Michael review

If you weren’t alive to know, or old enough to comprehend, how massively popular Michael Jackson was in the 80s, just picture the biggest music star today and times it by five, at least. This week’s movie, “Michael”, tries to give you an idea about how big he was, but you really had to be there to know. This movie shines a bright light on the turbulent childhood the Jackson boys, particularly Michael, went through at the hands of their self-absorbed, tyrannical father, Joe Jackson. Joe created the Jackson 5, with Michael as the lead singer, and got them into the sights of Motown. That primarily got Michael made as the next megastar by Berry Gordy at Motown and Quincy Jones. Still in the background was Michael’s familial struggle with his father trying to rule his life with an iron fist and knowing his grip is slipping. Michael fights to be his own man and achieve his own dreams all while being the biggest music star of all time. Is it worth going to see this biopic at the theater? Check out Movies Merica to find out! “Michael” stars Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Miles Teller, Juliano Valdi, Liv Symone, Laura Harrier, Larenz Tate, John Rabe, KeiLyn Durrel Jones, Kendrick Sampson, Michael Andrew Baker and Zach Kenney. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:52

Five, four, three, two, one. I wondered for a lot of years why we hadn't ever been seen a dedicated Michael Jackson biopic movie yet. Elton John got a movie, Queen Two, Johnny Cash as well. Even that overrated sham hack Bruce Springsteen got a movie. Now finally we get a movie for the icon that was exponentially bigger than any of those guys. Sure, Michael Jackson seemed weirder as he aged and he plastic surgeried himself until he looked like Gollum, but there's no denying his music and popularity were stratospheric. Let's talk more, Michael, in this episode of Movies America Live. Hello to my movie maniacs and my fellow freedom fueled film fanatics. You guys know who you are out there. And as always, I'm your humble host, Van Ebert, aka Movies America. And yes, thank you for joining me on this Movies America live episode, all about the king of pop, because we are talking today about the movie that is kicking the critics straight into the old smooth criminals there. A lot of these critics are none too happy about this movie making a whole lot of money, alright? They had they want Michael Jackson blood, alright? They want that Michael Jackson, they want him to suffer. I mean, the guy's dead, you know, but even posthumously, they want Michael Jackson to suffer, okay? And so they wanted a movie where Michael Jackson's you know name was gonna get wrung through the mud, and you know, they got and critics were gonna get their pound of Michael Jackson flesh and all that. But uh no, no, no. Michael Jackson or the movie Michael is definitely not that movie there, okay? But uh, but again, yeah, worry not, fret not. We are gonna be talking a whole lot more, Michael, here in this episode. But uh, real quick here, if you'll allow me, just want to remind you that since this show is live, we do have the live chat available if you're checking it out on Rumble or YouTube, okay? And so it's just a matter of clicking on the old live chat or chat button right on down there. And uh yeah, getting it all up in the live chat. And you know, nobody says you gotta write war and peace or write a novel in the live chat, okay? You can just simply just say hi or give me a thumbs up emoji or even put a poop emoji or whatever you want in there. That's fantastic, okay? But and also, hey, it's your chance. So the live chat gives you the opportunity to talk about the movie Michael or Michael Jackson or whatever you want to live chat at me right to the live chat. So go ahead and do exactly that, all right. So, all right, so let's get into this movie, this this Michael movie about this Michael Jackson guy. I don't know, maybe maybe you've heard of this guy here, but it is directed by Antoine Fouquet, who you may not know the name, but he has directed some of the movies that you surely do know. He directed this movie uh with Denzel Washington, uh called Trading Day. Maybe you heard of that there, yeah. Training Day. He did the uh the uh Bruce Willis movie Tears of the Sun. He's directed all of the equalizer movies with Denzel. Uh he did uh Straight Out of Compton there, so which was another biopic as well. So um, and and now he's uh doing this Michael uh movie here. Fantastic. And uh yeah, we've got uh real quick here speaking of the live chat here on the on the YouTube side. Uh you know, we've got uh we've got uh wink. I'm gonna guess that's uh uh an abbreviation for century, so wink century there. Just gonna go with that. Hopefully I didn't screw that up there, yeah. But uh says, I love the movie, but do you agree with the critics? And no, I do not agree with the critics. Okay, the guy's dead. He's been dead since 2009. Let the guy rest. Okay. Like he's never he was never convicted on any of the allegations, and I know we do live in a less enlightened time. We live in a dumber time, uh, where people uh treat accusations as criminal convictions here. So, I mean, that that if you ever wanted uh evidence, if you ever wanted proof that uh we have collectively lower IQs in 2026 as opposed to say 1966, uh then yes, look at the phenomenon which is hey, this guy was accused, so he's guilty automatically. Like, so no. So, no, I did not, I wasn't craving a movie that dragged Michael Jackson through the mud, you know, without any evidence, without any legal convictions or