Film criticism

Brat Ljatifi

Brat Ljatifi (writer)

Jacky, the main character of the movie, seems not to be able to make anydecision, and having a lowly paid job, is dreaming of having his own shop.Yet, we never see him take any initiative in his real life. During themoviehe moves to his own apartment, and when is mother arrived, she comments onthe nice cough he has bought. To me it seems a little odd that he couldhavefurnitured the apartment all on his own.

Now, I can believe that he is not ready for a marriage, but I think it israther odd that there is no interaction at all between him and ChiChi, thegirl that came over from China (not an easy thing to do in reality) tomarryhim, and who is now staying with him in the apartment.

2) This movie is rare in Dutch cinema. A Chinese movie mostly but shot andmade by Chinese living in Holland, mostly Amsterdam.

It’s about a guy named Jacky who’s caught inbetween Dutch/Western lifeand old traditional Chinese life. He has a girl flown over from Chinaby his mother but that does not really work out either. As a gift tohis mother he asks a singer to perform, much to his mother’s dismay,showing who little he knows about Chinese culture.

The movie is sometimes a little slow and even though a movie with longsilences does not have to be bad it sometimes is a little painful. Theacting is fairly good.

It may give you a good sense of how it is like to live betweencultures.

3) Although this film portrais the life of a young chinese in between twocultures, China and the Netherlands, the underlying motivations and reasonsfor the main character are much more widely aplicable on todays society.

Maybe some criticism is in order as to the editing but all together abeautiful portrait.

4) This movie develops slowly but give it a chance.

It focuses on a young Chinese guy, Jacky, in the Netherlands (Eindhoven) whois pretty much still under his mother’s wings. His family arrange a marriageand ChiChi comes over. He is not ready for a marriage and the poor girl isleft by herself most of the time.His indirection in life is reflected by his family and friends: hisobnoxious brother, the gay singer who makes a pass at him, the touristguide. The ending is abrupt but appropriate.

Holland never looked so small and cold to me. Harrowing.

I wish they could have shown scenes from the Jackson Prison riots in the50′s, but apparently they are so shocking and gruesome that they cannot beshown in public. Instead, they just show people tripping over boxes andwandering around in clouds of smoke.

If you think about it hard enough, I suppose the moral of the story is togive people a chance to prove themselves, even if it makes youuncomfortable. If you think that you are too good for someone, theyprobablywill catch on. Give them a chance to show you that they aren’t so bad andmaybe you will be pleasantly surprised. ??5/10

• Factual errors: The Jackson 5′s first single was “Big Boy”, not “Kansas City.”
• Anachronisms: When Michael is in the studio laying down the audio tracks for the song “Human Nature”, the caption reads that the year is 1983. Human Nature was on the “Thriller” album, which had already been released in 1982.
• Plot holes: What are the odds that nobody on the airplane knew the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner”?

• Factual errors: Before the brothers go on there first tour with Motown in 1970 they are shown in the recording studio listening to playback of “Rockin’ Robin” Which wasn’t recorded until 1972 on Michael’s first solo album.
• Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Katherine is holding her new baby and announces his name to be “Michael Joseph Jackson”, the visual shows that she is actually saying something different.
• Continuity: During the montage of the group’s touring experiences, there is a shot of the adult Jermaine character riding on the plane. After this montage, the movie continues using the teenage Jermaine character.
• Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Jermaine meets Hazel after getting off the plane, Hazel’s mouth movements don’t match what she’s saying.
• Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Joe and the Jacksons get robbed after the show, Jermain is shown beside Joe in one shot and then back by the steps in the next shots.
• Factual errors: Michael Jackson was born 29th August 1958 not 1959.
• Factual errors: “I’ll be there” was recorded by The Jackson 5 after “ABC” in 1970. “ABC” was actually first recorded in 1969 around the time of “I want you back.”
• Factual errors: On the night that it is raining, Katherine turns on the light on the left then talks to Joe. When she is done talking, she turns the light off from the right.
• Continuity: When the boys are congratulating Tito on his engagement in the den Jermaine fixes some root beer floats. His float has not yet settled, but when he clicks his glass to Tito’s it has settled. Then when he brings his glass back it is once again not settled.
• Audio/visual unsynchronized: After the fight with Jackie and one of the kids from the neighborhood Jackie says to his daddy “I did it” but his mouth does not move.
• Continuity: in the scene in which the kids are singing while cleaning the house Tito picks up and begins to play a guitar which is not given to him by his father until several scenes later
• Factual errors: In the scene when the actor who plays Michael Jackson is doing his solo performance for Motown, the single, glittery glove he is wearing is on his right hand. In the actual performance, the real Michael Jackson is wearing the glove on his left hand.
• Miscellaneous: During their performance at the Apollo, the strap on Jermaine Jackson’s bass snaps off, nearly dropping the bass guitar. But since Michael Jackson’s character is obviously the focus, this scene was never corrected.

