think of: the producers\u2019 astonishment in the recording studio, the tour bus, the billboard chart ascent, the meeting with the uncool corporate execs in their offices.<\/p>\n
The film skates through Jackson\u2019s life from the early days of the Jackson Five, terrorised by belt-wielding dad Joe, to his emergence as a stunningly original, globally adored solo act, culminating in the colossal Wembley Stadium concert in 1988, at which stage he was 30-years-old. And there we leave it, with the baffling surtitle flashed up on screen before the end credits roll: \u201cThe story continues\u201d. It certainly does. Does this mean a second, darker movie is in the works? Maybe. Producer Graham King and the Jackson family estate are reportedly considering a \u201cMichael 2\u201d; if this happens, they will have to find a very different film-making style, something other than this bland, slick, corporate hagiography. And there is certainly no clear commitment to anything. All concerned might well think it\u2019s best to exit here, and avoid the controversy, like the stage show MJ: The Musical.<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/919abe763887b32a9d1863a4b95e6f11f413e328\/992_0_2585_2068\/master\/2585.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e191b0b88ac5c615829fb8a47c4d4391\" "\\"Michael")
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