Tag: music

Michael (2026) Movie Review- Put Up (Song) Or Shut Up

AdamLeave a comment

Welp, I don’t know if there’s any way I can do this review without getting cancelled by someone. This latest biopic from the most beloved/controversial musician of the past 50 years in Michael Jackson was always guaranteed to be a total success or failure in the eyes of many. For those that just wanted to be reminded of the good old days of little MJ and put themselves in the shoes of someone that was able to experience pure pop rock peak in the man’s prime, Michael (2026) will be seen as an absolute W! For those that were hopping it would dig a deeper dive into MJ’s personal life, hard hitting dilemmas, and even ask the million dollar question as to whether or not those allegations that hauntedly followed him throughout his career would be addressed, Michael (2026) will be seen as a massive L!

And I almost just want to stop the review right there! Similar to 2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody, Michael (2026) is not interested in revealing things about Michael Jackson that you didn’t already know and would rather handwave any noticeable cracks on the man’s legacy in favor of delivering the cinematic equivalent of a greatest hits album, playing through the songs that everyone knows and loves while making everyone in the theaters feel like they were with the man’s musical journey all along. This is strictly the Michael Jackson you remember on the big stage and NOT the one off of it.

If all of that sounds okay for you, then you are going to dig this movie. If not, then you are better off watching Leaving Neverland, the biggest scam of a “hit piece” ever conceived outside of whatever the hell Fox News was saying about Fred Rogers back in the day. It’s not entirely free of criticism when judging by it’s own merits, with a rather underutilized supporting cast and the most abrupt ending from an entertainment medium since The Last of Us, but for what it’s worth, Michael (2026) is able to put up song and shut up about everything else to make for an enjoyable musical montage that is worth seeing in complete IMAX for anyone that is a fan!

Premise: The story of “King of Pop” Michael Jackson (Jaafar Jackson). From his childhood as the star of the Jackson 5, through times of abuse by his father Joe Jackson, to breaking away and making the hit album Thriller and claiming his independence as a solo artist.

There are PLENTY of ways you can look at Michael through some rather cynical lens. Even if you take away purposedly leaving out anything about the so-called allegations (which was originally planned until they decided to completely re-shot the ending, causing the film to be delayed from it’s initial October 2025 release date), this is a biopic you can easily mistake as being more in-line with a typical concert movie. Oh sure, you get your backstory about Michael’s troubles with his father and within his own family and how that contributed to this rise to stardom, as well as one big life-changing event that nearly took a hit on his legacy (Again, NO, it’s NOT the allegations!). However, as the very last sequence that got added in through re-shots showcases, this is all about Michael Jackson: The Musician and NOT Michael Jackson: The Person. This is a musical biopic that wants nothing more than to put up song and shut up with anything else.

The good news is that the music is still so damn good! Nearly every scene where Michael sings each one of his iconic songs is a joy to watch and a treat for the ears! The sound design is outstanding, Antoine Fuqua directs the hell out of every single musical sequence, the scenes specifically designed for IMAX makes the whole experience worth that price of admission alone, and it’s able to perfectly capture the atmosphere and pure aura of Michael Jackson in his prime! Even if Michael Jackson: The Person is barely presence on screen, Michael Jackson: The Musician still slaps just as hard all these years later.

The other good news is Jaafar Jackson is able to perfectly slip into his uncle’s shoes as the legend himself. He makes you buy that he is Michael Jackson about as well as anyone possibly could, being able to capture Michael’s mannerism and star power in ways that I don’t think anyone expected when he was casted. Even the dramatic scenes that might feel very surface level and emotionally cold to the cynical mindset, he’s able to add his own unique certain layer to it that feels in spirit with his uncle and in spirit of himself as his own actor. He’s able to perfectly convey the whole journey of every hoop and leap of faith that Michael Jackson had to go through to get to what he is known as today. Quite simply, if it wasn’t for Jaafar Jackson being so good in this role, this film would have failed big time.