anything uh like that. So, so yeah, not not with that. I know that the critics they want their they want their Michael Jackson pound of flesh, okay? Uh, but they're outrageous selective. You know, they're like, they get outraged at this guy, but not that guy. And the guy they don't get outraged just happens to be a guy they like for whatever reason. Uh so so but uh yeah, the movie is great. You are absolutely right there, uh Wing Century. I love the movie uh too. Uh I didn't need uh you know, I didn't need a you know a movie that just drags Michael Jackson through the mud. Okay, so they might do that in the second movie because this movie is a big hit and it's the biggest opening uh of 2026 for a movie. It's the biggest opening for a biopic. Okay. Uh it beats uh you know The Passion of the Christ and American Sniper and Oppenheimer for as far as biopic movies uh go there. And so it's surely gonna get a sequel here. They even uh elude to it. Is that a word? Allude there we allude to it at the end of the movie, where I think at the end of the movie says something like his story continues later or something like that. So um, but uh so yeah, I think there's gonna be a sequel to this. And then hey, maybe the critics will get that pound of flesh that they want right there. You never know. Yeah, never, never know right there. But thanks for uh thanks for uh live chatting on the YouTube side there. I appreciate it there, and thanks for watching the show. But uh yeah, Antoine Fouquois, you know, he's uh he's a prominent uh director there, and he has uh Jafar Jackson uh starring as Michael Jackson uh in this here. And then we also have Coleman Domingo, he plays Joe Jackson, okay. And we've got Miles Teller, who plays Michael Jackson's lawyer, Nia Long plays Catherine Jackson, uh Michael's mom in this. And the plot of this movie is pretty much so it just starts out like right when the Jackson 5 is starting out. Okay, they haven't really got any gigs or anything like that. They're still the Jackson 5 that is practicing, you know, they're rehearsing in their living room at their house in Gary, Indiana, and Joe Jackson is there and he's cracking a whip and getting them, you know, to perform in unison and sound, you know, and you get that good sound going on, got the dance moves going on, and you know, people say he's overbearing, and he was there, and then you know, the mom, again, played by Mia Long. She's just kind of standing there passively, like, Joe, be easy on him. But ultimately, she backs off and just enables the whole thing uh right there. So, but you know, and and and and the thing with uh Joe Jackson, he's got this reputation, and I think it's rightfully earned, where he was overbearing and then he abused uh you know the the Jackson boys and that kind of thing. And I think that uh as you watch this movie, you know, you should have struck a balance with trying to teach the boys how to be great at something and teaching them discipline and uh and sticking to something, right? Not quitting and that kind of thing. And also letting them like you know play with kids their own age and that kind of thing so that they don't grow up all weird like Michael Jackson grew up weird there. You know, like bounce it out, like just kind of sprinkle in some playtime with some some kids of their own age and that kind of thing in there. Um, and then and then you know, and then rehearse and and try to cultivate the Jackson 5. And I get where he's coming from. It's like all those kids are out playing outside, you know, that you know, they show Michael, he's watching, looking out the window, he's seeing all these kids playing and all that. Nobody remembers those kids' names. All right, nobody will ever remember those kids' names. But the kids that stuck inside, they stayed inside and they rehearsed for the most part and became the Jackson 5, and primarily Michael Jackson. Who doesn't know Michael Jackson's name? All right, the guy is an icon, he's an historical figure that you'll see in history books, okay, uh, from now on. People say Michael Jackson, and be like, oh yeah, he was the king of pop. He was like this, you know, this big musical icon. Those kids playing outside, chances are no one's gonna remember who they were whatsoever. So it's like if you do want to give your kids this life as you know as being icons and a life of wealth and prosperity, and they never have to worry about money or anything like that. I know all that stuff comes with its own tribulations and and and and cons and all that stuff right there. But I'd much rather be ultra-rich and you know, have the worry of, oh, I can't walk into Starbucks without everybody wanting my autograph than being broke ass, okay, and standing in welfare lines and all that stuff. Hell, I'd rather give me give me the problem of being beloved, all right, and rich and having anything that money can buy. Oh God, I'll I'll take those problems, okay, right there. Um so basically back to the plot. So it starts out back in the 60s, again, Jackson 5 starting out, they get they get discovered, and then you know, they meet Barry Gordy at Motown, and then he cultivates uh and teaches them, you know, raises them up in the way of Motown music and getting into the music industry and becoming popular. And the whole time Joe Jackson, you know, their father's there, and then it's clear that Michael Jackson is the star of the show, he's a star of the Jackson 5, and they're and it's all the music executives, all the music, you know, music uh big wings are concentrating on Michael Jackson and trying to make him a big star. And