2) I like all biographies, and I really love the Jacksons, I thought WylieDraper (the guy that played the older Michael Jackson) looked a little likethe real one, I’m sorry that we lost him, he was a good actor. JasonWeaver’s acting gave Wylie something to work with, and he succeeded in AlexBurrell’s (Michael Jackson from age 6-9) version of Michael. I didn’t knowat first that Jermaine’s son was playing him, he looks exactly like hisdad,but I think the guy who came after Jermaine Jr. really ruined it as far asportraying Jermaine is concerned, but his "overacting" worked in somesceneslike with Hazel Gordy at the airport and talking with her in the hotel roomand also talking with his dad.

I like the music, that’s my favorite part, I’m gonna buy this movie, it’sworth it.

3) This film is the best film ever. It has touched me so much. JermaineJackson did really well producing this film and may god bless u.Michael should watch this. All the 3 people that played as Michael didan excellent job. Love u guys. The person that played the older Michaelwas called Wylie Draper. Sadly Wylie died a year after they did thefilm May he rest in peace. My thoughts and prayers go to his family,and my love too. Wylie was the best, He acted as Michael as if he wasreally Michael. He did a good job on the moonwalk. He looked very cuteand did a good job. My luck also goes out to all the other castespecially to Floyd who played as little Marlon. He was so cute. Theboy who played little Michael was Alex. The person who played thesecond Michael was Jason. He was so so so good. Well done u guys. Welldone Wylie. Never forget u. People that this film was poor should thingagain because it’s the best film ever. Wylie was the star. He didreally well and i love him for that. The 2nd star would have to bejason weaver.

4) I don’t understand why this movie is so heavily slaughtered with criticism.This is way better than most made-for-TV garbage currently being aired onTV. The cast adds magic to this movie with their outstanding actingabilities, especially Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Angela Bassett, Vanessa L.Williams, and Billy Dee Williams. And the three actors playing MichaelJackson were absolutely magnificent, especially Wylie Draper, with hisperformance of "Billie Jean". They all made me believe they really wereMichael Jackson, especially since they sounded like them when they spoke!I’m surprised this movie wasn’t released to theaters.

Now, here’s what went wrong:

1. A few things were inaccurate. First of all, "Kansas City" was not theJackson Five’s first single. And second, "ABC" was released and recordedbefore "I’ll Be There".

2. Call me a nitpicker, but I guess the casting directors don’t care muchfor continuity problems. The only actors that even looked alike were thethree actors that played Michael. The casting directors’ picks for TitoJackson are forgivable, because while they don’t look alike, they both looklike Tito to a certain extent. Marlon Jackson’s bone structure and skincolor seemed to change considerably as he got older, but that’s not even thehalf of it- in real life, he’s practically identical to his brother Michael,but such was not the case in the film. The biggest problem is the castingdirectors’ picks for Jackie and Jermaine Jackson. Good move picking JermaineJackson, Jr. to assume the role of his father. And the guy who played Jackieas a teenager really captured the essence of Jackie- shy, sensitive, sweet.Not to mention he looked a lot like Jackie. However, the actors who playedJackie and Jermaine, although both are extremely handsome men (I wasdisappointed I couldn’t find photos or anything of Colin Steele onGoogle.com), were just horrible. Again, it’s the same problem- their skincolor and bone structure seem to change. And since when does Jackie havegreen eyes? Not looking like the person you are supposed to portray is onething, but portraying them the wrong way is quite another. I wasdisappointed in the way Terrence Howard portrayed Jackie- a smart-mouthed,girl-crazed jackass. In real life, Jackie is none of those things. Maybe hewas a little girl-crazy, but not to the point where he acts like awomanizer.

