MOVIE REVIEW: MICHAEL

 

The story of pop superstar Michael Jackson -- from his extraordinary early days in the Jackson 5 to the visionary artist whose creative ambition fuels a relentless pursuit to become the biggest entertainer in the world.

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Cast: Jaafar Jackson, Nia Long, Laura Harrier, Miles Teller, Colman Domingo

Release Date: April 24, 2026

Genre: Biography, Drama, History, Music

Rated PG-13 for some thematic material, language, and smoking.

Runtime: 2h 7m

Review:

Michael is a glossy biopic that recreates major moments in his career with impressive care and attention to detail but the rest is a sanitized, superficial look at his life and complicated legacy.  Antonie Fuqua delivers a well acclimated film that moves at steady pace as he jumps through time periods fairly quickly relying a bit too much on montages.  The early Jackson 5 days are all appropriately nostalgic while also setting up the film’s central relationship between Michael and his task master father Joe.  Unfortunately, Fuqua seems impatient with the non-musical moments as he rushes through most of the character moments in order to get to the next set piece.  There are hints dropped here and there about Michael’s insulated, controlled life leading to his eccentricities as he gets older, but it’s never explored in any meaningful way.  There are times when you feel like the film starts to swerve into more uncomfortable territory and it quickly pulls back into safer, family approved aspects of his life.  It’s a real shame because you get the sense throughout the film that there’s a better, more insightful film in there which has been stripped down to basics to avoid dealing with any of the issues of his complicated upbringing, career and life.  It’s a wasted opportunity especially since the two actors portraying Michael turn in impressive turns that really capture his aura especially as a performer.  Juliano Krue Valdi plays young Michael in the early moments, and he isn’t asked to do much dramatically, but he really captures the look and feel of Jackson from those early performances.  Jaafar Jackson, as the older version of Michael, is really impressive as he captures his mannerism on and off stage to an eerie degree especially with the help of prosthetics and makeup in the back half of the film.  It’s just a shame the script doesn’t offer him much to work on the dramatic end since he proves to be a capable actor.  We are given glimpses into him creating his signature album, Thriller, but doesn’t offer much in the way of his inspiration or motivation outside of wanting to break free from his father’s grip.  It would have helped if any of the supporting characters were fleshed out with only Coleman Domingo’s Joe Jackson leaving an impression.  Domingo, under heavy prosthetics as well, steals every scene he’s in with his fiery turn that also could have also benefited from meatier script to work with.  KeiLyn Durrel Jones plays Michael's bodyguard, and he’s presented as a pseudo father figure/protector, but the film never bothers to explore their relationship outside of a few quick moments between the two.  It all reinforces how superficial Michael is as biopic since its more concerned with recreating well known moments than digging into what makes the man tick something that the second film, hopefully, digs into.  

C+

Cindy Prascik's Review of BlacKkKlansman

Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for Spike Lee's BlacKklansman, touted as one of the year's best films thus far.

 

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers or from the news if you're old enough.

 

Colorado Springs' first black police officer goes undercover to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan. (Seriously.)

 

Unarmed with knowledge of the true story, one might naturally assume a yarn as absurd as BlacKklansman to be fictional comedy. The movie does, in fact, feature several laugh-out-loud moments. These ridiculous situations that seem hilarious in fiction are decidedly less so when based in reality (especially in today's climate), but the moments of levity are well-placed and necessary in a story that's pretty hard to stomach at times. Despite deliberate pacing, BlacKkKlansman never feels slow, though the harsh, hateful language and the tension of the case itself definitely made me fidgety. Much of the picture is so surprisingly quiet that, on those occasions when Terence Blanchard's score really rears its head, it feels a little jarring and out of place, but otherwise the musical selections are choice! Outstanding leads John David Washington and Adam Driver have terrific chemistry; Washington, in particular, carries the film with the ease of an old pro, despite having just eight acting credits on his resume. Director Lee expends a great deal of quality screen time focusing on individual faces in the crowds, as if begging viewers to remember we're all just people, no matter our ethnicity or heritage. BlacKkKlansman is the kind of essential film making that makes getting out to the cinema not just something you want to do, but something you HAVE to do.

 

BlacKkKlansman clocks in at 135 minutes and is rated R for "language throughout, including racial epithets, disturbing/violent material, and some sexual references."

 

BlacKkKlansman is that rare gem that truly earns the hype. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, BlacKkKlansman gets nine.

 

Fangirl points: Well, dear reader(s), this basic 70s white girl sure did enjoy hearing Emerson Lake & Palmer's "Lucky Man" in digital surround sound!

 

Until next time...

MOVIE REVIEW: BLACKKKLANSMAN

From visionary filmmaker Spike Lee comes the incredible true story of an American hero. It’s the early 1970s, and Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) is the first African-American detective to serve in the Colorado Springs Police Department. Determined to make a name for himself, Stallworth bravely sets out on a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan. The young detective soon recruits a more seasoned colleague, Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver), into the undercover investigation of a lifetime. Together, they team up to take down the extremist hate group as the organization aims to sanitize its violent rhetoric to appeal to the mainstream. 

Director: Spike Lee

Cast: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace

Release Date: August 10, 2018

Genres: Biography, Comedy, Crime

Rated R for language throughout, including racial epithets, and for disturbing/violent material and some sexual references

Runtime: 2h 15 min

Review:

Blackkklansman is one of Spike Lee’s best films in a while.  It’s funny, uncomfortable and incredibly timely.  Spike Lee isn’t shy about being fairly vocal and direct on his message and it fits perfectly for this stranger than fiction true tale.  John David Washington, Denzel’s son, has a strong screen presence which translates well to the big screen.  Washington is the driving force to the film and he handles it with an experienced ease that’s rare to find.  He and Adam Driver share a strong chemistry with both delivering strong performances.  I’m usually not the biggest fan of Driver but he fits the role well.  The supporting cast is made up of strong character actors like Topher Grace and Jasper Pääkkönen who really shine in their roles.  If there’s a small complaint its that Lee’s film could use a tad bit of trimming since the romantic subplot feels oddly forced.  It’s a minor complaint since the film is fairly enjoyable for the majority of its runtime.  It’s a rare kind of message movie that’s as funny as it’s impactful.  

A-