It’s unfortunate how the rest of the cast gets quite the short stick. Outside of Colman Domingo’s terrific performance as Michael’s abusive father, Joseph, there’s not much material for the rest of the star studded cast to make an impression. The rest of Michael’s family feel like they are only there due to absolute obligation (outside of Michael’s sister Janet, who declined to be portrayed in the film) and the relationships that Michael has with his agency with the likes of Mike Myers, Miles Teller, and Laura Harrier feels like a complete afterthought. I understand some of that has to do with personal and legal reasons but the film could have done a much better job at representing them even with the limited material they are given to work with.

There’s also the way the film concludes. It’s no secret that the ending of the film had to be changed significantly. Not just to reshot the entire third act so it did NOT cover the allegations against Michael Jackson that had already been resolved and proven to be false but also find a way for the film to end on a complete note after scraping the initial plans to have the film be split into two. While the song they chose to end it with was perfect, it is rather anticlimactic to have the final word of dialogue shown being about how Michael Jackson’s story will continue. Whether that is referring to another film being made or Michael’s legacy continuing beyond his early days will be determine by the box office but man, it almost feels like things were just getting started and then the film just…..stops.

Michael (2026) will be seen as a success or failure depending on what you are going to this film looking for. Do you just wanna see a mild sneak preview of Michael’s beginning and having his nephew perform your favorite songs on the big screen? If you do, then you will be happy. Do you want to see an extensive look of what went on from behind the scenes of Michael’s life and how that contributed to his rise to fame outside of just songs? If you do, then you will be disappointed.

If I were to judge Michael (2026) based on the entertainment scale and the experience I had listening to his songs performed in pure IMAX. I say it’s a solid three out of four stars.

If I were to judge Michael (2026) on standing on it’s own as a biopic and extended look of perhaps the most famous pop singer of all time. I say it’s a in-the-middle two out of four stars.

I guess if I were to combine both ratings. It would average around to a two and a half out of four stars.

Make of all that what you will!

Other comments:

  • Sorry that this took me a while to upload! I was busy for the past week with attending a wedding and covering from a mild cold! I have plenty of more pieces in the works for next month and onwards! Be on the look out for all of those!

Gen Z Is Saving Physical Media

AdamLeave a comment

Gen Z gets a lot of flack nowadays. From spending 99.99% of their free time on the internet instead of at malls to inventing corny slangs and memes that everyone IMMEDIATELY becomes addicted to making sure you are held accountable for EVERY single thing you have said in the past 25 years and to NEVER be forgiven for it, they really have changed the way everyone has gone on about their social and cultural lifestyles for quite some time. However, every once in a while, they can be kinda badass. In this case, they are doing everything in their power to bring back proper physical media.

Having getting sick and tired of streaming platforms getting more expensive every year and removing beloved content on their service every now and then for effectively no reason, Gen Z (and pretty much everyone else) are taking matter into their own hands. Instead of waiting for their favorite movie or show to come out on whatever streaming service they use or their favorite singer or musician to release their latest album digitally, they are now seeking out hardcore physical copies of what they want to watch or listen to. They want to actually own their personal favorite media instead of letting other companies own it for them. Gen Z is making a statement and everyone is hearing it loud and clear.

There’s been articles and reports for the last several months of DVDs, Blu-Rays, CDs, and record albums seeing a solid increase in physical media sales and a much less decrease from several years prior. Retro video stores are being resurrected and are immediately having booming business while well known businesses such as Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Barnes and Noble who had either abandon or drastically reduced their electronic physical media sections in recent memory are looking to bring back or expand these sections, especially if this trend continues.

While this is all great and good, I think the main question everyone has is why is this all happening now? What is it about digital and streaming now that has finally broke the camel’s back among Gen Z and everyone else that it has encouraged them to take a stand and just buy physical copies of their favorite movies, shows, games, and music that they can fully own?