3. I think they should have involved Janet Jackson in the film a littlemore. Not that they should have had lead roles, but a scene involving her orsomething would have been okay, like when she’s on television, or when sheabout to kick off her own music career. I was disappointed only to see Janetas a young child, a nobody in the shadows of her brothers. They definitelyshould have filmed a scene in which she was a little older.

Overall, though, the entire cast was spectacular, and the film was great. Ittells the story behind the Jackson family, captures the true talent ofMichael and the J5, and, of course, is a great opportunity for the ladies tohave a look at some eye candy.

8/10

5) I love Michael Jackson and his brothers. I love their music and theyare a great influence. All the actors in this movie were great. I lovedJason Weaver and Wylie Draper. They were the ones that really shined.Rest in Peace to Wylie. The one who played Jermaine (Colin Steele)kinda over-reacted on some scenes. But he's adorable. Terrence Howardmade a great impression on Jackie. And the guy who played Marlon did agood job. Angela Basset was okay, it wasn't her best roles but she didokay. Lawerence-Hilton Jacobs was outstanding! He is just like JoeJackson. This is a good movie. I can't wait to see it again. WylieDraper is really sexy. But I suggest that Susanne De Passe should gether facts straight on a couple of things. Some of the facts wereinaccurate. If you are going to make a movie you have to have the RIGHTdata or else it's useless.

6) Personally, I liked this movie. Even though I have been an avidJacksonfan since the beginning, I was able to evaluate this movie with a properperspective and I’m giving it a 10!!!!!! Both Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs andAngela Bassett were outstanding as Joseph and Katherine Jackson. Theremaining cast were excellent and the musical numbers were magnificent!!Thewriting, art direction, costume design and all the other elements thatmakesa great movie were impeccable.

Within the last year, I’ve seen several movies about teen idols fromtheseventies and some of them were lousy and not historicallyaccurate(especially with the music). Not this one!!! The Jacksons’ moviewas historically accurate in it’s depiction of the world’s greatestmusicalfamily.

7) I recently watched this series on DVD, having never seen it before ontelevision or VHS. I loved it–enjoyed it like a long book that I neverwanted to end. Complaints by Jackson aficionados about the inaccuraciesare ultimately unimportant; what counts is the movie's watch-ability,entertainment factor, and its point about just how this family became ahousehold word all over the planet.

This movie is about Joe Jackson and his family and also Michael'srising star. While we often in the black community bemoan the absenceof parental supervision, we see that the Jackson children always hadtheir parents in the picture. Joe Jackson never abandoned his family orfamilial responsibilities. He married Katharine when she becamepregnant, sacrificed his dreams and worked in steel mills to support anunusually large brood of kids. He had 10 people depending on him.

The film depicts him as proud of his kids and he developed their talentover the years preparing them for the opportunities that came theirway. Say what you will, but without his faith and extreme discipline,those kids might still be in Gary. I think as adults they all realizethat, even though they bemoan their loss of childhood, Joe's brutaldiscipline, etc. To make it in the entertainment business, to be asuccess at anything, you must possess an insane drive that blinds youto all distractions. You must have staying power, the ability to hangin when all seems bleak. Joe provided that.

If the real Jackson story, preserving all accuracies and details abouteach one of the children, is ever filmed, it would probably take 16hours!!! To do it in 4, you have to resort to devices that advance thestory, and for this first attempt that is forgivable. I loved the storyof Katharine and Joe; it provided a real sense of the times & theirpersonalities. The various Michaels were great, especially Jason Weaveras middle Michael. See him sing Kansas City and perform Twist and Shoutat the Apollo. Bumper as Jackie was absolutely cute. LawrenceHilton-Jacobs as Joe Jackson gives him dimension–family man, proudfather, brutal taskmaster, music lover. How would you feel if you lostcontrol over the act you'd created for so long–hard transition. BillyDee is way too charming and sexy for Gordy–but I loved it anyway.

The flick compares well to all the good musical biopics out there–Ray,Walk the Line, What's Love Got to Do with It?, Selena, etc.

This two-part miniseries (long enough to be a week-long miniseries ifeach episode was an hour), was at times overly dramatic, somewhatlacking in humor and even kind-of depressing. Still, it’s one of thebest music bios ever.

The absolute best thing about this piece is Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs.Hilton-Jacobs captures the menace of the notorious Joseph Jackson. Heis a father you would NOT want to disobey. On the other hand, he bringsa level of humanity and respectability, sometimes even likability tothe role that makes it a three-dimensional character. In many musicbios, it’s hard to believe they’re talking about real people (exhibitA: The Doors), but not here. Hilton-Jacobs expresses Jackson’s deep,cutting flaws, but also the good things about him.