it's clear he's gonna go off on his own, and then there's this internal familial familial struggle. Is that a word? Familial? If it isn't, I'm maybe I'm making it a word right now. Familial struggle between Michael and his dad, Joe. And Michael's trying to break away, and he's got all these people on the outside of his family. So you're the biggest man. You're you like you're gonna you're the star. You need to like you know, cut loose here of the Jackson 5 and let yourself just blast off into the stratosphere, right? But he's fighting with his dad, and then he's all this stuff. So there's that internal turmoil, all the while you're hearing great Michael Jackson and Jackson 5 tunes throughout the whole movie. Okay, so it's it's fantastic right there. But uh, and apparently I'm not the only one who loves this movie, and uh because it's the biggest opening movie of 2026 so far. I think it beat the Super Mario Galaxy movie, and I think Project Hail Mary and all of that stuff right there. So it's it's got uh uh it's got that to brag about that is for short. All right, and if you're old enough to experience how big Michael Jackson was in like the late 70s, you know, with the off the wall album and 80s, you know, with Thriller and Bad into the 90s with Dangerous, uh, you know that there has been absolutely no one after him that has reached the worldwide stardom he reached. All right, take the biggest star today. I know a lot of people think Taylor Swift is big. Uh, they think Bruno, not Bruno Mars, but uh like the weekend or uh who's that who's that dork that did the Super Bowl halftime show uh this year, uh whatever. Uh Bad Bunny, that's it. People thinking Bad Bunny is a big star. Okay, well, whatever. None of those guys, all right. None of those guys measure up to how big Michael Jackson was. Like, take the biggest star today and times that by at least five, and that's how massive, that's how big Michael Jackson was. Your mom knew who Michael Jackson was, your grandma knew who Michael Jackson was, your grandma's cat knew how big Michael Jackson was, all right. You know, speaking of how big Michael Jackson was here, as far as pop culture goes, this this movie tries to show that, but it can't quite do it. And I don't think any movie could. I mean, he had to be there, period. I mean, he was dubbed the king of pop, and like with many kings, there's no shortage of enemies who want to boot a king off their throne. All right. Michael made it easy for them because he did get more eccentric and weird as he aged here as my eyeball wants to my contact. I don't know if he has weird contacts. My contact is being a real pain in the ass right now. Uh but yeah, this movie does an excellent job at explaining why that weirdness, that weirdness happened right there. Well, I shouldn't say, I shouldn't put it in quotes, it was weird. Uh, and it does that by showing you how his father, Joe Jackson, raised him and his brothers, but he was especially hard on Michael because Michael was the star, right? And Joe wouldn't let him play with any kids his age, you know, before he became a star, because he made Michael do nothing but eat, sleep, go to school, and rehearse the Jackson Fab, alright? And there's no way being raised, you know, that way at such a young age isn't gonna have behavioral consequences down the road. Now, Coleman Domingo is effectively infuriating as Joe Jackson there. And you guys might know Coleman Domingo if you're one of the ten people that saw that that terrible, that lousy remake of the running man last year. Uh he was a guy that uh took over the Richard Dawson part there, playing like the host of the running game. That's Coleman Domingo. He's been in other stuff as well. But uh yeah, Domingo, he's effectively infuriating as Joe Jackson. Uh, but it is borderline cartoonish in his performance. And but, you know, he does. I mean, that's what the performance calls for, is for him to just be this total uh overbearing, you know, uh uh hard-fisted character there. And the movie focuses on Michael's struggle with trying to break out on his own while his dad has his boot on his throat. When your manager is your dad, it's hard to tell him to beat it, if you know what I'm saying there. Yes. So let's do this here real quick and uh mix it up a little bit. And the music in the movie, Michael, as you'd predict, is excellent. And if you're human, you'll be bobbing your head and tapping your feet, as I saw a lot of my fellow moviegoers in the theater I was at uh doing there as well. All right. I mean, I was doing it. I mean, I was bobbing my head unashamedly. I didn't care who saw me, right? And Jackson leap, uh Jafar Jackson, I should say, lip synks throughout the movie. He's not actually singing, but he does have his uncle's dance moves down, right? He's got to do the dance moves. You can't fake that. You gotta do the dance moves, and he's got them down here. And for a first-time actor, he is for he's phenomenal in his performance. Now, granted, Jafar has an unfair advantage, all right? He he used to hang out with his uncle Michael at Neverland Ranch until his uncle Michael died in 2009 when Jafar was 12 years old. Still, what a show Jafar puts on. I mean, I'm a child of the 80s, you know, the decade where Michael Jackson was everywhere and was the biggest megastar of anyone. And Jafar brought me back to those better days, you know, when America was more unified. And I'll admit, I got some sand in my eyes. All right. So, and you know, as far as this movie right here, here's some background info about how Jafar Jackson uh got the role in this movie here.

