Is Michael a great biopic, or does it work because Michael Jackson’s music is simply impossible to resist? We review the new Michael Jackson biopic, discussing Jaafar Jackson’s performance, the film’s massive audience response, Michael’s legacy, the controversy around his life, and the major moments the movie glosses over. Plus, we end with a Michael Jackson song battle — from Thriller and Billie Jean to Beat It, Smooth Criminal, They Don’t Care About Us and more. Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/V0bjX1WgtxU ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS0:34 Welcome to Cognitive Recalibration 0:48 Introducing Michael and why this episode needed a discussion 1:11 Box-office success and the scale of Michael Jackson fandom 2:34 Music biopics, Bohemian Rhapsody, and billion-dollar potential 3:35 Audience demographics and Gen Z discovering Michael Jackson 5:57 Critics vs audiences: why the scores are so different 7:00 Family involvement, controversy, and what the movie avoids 8:36 Release delays, sequel plans, and the film’s long box-office legs 10:05 Michael Jackson trivia, the moonwalk, and cultural mythology 10:29 Initial thoughts: enjoyable experience, flawed movie 12:37 Emotional connection to Michael’s music and why it still resonates 13:49 The ending problem and why the movie feels like Part One 14:45 Word of mouth, social media reactions, and renewed popularity 16:47 Box-office competition and why Michael has longer legs 17:11 Jaafar Jackson, the child actor, and Colman Domingo’s performances 18:56 Spoiler discussion begins: Joe Jackson and Michael’s insecurities 20:50 The media, Michael’s changing appearance, and vitiligo 22:49 The movie’s biggest flaw: not enough focus on musical genius 23:38 Missing the evolution of Michael’s voice, style, and creative identity 24:43 Quincy Jones, Off the Wall, Thriller, Bad, and missed opportunities 27:08 Thriller, Bad, music videos, and Michael as a short-film pioneer 28:46 Why the movie still works as an experience despite its flaws 30:00 Michael as an underdog and Joe Jackson’s intimidating presence 31:51 Childhood trauma, loneliness, Bubbles, and the toy store scene 32:28 The Pepsi commercial, pain medication, and the start of his decline 33:39 Why the second movie will be harder to make 34:21 Michael’s estate, masters, streaming money, and artist ownership 36:55 Relationships, children, siblings, and the drama the film skips 38:48 Michael’s legacy living through the music 39:10 Why the sequel should explore albums, tours, and fame more deeply 40:27 Was Michael Jackson more famous than Taylor Swift? 41:34 Final thoughts on performances and the film overall 42:03 Michael Jackson song battle begins: Thriller vs everything 43:20 Billie Jean takes the crown 44:49 Human Nature, Stranger in Moscow, and underrated favourites 46:12 Dirty Diana, PYT, Black or White, and Michael’s deep discography 47:02 Favourite Michael Jackson songs and streaming numbers 48:30 Michael’s voice, vocal style, and why his songs are hard to sing 49:42 Paul McCartney, Beatles rights, and Michael’s music portfolio 51:22 Neverland and the stories still left for the sequel 52:15 Closing thoughts on Michael and who should watch it 53:39 Podcast movie draft talk: Michael, Moana, Minions, and Dune 54:53 Quick thoughts on Mandalorian & Grogu and upcoming episodes 55:27 Final sign-off If you want to support this podcast so we can keep producing our content for free consider the following options: Buy us a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/CRecalibration If you wish to contact us to ask a question or give us some feedback, please do so via the channels below: Facebook Page: Cognitive Recalibration Instagram: cognitiverecalibration Twitter: @CRecalibration TikTok: @cogrecal #MichaelMovie #MichaelJackson #MichaelJacksonBiopic #MichaelReview #KingOfPop #JaafarJackson Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/cognitiverecalibration. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