As for the bigger stars in the two-parter, Vanessa Williams is likableas Susan de Passe: a Motown employee who believes so much in the boysthat she convinces Berry Gordy to hear them. Billy Dee Williams islikable as Gordy, but he comes off as a saintly carefree sort. AngelaBasset also excelled as the boys’ mother: willing to sacrifice hergoals and dreams for the sake of the family.

All three actors who played Michael were also fantastic. It’s so sadthat Wylie Draper died so soon after this movie came out. He reallycaptured Michael as well as anybody could. He reminds the viewer ofwhat people saw in Michael in the early 80s. Alex Burral and JasonWeaver also performed great as Michael, especially during the musicscenes. The actors who played Michael’s brothers fared also. While itclearly centers around Michael, it goes to great lengths not to makethe other boys second-bananas (the only one who isn’t explored much isJanet, ironically, because her fame rivals that of Michael in reallife).

Speaking of the music scenes, they are almost all very well done. Thescenes where they appear to be lipsynching songs (such as when theyrecord "I’ll Be There" are done pretty well, but when the actors(presumably) get to handle it on their own, it really comes alive,whether it’s the kids singing old r&b classics toward the beginning, orthe final concert scene at the end with a lively version of "The LoveYou Save."

All in all, great music and great acting make this movie one of thebest rock bios of all.

9) Considering how long this movie is one would think that it would havecovered a lot more of the Jackson's actual history. Countless uponcountless of known and well-documented Jackson family facts are eithercompletely ignored or inaccurately portrayed. This film (produced andgreen lighted by Jackson family members — including Michael) is simplya vehicle to paint the Jackson family in the best light possible. Andare we really suppose to feel sorry for their personal hardshipsconsidering the vast amount of wealth, privilege, and fame that theircareer's handed them? The good news is that the film is pretty wellacted. Most notably by Angela Bassett and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs as momand "Joseph". The actors who play the Jackson siblings do a decent jobin their respective rolls with the exception of Wylie Draper as theolder Michael. He's a decent actor and a great dancer, but not for onesecond did I believe him as the King of Pop. Of course it would bedifficult for any actor to convincingly portray an individual as uniqueand multilayered as M.J.

If you're a Michael Jackson fan, or a fan of the Jackson's in general,you'll enjoy this film. Just don't come away from it thinking it's anaccurate historical piece on Michael, or the Jackson family.

10) This was one of those biopics that has you in awe by how good it is.The Jacksons were one of my fave bands when I was younger and I caughtthis TV movie on true movies the other night. Wow I had no idea it wasgoing to be so good. After watching this I can understand why Michaelis the way he is now. He had absolutely no childhood mind you he didask his dad if he could be part of the Jackson when he was a kid so hekind of cause what happened with all the fame and the fans. Thisfollows The Jacksons right from when they were born up to when theybecame superstars and even Michael's solo career with Thriller. Theacting is superb with star performances by Angela Bassett as KatherineJackson the mother of the Jackson 5. Just like Tina, Angela Bassettshines as Katherine, her emotions and her strong character comesthrough on the screen. Lawrence Hilton Jacobs does a great job asJoseph Jackson the father who did push his kids too far for the sake offame, fortune and glory but eventually you get to like him towards theend of the film. Terrence Howard also makes a very early debut as anolder Jackie Jackson but kudos should go to Wylie Draper who gives anamazing portrayal as Michael. I mean he had him down to a tee. He spokelike Michael, he danced like Michael and yes even sung like him.Michael Jackson only gave his voice to only nine of the songs in thisfilm. The song list that is in this that Michael actually sings in thisare: I want you back, ABC, I'll be there, Rockin' Robin, Dancingmachine, I want to be where you are, Human Nature, Billie Jean, andBeat it. All the rest were done by the cast who played the Jacksons inthe movie. I was totally blown away as they did such a good job withthe numbers that they genuinely only performed. The choreography wasspot on, mind you they did have Michael's own personal choreographerMichael Peters helping with the steps in this and thank god he didcause made a simple teenage actor into the best portrayal of Michaelthat i have ever seen. I'm so sorry that I find out that Wylie died theyear after this was made, my sympathy goes out his family.