SPEAKER_03 18:40

After months of auditions, something wasn't clicking. Sure, they found people who could dance like Michael, they found people who could sing like Michael, but nobody could be Michael. The director, Antoine Fouqua, said they were looking for something beyond talent. They needed someone who could capture Michael's spirit, his aura, that indefinable quality that made him him. And that's when Jafar Jackson's name came up. Now here's the kicker. Jafar Jackson was born on July 25th, 1996. His father, Jermaine Jackson, founding member of the Jackson 5, that makes Jafar Michael Jackson's nephew. But this isn't just about having the same last name. This is about genetics. Miles Teller, who plays Michael's lawyer in the film, said something that really stuck with me. He said, There will never be somebody who portrays somebody in a biopic that has a ton of that DNA already in him. Think about what that means. Jafar didn't have to learn how to move like a Jackson. It's literally in his DNA. The way he walks, the way he carries himself, the subtle mannerisms, these aren't things he studied from YouTube videos, these are inherited family traits. The Jackson family has a specific way of moving. If you've ever watched Michael, Janet, Jermaine, there's a fluidity, a grace that's distinctly Jackson. Jafar was born with that. But that's not all, his voice. Jafar has the Jackson family vocal tone, that smooth, soulful quality that runs through the entire bloodline. It's not an imitation, it's authentic. Producer Graham King said he was blown away by the way Jafar organically personifies the spirit and personality of Michael. That word, organically. He doesn't have to try, it just is. But wait, having the DNA is one thing. What about actually knowing Michael as a person? This is where it gets deeply personal. Jafar has actual memories of his Uncle Michael. Real memories, not stories he read in magazines or documentaries he watched. He was at Neverland Ranch. He played hide-and-seek with Michael. He went on the rides. He watched movies with him during family gatherings. Now think about what that means for playing this role. An outside actor could study Michael Jackson for years. They could watch every interview, every performance, every behind-the-scenes clip, but they'd still only know the public Michael Jackson. Jafar knew the private Michael, the uncle who laughed with family, the person behind the superstar, the man who existed when the cameras weren't rolling. He grew up hearing firsthand stories from his grandmother Catherine, from his father Jermaine, from the people who actually lived those moments. These aren't tabloid stories, these are family truths. And here's exactly how that matters. When you're portraying someone, you need to understand not just what they did, but why they did it. You need to understand the emotional weight they carried, the pressure, the loneliness, the love. Jafar understands what it means to carry the Jackson name.

SPEAKER_01 21:30

Yeah, so I thought that was just fascinating about how Jafar got the role and how he how he earned it. He had to earn it. It wasn't assured to him. It wasn't uh his automatically just because he, you know, shares the the Jackson DNA. All right. So and but I thought that that video made a good point because, yeah, it just has, you know, he Jafar has something that you just can manufacture. I mean, you can go to all the acting classes, all the acting classes. acting studios uh there and you know in order to to to perfect the role but nothing beats being part of the family uh there to uh to help you in portraying uh in this case Michael Jackson right there so and I think that uh uh I think Jafar you know was invested more than say just some somebody outside of the family would have been uh in giving the world you know a accurate uh reminder of you know of who Michael Jackson was and so I think that Jafar knocked it up Park I mean this guy he's never acted before in his life okay uh you know I think he's done some singing and you know he's got a music career of some sort uh he uh I think he said he wanted uh what did he want to be I saw an interview uh with him here where oh he wanted to play golf that's it he wanted to be a wanted golfer of all things there um and so but acting wasn't in his in his plans but uh but I guess like the the guy who got the rights to this story here about Michael Jackson it's the same guy who did the movie Bohemian Rhapsody there I forgot I for his name escapes me there uh but I guess he called Jafar and Jafar Jackson uh in a in an interview on Jimmy Kimball was saying like okay once he heard from this guy and that you know he knew this guy had the rights to his uncle's story for for a movie he kind of knew like I think I know where this is going he's gonna ask me to you know at least try out to to play my uncle Michael there and just uh and just just in case you didn't know Jafar is actually Jermaine's kid uh but uh but yeah I thought it was uh fascinating right there here with that Jafar Jackson kind of expose uh there that we saw but uh anyway it we're it's time to mix things up here we're gonna take a little break from Michael but we're gonna get right back to Michael after we do this little thing I affectionately like to call brew review time. Okay let me get this beer the brew for today that I'm gonna be reviewing here uh right up in your face right there and I'm gonna try to still do this with my bum eye uh today but uh as you see right here uh we have a little taste of Italia here okay uh this is uh the Birra and it just uh just to let you guys know right at right ahead of time I'm well aware I'm gonna be butchering these