Man in the Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story movie review

[KingOfPopMikeJackson]

Mj is way better then freddie.

[EmilyForeverMJ]

he was BLUE and GREY in skin colour by the end of it, Michael was not BLUE or GREY, Michael was sooooo beutiful and he was NOT x

[EmilyForeverMJ]

it was shit, i know, i love Michael and that was NOT Michael, it was just weird! x

[GuitarGod645]

thanks a lot for taking the time to comment on my video lumbia33 and apologies for getting so much wrong details wise

[lumbia33]

i realized (after i was already on a roll with cutting and pasting) that i could have just sent you all this stuff via 'youtube e mail'. such is life. but yeah.. the movie was horrendous, and did a huge disservice to michael. peace...

[lumbia33]

"the goal of this film (which on the back of the case states is to "(track) Jackson's complicated rise to superstardom- where he came from, how it shaped him, the impact he made on pop culture, and most importantly, who the MAN IN THE MIRROR really is.") falls quite short, since we, as the viewer, were never able to see where he came from, and the people who shaped him; since all the characters we simply minor players in a very major narrative."

[lumbia33]

"And here is where we are introduced to Debbie Rowe again; however, she is, like most people in this film, NOT a pivotal character. She appeared to be more in the picture of Michael's life before she had his children, if not by much. She simply gives birth to Prince and Paris (Brooklynn Proulx), then she is gone." 

[lumbia33]

"The way he asked Lisa Marie to marry him was actually quite tasteless, and in my perceptions of Michael (and yes, in documents I have read), it is not how I would see him doing it. In an attempt to 'normalize' Michael, and to place him in a more 'adult' role, he was given a love/sex scene with Lisa Marie."

[lumbia33]

"Here, Bobby actually does project those general perceptions of Michael, which many others project as well: that he (or anyone else) is not a 'real man' unless he's had a few notches on his belt. Bobby seems driven to get Michael to lose his virginity (this is not just assumed in the film; Michael even said that he 'doesn't have sex before marriage' in a scene with Lisa Marie)."

[lumbia33]

"The adult meeting and consummation of marriage of Michael and Lisa Marie Presley (Krista Rae) was fairly unbelievable, to say the least. The film did not discuss that Lisa Marie was married with children, when she and Michael met in adulthood. In the film, Bobby (the only loyal character in Mike's life, of course) makes an arrangement to set them up, once again emphasizing our protagonist's (if you will) innocuousness, in 'real life' or adult matters."

[lumbia33]

"A representation of Branca, his lawyer, remains at the peripheral in the film; when in fact Branca was an integral part of the decisions Michael made, such as the acquisition of ATV publishing in 1985. In this film, Bobby was his security, his advisor and his best friend. If Michael asked Bill Bray for counsel in terms of firing Dileo, we (or at least I) will never know. But as this film stands, he did. And of course, Bobby had a right to be concerned if HE was going to be fired."

[lumbia33]

"It should also be noted that by the time Michael moved on to Neverland, Janet and James were long since divorced. 'James' was also MUCH darker than DeBarge actually is; the fictional James was distinctively black, whereas Debarge is half-white, and even looks Puerto Rican."

[lumbia33]

About Janet in relation to this film- There is a scene where Michael (still living at "Havenhurst around the time of 'Bad' here) runs into Janet's room (with her husband James (DeBarge, ya'll)) and shows a picture book of where he is moving to- Neverland! It has been noted in several sources that Michael has barged into Janet and James' room, but those sources claim that it was not as happy a moment as was displayed in the film."

[lumbia33]

"Or could it be hydroquinone?

The WORST casting decision in this film has GOT to be Barbara Mamabolo as Janet Jackson (and yes, she was the only sibling who played a significant role in the film). Mike called her 'Tink' in the film (to her calling him 'Peter')- this is funny, because 'Tink' is awfully close to 'Donk', which Michael actually called his sister."

[lumbia33]

"This is one of the reasons the film fails: the film runs various situations (like Mike's Vitiligo) so rapidly, as if the only people watching it are those who already know something about his life. A film's objective should be to grab people who may not know about the subject or characters involved. The film moves so quickly, it's impossible to identify with anyone. With this, Dr. Goodman and Debbie give Michael some sort of drug. Is there a possibility that that drug could be retin-a?"

