Man in the Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story

Man in the Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story is a 2004 Canadian-American biographical telefilm produced for VH1.[1] It stars Flex Alexander as American pop star Michael Jackson, and follows his rise to fame and subsequent events.[2] The film takes its title from one of Jackson's songs, "Man in the Mirror". The film was primarily shot in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and was released August, 2004, and month prior to when Jackson's criminal trial was scheduled to begin.

Man in the Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story
Written byClaudia Salter
Directed byAllan Moyle
StarringFlex Alexander
Eugene Clark
Frederic Tucker
Krista Rae
Music byBruce Leitl
Country of originUS
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersMichael Frislev
Chad Oakes
Production locationsCalgary, Alberta, Canada
CinematographyDavid Greene
EditorBridget Durnford
Running time87 minutes
DistributorParamount Home Entertainment
VH1 Television
Release
Original releaseAugust 6, 2004 (2004-08-06)

Plot

Essentially a spiritual sequel to The Jacksons: An American Dream, which discussed the Jackson family as children, Man in the Mirror begins with a flashback, albeit with a voice-over narration by Michael Jackson (Flex Alexander), who reminisces on his younger self (played by Brennan Gademans in a non-speaking role), wanting a normal childhood. Young Michael is watching children play in the playground, wishing he could join in, but is ordered by his father, Joe Jackson to get back to work. Later in 1983, following the release of Michael's best selling album,Thriller, he becomes a global superstar and pop icon, which takes his career to a whole new level. Michael and his manager, Ziggy (based on Frank DiLeo) are chased by screaming fans to their limo, after Michael's performance at Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever. Ziggy is impressed with the amount of record sales, while Michael says his life has more meaning than money. Later that year, following the making of the Thriller music video, the most expensive music video ever made, Michael is advised to put a disclaimer on the video, due to controversy concerns of the video's themes, letting audiences know Michael "is not in league with the devil".

In 1984, Michael is seen reading his favourite book, Peter Pan to a terminally ill cancer child, whose dying wish was to meet him. Michael tells the boy's mother that ″no body dies, they just go home to be with god″. Michael lives in his family house with his parents; his kind, affectionate and understanding mother, Katherine Jackson and his less affectionate, money driven and abusive father, Joe. Joe tells Michael, that him and his brothers are booked to do a PepsiCo commercial, while Joe and Michael's brothers are open to the idea, Michael isn't (considering he doesn't even drink Pepsi), Joe tells Michael he doesn't have the right to disobey his orders and that Michael is one of the Jacksons and would be nothing without them. Michael reluctantly decides to go through with the commercial, convinced by his mother to do it for his brothers and for her. Prior to the commercial shoot, Michael is visited by his doctor, Doctor Goodman and introduced to his assistant Debbie Rowe. Doctor Goodman tells Michael that his skin disorder vitiligo is getting worse and that if it gets even more worse he'll soon develop an allergie of sunlight. He is prescribed with medication to help with it. Michael wears a white glove to hide his skin problem. During the shoot, Michael's hair is accidentally set on fire, causing second-degree burns to his scalp, and is rushed to hospital for treatment. Michael is visited in hospital by his younger sister, Janet; the two appear to share a mutual love for Peter Pan, with Janet referring to Michael as Peter and Michael referring to her as Tink.

Later that year, Michael and his brothers embark on the Victory tour. On the final show of the tour in December, Michael announces on stage that he's leaving the group to go solo, shocking his brothers and leaving his father furious, whom Michael tells he will no longer be taking orders from.

Aged 30, Michael moves out of his parents' house, reverts from Jehovah's Witnesses to Christianity and moves to Sycamore Valley Ranch in Los Olivos, California which he renames Neverland, inspired by his fondness for Peter Pan. Michael redesigns Neverland, according to his aspirations, adding a theme park. Upon moving into his new home, Michael meets and befriends his maid's son (based on Jason Francia), who becomes the childhood best friend he never had. Michael begins to open Neverland to loads more children from around the world, inviting and nurturing for terminally ill children, including the cancer patient boy previously seen being read Peter Pan to at Michael's parents' house, who passes away after visiting, which leaves Michael heartbroken. He is left even more devastated when his maid quits and leaves Neverland, taking her son with her, thus separating the two and ending their friendship (the maid and her son in reality would later accuse Michael Jackson of child molestation and testify against him in court).