Italian words here so because I'm an ugly American I'm white boy Roy from Iowa so I'm gonna be butchering these these names so or these words so prepare yourselves okay but this is a Birra Dolomiti Pils or Pils is short for Pilsner and it's a crispy Italian style pilsner and it's uh brewed by a brewery called Fabrica or Fabrica di Pedavina all right I know all the Italians in the audience probably laughing their asses off at me right now with my with my pronunciations here. But uh this brewery it's uh it's actually seated at the foothills of the Dolomite Alps here in an Italian town uh of Boluno, Italy okay and uh in this one of the the highlights of this beer is actually it's brewed with Alpine spring water there that comes from those dolomite alps uh that uh that I was mentioning there before. And uh you know the most important thing about the the brews that I'm reviewing here of course isn't like the bottle or how the bottle looks it's it's the taste right and the taste of this here it's got like a a mild mild sweetness to it and I'm gonna really stress the word mild uh of some toasted barley malt with a subtle hop bitterness and it's got some it's got some floral notes uh in it as well uh it does kind of remind me of another Italian beer that I have uh that I've reviewed here before it's the uh and that beer was the Peroni Nastro Azzurro and uh so that is and that's more of a uh like a lager I believe not really a pilsner but it does taste very similar to this beer dolomiti pills there so uh and again they're both Italian beers there and now the aroma let's get a little bit uh let's taste let's get a little bit of aroma taste all right let's see I'll share you a little bit about the nose on this thing here so yeah so you definitely get that malt smell in there and then yeah that those floral notes as well but uh yeah so I mean and it's so it's a pleasant smell to it it's a pleasant taste uh as well I'll tell you those Italians you know they know how to make some food and they also know how to brew some beer here as I think I have a tear running down my cheek. I'm getting emotional about this beer or I have a or I have a lousy contact lens going on. But anyway so but if you were to see me pour this into like a like a a plate a beer plant glass or something like that you'd see it has a clear light golden color uh there and it's got a creamy white head which as I say that it sounds really disgusting and and dirty when I when I put it that way so I'm gonna move on here. But it's brewed with again like I said that alpine water that alpine spring water uh with Italian grown barley corn and noble hops okay so you're getting the inside baseball on how this beer is actually brewed here. And it comes to us so with an alcohol by volume or ABV percentage of 5% there. Okay. And then also as you guys know if you guys have caught any brew review time uh before this then you know I like to give you food pairings with the beers as well. And this particular beer does pair very well uh with like lobster rolls various fish dishes there um you know it complements uh like pasta dishes with like light cream that kind of thing uh pairs well with pizza okay um now the kind of pizza that uh is you know really recommended to go with this is like spinach and ricotta pizza right there but I'm sure that it would go very well with some pizza uh with some more robust toppings on there okay so you get some pepperoni some sausage you know some prosutto you know uh you know some some some uh some Canadian whatever okay you put on there you know so uh it also goes good with like uh you know light appetizers that kind of thing right there so uh so that's the food pairings part of this okay uh but uh I'm gonna tear you out again here again um so but uh without you know with without further ado uh allow me to stop yapping about this beer and actually just get a get a good old drink off this excellent excellent there you go man bless you Italians bless you guys all right uh and gals uh there you go because I'm all politically correct on this show I mean if there's anything that the show is known for it's me being politically correct uh but anyway so yeah just uh you know get your hands on some of this right here this Beira dolomiti pills uh and now obviously as you would probably guess that's gonna be a little harder than easier to get your hands on some of this right here. Now unless you live and probably like if you live in a bigger area okay uh then you might be able to get your hands on some of this like at a big uh you know liquor store like a total wine and more or something like that. But if you kind of live out in like a one-stop light town nowhere near Italy okay then you might have to go someplace like gopuff.com it's a website that specializes in getting you beer uh that comes from places that are nowhere near where you hang your hat okay now they're gonna charge you I mean they're gonna charge you some serious scratch but they will get this beer in your hands right there so if it's that important to you by all means go to gopuff.com uh you can go to open bar uh that's an app on your phone um Uber Eats if you happen to have this in your area somehow Uber Eats will deliver this uh to your house there as well okay but uh yeah so yeah and I mentioned all that just because I don't want to hog all this delicious beer all to myself there. Okay so as I put this down but uh yeah let me know if you guys have ever had this beer uh before or if you enjoy the brew review time uh there if I could spit that out there you go but uh with that let's wrap up this brew review time and I have some random thoughts about this Michael movie and my first random