While I previously mentioned inflated streaming prices and favorite movies/shows getting removed left and right each month because companies just love to troll their consumers, I think it’s more because that Gen Z (or at least the older half of it) are looking to recapture that special feeling they had as kids. Just the simple feeling of being able to own your own physical copy of something, have exclusive special access of the item they own, and even be able to add that to a nice collection. Instead of just being able to watch whatever they want on their phone or laptop, they feel like getting a full complete version of their entertainment along with extra bonuses that come along with it that you can fully watch on your own television is how you get your full money’s worth.

While there are always posts every now and then on Twitter/X about Gen Z never being able to experience the same magic that Millennials and Baby boomers did with physical stores and owning physical media, there actually is a good chunk of them that have already done just that. Gen Z literally advocates from those that were born between the years of 1997-2012, with Zillenials (a mix between Gen Z and Millennial, mostly those born in the mid to late 1990s) and Gen Alpha (Born from 2010-2024) being thrown in there for good measure. So for those that were born in the late 1990s to the early or mid 2000s, they basically got to experience that same warm feeling of owning the movie, show, game, or CD that you love literally when they were young children. Heck, even a handful of individuals got a glimpse of that among the last wave of it in the mid 2010s.

It’s only when digital and streaming started to dominate the entertainment landscape in the late 2010s that everyone began to take physical media for granted. You didn’t need to own any physical copies of whatever you watch, play, or listen to when you have a streaming service that will do it for you or you can just purchase it and watch it online on your computer from the comfort of your own homes. Plus, it’s cheaper just to pay 10 bucks a month or 15 bucks for digital to watch your favorite thing multiple times than paying 20 to 25 bucks to own a physical copy.

This cultural shift from the past 10 years really started to take a big hit on big physical media companies such as Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and especially Red Box (RIP!) and the big major entertainment studios began to create their own answers to Netflix, resulting in the likes of streaming services such as Disney Plus, HBO Max (or whatever it’s called now), Hulu, Peacock, Apple TV, Paramount Plus, and several others. Because of that, more focus was put on digital and streaming and less on the likes of physical media and cable/satellite television. However, things are starting to change.

People have become increasingly frustrated with the amount of streaming services they have to keep up with to watch their favorite movie or show. People are sick to death of streaming services taken away content they like watching for no reason and only bringing it back whenever the company feels like it. And of course, people are growing pure annoyance on monthly subscriptions fees going up every single year, with more ads and freeze ups being added in for dreadful measure. Because of that, everyone is just wanting to go back to simpler times, back when you can actually own something and physically own it for all eternity with no one stopping you. Such a novel concept in this day and age, isn’t it?

Granted, we are still a little while away before physical media becomes ANYWHERE near as dominant as it was throughout the 1990s to early 2010s and we probably will never reach THAT level of peak every again. Digital and streaming is always going to have a major presence and will still be a preferred preference for a good chunk of people out there. It also remains to be seen if this physical media shift will go towards the likes of gaming, especially considering how ridiculous expensive video games and consoles has gotten in recent memory. And I don’t even need to mention how your average lazy Joe would much prefer to do their daily shopping online on Amazon than dragging his butt out to Walmart. However, this is a sign that the way we consume our favorite entertainment is changing just as it did around this time ten years ago. The difference is this time, I think this change will be for the greater good for the future.

Between resurrecting physical media and being the main dominant driving force of the movie theater going experience, i seems like Gen Z is just looking to have fun again and enjoy entertainment in the way that the older half of their demographic strongly remembers them doing back in the “good old days”. Whether it’s because of inflated streaming prices or finally wanting to come out of their rooms in a post-covid world and talk to someone other than their AI chatbot buddy, this is strongly encouraging of for the future of not just what we physically own but also potentially the way we socially interacted with one another in the near future. Although the current generation leading the charge can give themselves the bad reputation, it’s always nice to see them do some genuine good.

And I should know because I’m technically apart of that generation (I still lean towards Zillennial, goddamn it!)

Now, if Gen Z can please resurrect cable and satellite television already so I no longer have to own 10 different streaming services to watch my favorite sports teams! Please and thank you!