[lumbia33]

"And the Pepsi commercial... Why is Michael wearing a white armband in 1984? didn't the armband first start appearing with some regularity around the time of 'Dangerous'? Couldn't a little fact checking exist, in some of the money allocated to produce this film?"

(i know he was wearing an armband in the 80s, but as far as i know not regularly on the stage- except for in outfits like 'smooth criminal).

[lumbia33]

"..., and it was severely missing from the film's dialog. Mike's sighs, his stomps of defiance as well as the stress on the word 'long' are imperative to person Michael became. "...And we love you all." He says this in the tone of a man who is just plain tired of the life he's led. "

[lumbia33]

"Mike, in the film, states them by name in this scene, but in the actual Dodger Stadium concert he does not do this, as he's informing everyone at that moment of his decision to leave his brothers. He opens his declaration of independence with "Listen up." To make sure EVERYBODY is listening. "Ya'll have been wonderful, it's been a LONG 20 years..." This is perhaps the most important statement regarding his initial retirement from the Jacksons (even more than the statement itself of leaving)..."

[lumbia33]

"What actually happens is that he tells the band to bring down the music, but not stop it... You could definitely sense the frustration in his voice when he addresses the audience. I never caught that with the film version; I found that Mike's decision to not perform with his brothers again was not taken seriously, with all the laughing and smiling. Alexander as Michael did not take charge of the stage, and he seemed as lost in it as his filmic brothers..."

[lumbia33]

"This was the time where the brothers each got their own managers and lawyers, and Michael publicly disowned any associations with Don King, the promoter of the tour. And no, Don King is not here either. The only scene we see is Michael, on stage, telling the band to stop the music, so he could announce that he was performing his last show with his brothers- and even This scene was done shabbily."

[lumbia33]

"And let's stick to this 'Victory' tour for a second. This was clearly a pivotal moment in Michael's true artistic independence and distinction, and this movie treats it in a trivial manner. This was the time of the infamous 'ticket lottery' controversy- where a single letter from a young fan caused Michael to openly advocate putting a stop to the process, which led people to pay $120 for four tickets, without knowing whether or not they were going to even get to see the show."

[lumbia33]

"We never see how Michael is shaped by life in the J5, how he asserted his independence with 'Off The Wall', and how he actually became a phenomenon by the time of the release of 'Thriller'. And no, Quincy Jones is not in the picture either... Katherine is no saint, obviously, but here, you did see more of her playing a role in leading Michael into career choices he did not necessarily want to make (such as the Pepsi commercial and the 'Victory' tour). "

[lumbia33]

"Alexander spent too much time in Michael's 'childlike' space, never capturing his bullish business acumen, control of his image or stubbornness when it comes to it... Michael's relationship with Ziggy (Peter Onorati- of course looking not a thing like stout, real-life Dileo) felt indecisive, when a relationship with Dileo was reportedly anything but. "

[lumbia33]

"Michael's adult character is now played by Flex Alexander; he is way too stocky to be playing someone as incredibly thin as Michael Joseph Jackson. Alexander hovers over other characters, and seems large simply due to his height and size. He never captured the nuances which make the real-life Michael larger than life, despite his smallness. "

[lumbia33]

"Her character was not fleshed out at all; which is a shame, considering she is a significant part of the narrative that makes Michael into the person he became. Berry Gordy was not even part of this narrative. And with that, neither was Steeltown Records, the Jackson 5's first label. Obviously."

[lumbia33]

i'm just gonna pull direct quotes from it...

"all we see is that Joe, his father, screams at him to get back in the house. and THIS is where the faux pas sets in... in only the beginning of scenes which chronologically jumps ahead of itself- in this particular scene where Michael is STILL A CHILD, Joe has a set of 80s wet curls. The casting choices are abominable... Gademans looked nothing like the adolescent Michael. Even worse, Samantha Banton looked even less like 'Diana Ross'."

[lumbia33]

okay... michael was actually about 5'10". which is still small in stature, in comparison to many of the men he surrounded himself with. also, dileo was fired by michael around 1990. i believe the film got this wrong as well. okay... i finally found the essay i wrote. i actually wrote it on 8 may 2009. quite eerie...

[lumbia33]

before i even get into it, hee hee... allan moyle, the director, is most famous for directing 'pum up the volume'... with that said, yes, the movie is HORRENDOUS. i wrote a piece on it some time ago. lemme see what i can remember what i wrote...