thought is it's a little weird that the movie doesn't have even one appearance by Janet Jackson in it. I mean I'm not saying that they should have had a portion of the movie where they focus on Janet's success too I'm not talking I'm not asking them to go into 20 minutes of rhythm nation and control and Janet and you know her going over her career and all of that stuff. Like no that would have been it would have been too diverting. This movie's called Michael not Michael and Janet okay so but however you'd think that at least like you know have her in the movie as Michael's little sister during the childhood scenes because remember like I said the beginning of the movie it starts out with the Jackson boys and the Jackson girls and they're all like little kids uh there and their little Alice and Gary, Indiana right there where you know they're where their dad is trying to trying to get them to make it big right now they show LaToya but no Janet and then of course Michael's other sister Rebbe uh Rebbe Jackson also isn't shown but that's not as impactful since she isn't one of the well-known Jacksons there okay now I I I get it I acknowledge it also might have been like a legal thing like not giving their likeness rights or something like that because it's no secret there if you dig into this movie you know even a little bit uh you'll find out that uh yeah Janet Jackson was not a fan of this movie um Michael's daughter uh Paris was not uh a big fan of this movie now his son Prince Jackson was a big fan of this movie and then you see like a large like the majority of the Jackson family was in favor of this movie. I mean they know I mean they love Michael obviously his family they know he's dead um you know and so I think they also even if they weren't his family I think they're smart enough to realize like what's the point of throwing in um you know like sleazy skeezy accusations of Michael doing things. I mean he was never convicted of any of these things that be he's been accused of I mean again again like I said earlier I know we live in this less intelligent lower IQ time where people treat accusations like criminal convictions uh there but I I think the family most of family you know because that's their thinking they're like okay he was just accused all right uh there's uh there's no shortage of people that will take will will you know take a briefcase full of cash to play victim and accuse you know this this big personality and that big personality and this notable figure and that notable figure of doing something heinous right I mean there's no shortage of people you know who who will take a call and like hey we'll give you a million dollars if you say that this notable figure did this to you right there. There's no shortage of that people I mean people are people are even less shameless now. I mean like I said remember how I said talked about you know we live in a lower IQ less intelligent uh time we also live in a time of lesser amounts of shame I mean people are more shameless nowadays and so yes anyway all that to say is uh that you know they uh even though the like Janet and Rebbe and and Paris Jackson uh don't really like this movie here uh you know they most of the Jacksons do like this as I turn this off here so those are all my tip my text messages blowing up uh over here so we are gonna do we're gonna take care of that right now there we go do not disturb nice okay but another another uh random thought I had about Michael is this movie doesn't shy away you know for calling MTV out of all of all things for not playing any black artist videos all right like like MTV's excuse uh for that you know for not playing you know black you know music videos there back in like 1982 83 and before that uh their excuse wait for this their excuse was that Michael Jackson and other RME artists didn't fit their rock music format all right now I call that weak sauce miss me with that sham excuse pathetic okay the channel is music television not rock television not metal television not death metal television alright it's music television alright and I dig rock as much as the next guy but I also like RB of the 90s and before that okay not playing RB with as big as it is on a channel for music videos is like a channel for classic NBA videos uh never showing any Michael Jordan videos like it's weapons grade stupid okay that's uh that's that's the mistake that MTV was making uh back in the day right there so but I was like you know and I I I I forgot all about that and and then when I when when I was reminded that like oh that's right MTV like MTV if you ask MTV or any MTV executives nowadays they would have never ever fathomed that back then they pride themselves on like we're so enlightened we're so not racist and uh yeah they had they had this racist policy back in the day right there and I again I'm not one of those guys that just you know just you know has this itchy you know sensitive trigger finger in calling something racism but that's pretty racist uh right there we have a uh a channel called music television and last time I checked RB primarily made by black black artists is music okay uh and so yeah why would you not have that on MTV I don't get that whatsoever. All right there but all right let's uh let's switch it up and move on real quick here and I do mean real quick allow me to uh let you guys know and remind you that this Sunday show you guys are watching this Movies America live show is not the only show that I do each week I do a show on Thursday night called Movies America spoiler warning and uh as you may be able to tell from the if from the actual title of the show uh yes there are spoilers in the Thursday