The only thing I didn't like about this film was that they totallymissed a massive chunk in the film. The chunk I'm talking about wasthat the period between when Michael becomes a solo artist. You don'tsee him do Don't stop until you get enough, Ben, one day in your lifeand even the Off the Wall album. The off the wall album was only spokeabout briefly in this film and that was it. It also missed out theother great hits that Michael performed with his brothers like Blame iton the Boogie and Can you feel it. it completely missed out all thoseand went straight to Michael recording the THRILLER album. Althoughthey did manage to include the horrific Pepsi incident where Michaelgot severely burnt but I'm glad to see the ending was electric withMichael singing a number that I have never heard before with hisbrothers. I really loved how it finished with a personal message fromthe Jacksons to all us fans. It was done by the actors but you couldtell that the message was really from the real Jacksons which thanks usfor the years that we were loyal fans throughout the years that theywere recording. I'm so glad that this finally came out on DVD as Iintend to buy it. If you love the Jacksons music or just Michael's youhave got to see this film. It's so great it's dangerous.

The film clearly is the product of a whole heap of interesting ideas,many of which are successful or nearly successful – the sense of magic,the fantastic mother figure (a wonderful overbearing upper class lushwho is prone to histrionics, think Miss Haversham crossed with BubblesRothermere), the attempt to show the journey of a gay romance frominitial flirtation through to mourned loss.

The use of music is interesting and works well too – a Britten choralwork for boys’ choir accompanies a sexily executed love scene shot inmoody half-light, the final song at the very end sets an upbeat tonefor the future ("I was love sick but now I’m feeling better").

As well as the music, the locations and pacing do a great job ofconveying the buzz of mid-nineties London and showing off a fresh andvibrant gay scene, effectively contrasted with the old-world grandeurof the house where Jackson grew up.

Yes, there is some over-acting and yes the thing doesn’t feel like ittotally comes together (the central "ghost" story never quite works)but this film stands out as the work of someone who could produce greatthings once they’ve refined their craft.

There are some great moments that live with you afterwards – thedrunken mother angrily stamping a fluffy pink mule on a call button tosummon her maid, the sinister way she reminds her son "there’s you,there’s me, and there’s nobody else", the way that erotic elements arepicked up and weaved in to give the film an intelligent and subtlesexiness.

All in all this is a short which shouldn’t be dismissed and drips withthe promise of greater things to come.

2) Best considered art house, the film is well acted, purposely over-actedin parts, symbolic and impressionistic. Shot beautifully in London,each scene is composed thoughtfully, utilising excellent incidentalmusic. The lead guy (a cute Ben Soames) is very nice on the eye andplays with subtlety and feeling. In fact they’re all well into theparts and understand the characters. Editing and direction arefaultless though some people may misconstrue the unorthodox way thepiece is constructed.

The film charts the strange lifestyle of Jackson, a young gay guy who’sfed up with one night stands. Always on the lookout for Mr Right, hethinks he’s found him in Hardy, a closeted policeman, when they meet ata glamorous nightclub. But Hardy hasn’t banked on Jackson’s possessiveand neurotic millionairess Mother…

What the film lacked, at least in my opinion, was a kind of overview ofjust what a seismic blast abstract expressionism and Pollock were tothe art world and how much this shifted the focus and heart of it fromEurope to the United States.

But watching footage of Pollock working and seeing his enormous talentwas quite affecting. As was hearing the interview with his wife LeeKrasner and the interview with the girlfriend who was with him in theautomobile crash that killed him, Ruth Kligman.

Krasner comes across as quite the strict enforcer which given theself-destructive direction so much of Pollock's behavior took wasprobably necessary to keep him somewhat in check and able to work andbe productive.

Kligman, on the other hand, as she spoke seemed to tend towardspretentiousness and be devoid of anything as bothersome as aconscience. She, no doubt, romanticized herself in her own mind as a"free-spirit" although others perhaps might characterize her with otheradjectives. Much harsher adjectives, I'm guessing.

There was also an interview with Ed Harris. I thought he made a veryinteresting observation about Pollock, as I understood it. That Pollockhad reached a point where his "technique" was something that no longerchallenged him. It was familiar to him. He knew he could do it. Andthat his cooperation at that time with the documentary being made abouthis life just served to point that out to him. In a sense, Pollockrealized that abstract expressionism had become his schtick. And thisdrove him to begin drinking again and begin down that final selfdestructive path that ended his life.