show because I talk about the same movie I'm talking about today on the Sunday show on Thursday okay and but on the Thursday show if I drop a spoiler or two or two hundred I am not going to be apologetic about it because I actually warn you with the very name of the show. Now I don't like you know uh do cartwheels and bend over backwards to spoil the movie okay but you know but I'm not gonna walk on eggshells and try not to spoil it whatsoever okay because hopefully by that time if it's a movie that I recommend here like Michael I'm hoping that you guys have seen the movie by Thursday night and that you when you join me for the show and you will join me for the show right right yeah uh that uh you'll get in the live chat and you'll talk about um the movie Michael in this case right here you'll you'll let me know if you you don't like the movie, love it, hate it, kind of in the middle, okay? You know, let me know, hey, you know your favorite parts of the movie, whatever, okay? But again, uh the whole point of this is to let you guys know that yes my movies America spoiler warning show is on Thursday night. Probably would help you. Probably would help if I let you know what time on Thursday night, right? Okay. So it comes on at 7 p.m Eastern 6 p.m central 5 p.m mountain and 4 p.m Pacific on Thursday night movies America spoiler warning this week about Michael okay so join me then and probably the easiest way to watch the show is if you just go to like my Movies America account on X, you'll find the links right there either the YouTube link or the movies or or the or the Rumble link right there. Or you can just go to Rumble and type in movies America Michael go to YouTube type in movies America Michael and you can find it that way. So you guys are imaginative people you guys are smart people you guys know how to find stuff. There you go. So uh you're all over it and so yeah I do hope that you join me on this Thursday night uh for our in-depth discussion all right the autopsy that I'm gonna do on this on this Michael movie I'm busting out the suction and the scalpel and we are gonna get uh we're gonna go in depth on Michael this Thursday night so join me then all right hope to see you there okay let's do this here let me double check something here I want to make sure that I am on top of everything we're at there and I yes of course as usual I'm on top of it people come on uh and really and speaking of being on top of it I see this beer staring at me over here and so I better better take a drink off this bad boy so here we go and that's a reminder for me to remind you that yes hey you know what I'm not the only one who's allowed to drink on the show hey go ahead and uh yeah if you got a beer in your hand or a cocktail or whatever or maybe you're just a maybe you're maybe you're a non-drinker and you got a big old glass of chocolate milk uh staring in the face go ahead yeah kick back down that thing relax right because that's uh that's what the show is for it's for you to be able to relax and kick kick your feet up while we're doing this show or hey or listen to it while you're doing something else okay maybe you're uh maybe you're making chocolate chip cookies and while you're watching or listening to this show and if you are can I have one I love chocolate chip cookies they're so delicious all right on that totally unrelated note let's get into my segment of the show that I call is this movie a woke after school special okay and uh obviously I'm referring to the movie Michael okay and so uh is Michael a woke after school special well it does it does have a little woke in it of the feminism variety okay I do I do mean a little all right it's not enough to ruin the movie okay but it does have a little bit of some feminism flavored woke in it uh and and this is where I'm going with this this is this is where that feminine feminist flavored woke comes in the movie so the movie portrays Suzanne de Paz or passe uh forgive me if I'm mispronouncing that last name right there which I surely am uh but the movie portrays I'm gonna just call her Suzanne this movie portrays Suzanne because I know how to pronounce that word uh an aide she was she was an aide to Motown's Barry Gordy as the one who discovered the Jackson 5 alright now that's a lie she did not all right the actual person who discovered that Jackson 5 was in fact a man I know I know men were we're supposed to you know always think of them as evil evil evil creatures evil men right okay women are the good guys are the good persons there you go and men are the bad persons there you go but no in fact the person that discovered the Jackson 5 was a man I know and the man who's named was name man's name was Bobby Taylor who saw the Jackson 5 performing at Chicago's Regal Theater and he's the one again he's the one who discovered and mentored them not Suzanne all right to put even more of a Feminazi stamp on this lie the scene in the movie portraying this lie that Suzanne discovered them has Joe Jackson like creeping on Suzanne like Suzanne walks up next to him like he's offstage he's watching the Jackson watching his boys out there performing and he's offstage and watching them and then she walks up on his side and uh Joe's you know looking over at her like how you doing yeah alright yeah I like what you got going on over there. Gotta give her that look uh there so he's creeping on her um and I don't know if that's true or not. I mean knowing what we know about Joe Jackson if that turned out to be true I would not be surprised but anyway but but up about this whole feminism flavored uh woke part of the movie I'm guessing one of the Jackson women wanted this in the movie but again I'm only speculating I don't know I'm not an insider to this movie Movie or anything like that. Alternatively, though, I mean, it could have been that the truth, the actual truth of how everything went down, was too man-centric for the woke creators involved in making this movie. I mean, the Jackson 5 was discovered by a man, then propelled into stardom by a man, Barry Gordy. And then after that, Michael worked often with an iconic music producer, Quincy Jones, another man, alright? And woke is never afraid to lie. In fact, it prefers it. All right. Lies are the oxygen for woke. And unfortunately, Michael has a little stink in it from a woke lie, okay? But I got, you know, a little stink. You know, not much, not enough to stop you from going to see this movie or anything like that there. So, but, you know, I'm all about full disclosure and telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth. So help me God there, okay? And uh just wanted to let you guys know and keep keep you in the loop and uh give me the give you a keep it on Front Street about whether or not this movie has uh woke. It's not it's not, you know, it's not drenched and woke like the movie The Bride, you know, a few few months ago there. Not at all. So but anyway, that has been the Is This Movie a Woke After School special segment? All right, so time for my final thoughts uh about Michael. And uh my final thoughts on this is sure, you know, Michael, it's formulaic and it doesn't break any new ground as far as biopic movies go. But if you want a magnetic, iconic two-hour, seven-minute look back at better times in this country, you know, with a music legend, always some bumping and thumping music from the king of pop, then go see this at the theater with a great sound system. Matter of fact, if you happen to live like in an area with a Dolby audio theater, which is like mostly not like the bigger metropolitan areas like Dallas, Fort Worth, or Miami or New York or whatever, right? Uh you're you're bound to have a Dolby audio theater uh there. You're usually with AMC if you have an AMC chain, uh AMC theater in your area. Uh they typically have a Dolby audio theater with the AMC chain right there. So I would definitely see it at an AMC or at a Dolby audio theater there because the sound is just that good. So, but yeah, go. Go see Michael. And apparently, yeah, some of you have already seen Michael because yes, it's the obviously the big winner of the weekend. It's the biggest opening movie of 2026 so far. I'm sure it'll get surpassed by somebody. Uh it's the biggest opening for uh for a biopic movie of all time already. So go check out uh this movie. You can bring the kids. I mean, there's nothing that uh, you know, is gonna traumatize the children's or anything like that. So it's a movie for the whole family. It's good. Uh, you know, unless uh, you know, you've got your, you know, you've got a complete stick up your butt, uh, you're gonna enjoy the music in this. You're gonna be bobbing your head, you're gonna be tapping your feet. All right. I mean, a bunch of people in my theater were bobbing their head, you know, and having a great time. And uh it's just a great, a great movie to watch with a crowd. And you're not gonna get that at home unless you have like, you know, all your family overs and what that. Then yes, then you'll get the same effect right there. But it there's nothing better than going to a theater. And this movie, this theater was packed when I was there. Uh, you don't you don't see you don't see a whole lot of movies these days where the theater is packed. Like, remember like 30, 40 years ago, theaters are packed all the time, right? Now it's rare. Now it's a rarity uh here because everyone's like, you know, uh, you know, addicted to their couch and Hulu and Amazon Amazon streaming and all that stuff right there. But for Michael, packed theater, man, and they were a boogie, man. It was a big, it's like a big old party. Uh watch this movie. So go check out, uh go check out Michael there. It's a good time. Uh, it's fantastic. Don't wait for it to come on and streaming like some goober, okay? So uh, you know, uh elevate yourself. Don't be basic. Go see the movie at the theaters right there. So, but anyway, as I get ready to wrap up this episode of Movies America Live, of course, I want to thank everybody for watching, whether you watched it live here or you're watching the recording of it there. Uh, I appreciate that all the same. And uh yeah, feel free to, if you would, follow me on the uh the platforms uh that I'm on. I'm on Xunder at Movies America, I'm under Movies America on Facebook, I have a Movies America group, a Movies America page on Facebook, I have my Van Ebert profile if you want to reach out to me that way. I'm on Rumble. I have like three Movies America accounts on Rumble there. So please, if you would follow all of them, uh that would be fantastic. Again, following me on any of these platforms, most importantly, costs you nothing. Okay, nothing. And it also costs you what 0.03 seconds of your time. Okay, so very simple, very easy, very quick, very cheap. Okay. Uh I'm on Instagram as well. Um if you go to YouTube, uh look for the Till Death Podcast Network, of which I'm a part of there. Um, and you can follow the Till Death Podcast Network. So that's the same as following me, okay, right there. Um, Gab. I'm on Gab.com as well, if you're a Gab guy or Gab gal there. So yeah, check me out on those platforms. That would be fantastic. Uh, it would mean a lot to me there, okay? But uh with that, I'm wrapping up this episode. But like I always say, get out there, people. Those movies aren't gonna watch themselves. See ya.