With his vitiligo condition worsening, Michael starts taking up plastic surgery, and a new look for his forthcoming Bad album. He later befriends a new little boy, Manny (based on Jordan Chandler). After releasing his eighth studio album, Dangerous in 1991, Ziggy confronts Michael, telling him he's spending a lot of money on children which isn't creating a good public image. Michael tells Ziggy he doesn't care about his image, but Ziggy says he should, as the album Dangerous isn't charting successfully. Ziggy also tells Michael he needs to stop living in a fantasy land and face reality. Reluctantly, Michael subsequently fires Ziggy, due to feeling loss of faith from him. Before embarking on his Dangerous World Tour in 1992, Michael visits Manny telling him Steven Spielberg is making a Peter Pan film adaption, and wants Michael to play Peter Pan. As Michael is about to leave Manny tells his father, Dr. Adam Thomas that he and Michael have now had 30 sleepovers. The father asks Michael if he has read his screenplay which he wants Spielberg to consider for the Peter Pan film, but Michael says he hasn't had the time due to how busy he's been promoting his album. Whilst Michael is on tour, news breaks that Manny and his father were accusing Michael of molesting him. Michael believes Manny's father is financially driven and is accusing him as revenge for not reading his screenplay and suggests giving it to Spielberg hoping Dr. Adam Thomas will drop the charges in return, but Michael's manager, Bobby tells him the Peter Pan movie has been cancelled (in reality, the Peter Pan adaptation was Hook, and the role of Peter Pan was instead given to Robin Williams as Michael didn't like the idea of Spielberg's vision of an adult Peter Pan who had forgotten about his past). Michael insists the allegations are lies, telling his close friend, actress, Elizabeth Taylor that he "would never hurt a child" and "would slit [his] wrist" first. Elizabeth ensures Michael she knows he's innocent and concerned for his health, convinces him to cancel the rest of his tour and go to rehab. Michael is left feeling betrayed as he watches he sister La Toya in an interview on television, refuse to defend her brother and raising allegations of him bribing children's parents (she would later apologise for this, and claim she was groomed into saying it by former manager and husband, Jack Gordon). In an interview with the police, Manny confirms he initially slept on the floor and subsequently in Michael's bed. Manny stutters and gets emotional when coming out to the police with these allegations, feeling like he's betrayed Michael. After being photographed naked for investigation, Michael, feeling humiliated, suggests to his lawyer, Johnny, that they settle out of the court. After settling with Manny's family for $25 million, Michael returns to Neverland where he is welcomed back by his fans, who believe in the singer's innocence and show their love and support.

Bobby convinces Michael to start dating, and sets him up with Elvis Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, whom Michael previously met in a photoshoot in 1975, when she was seven years old. The two fall in love and are later married. The marriage makes the news, ranking next to the arrest of convicted murderer and former football legend, O.J. Simpson as the top story. Lisa moves to Neverland with her two children, Benjamin and Riley, to live with Michael, but Lisa later begins to notice that Michael seems to spend more time with children than his own wife and step children, and that he seems to value his fans over his family. She and the children move back home. Michael tells Bobby she does not believe in Neverland and that bringing her to live here was a mistake. In December 1995 whilst rehearsing for his comeback concert (set to premier on HBO) in New York, Michael is rushed to hospital following a stress related panic attack. He is visited in hospital by Lisa who comforts him. Though she loves him, she reluctantly files for divorce, due to irreconcilable differences between the two of them. Now living in New York, Michael is left heartbroken of the fact that he'll never be able to have children of his own, but subsequently reencounters his doctor's assistant, Debbie Rowe, who agrees to have Michael's child, but has to marry him, due to Michael's religious beliefs against sex before marriage. The two are married November 15, 1996, and Michael's son Michael Joseph "Prince" Jackson Jr., is born the following year in February, with daughter Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson being born the year after in April. However, Debbie and Michael spend little time together outside of the hospital in which she gives birth to his children, as Michael is always more focused on his career.

In September 2001, Michael reunites with his brothers in a concert tour at Madison Square Garden in mark of Michael's 30th anniversary as a solo artist. With fear of 9/11, Michael, his children, and Bobby move back to Neverland. Prince Michael "Blanket" Jackson II is subsequently born in February, 2002. Michael is upset when hearing the public make fun of his child's name. Annoyed and disappointed with the public's perception of him as a father and family man, Michael agrees to do a documentary with itv journalist Martin Bashir, hoping it will disprove and change people's views on him. Shooting begins May 2002. In their interview at Neverland, Michael introduces Bashir to his friend, David (based on Gavin Arvizo), a 12-year year old boy who survived cancer, through Michael's hospitality. David tells Bashir that Michael is a child at heart. Michael tells Bashir that he has really grown to trust him, calling him a "very honest man".

Whilst in a hotel in Berlin, Germany, with his children, Michael shows Blanket to the fans gathered outside the hotel, by dangling the baby over the balcony. This causes controversy which upsets Michael who says he just wanted to show Blanket to the world. Bobby raises concern that this will further aggravate Michael's reputation, but Michael ensures that the documentary will change everything. However, he is left feeling betrayed by Bashir, upon the air of the documentary, "Living With Michael Jackson" in February 2003, where Michael is seen holding David's hand, and his words about sleeping with children have been taken out of context and misinterpreted. Michael is left feeling let down and realises that he cannot trust the media. He is later betrayed by David, who accuses Michael that same year of molesting him. Michael is subsequently charged with seven counts of child molestation, where if he's convicted of all of them could spend the rest of his life in prison.

In January 2004, Michael is greeted by his fans outside the courthouse who shower him with love and support. He greets them and sends his love, and promises that he will no longer give into fear and will not settle with or give money to his accusers and will fight all the charges once and for all. The film ends, stating: "Michael Jackson has denied all charges. His trial was scheduled to begin on September 13, 2004" (he would later be found not guilty on all counts).

Cast

Award nominations

Reception

The film originally aired on August 6, 2004, receiving a TV rating of TV-PG for language. The telefilm went on to receive generally negative reviews from both fans and critics alike as the film presented Jackson in a very unflattering manner and did not represent most of the true story. Unlike the former, none of Jackson's songs are heard, only mentioned in the telefilm.[3][4]

Telelvision critic Melaine Mcfarland of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer called the "biopoem" (as described by the director) "one of those tastelessly timed works meant to coax forth any sympathy we might have for Jackson's situation".[5]

Home media

It is available on DVD, where it is distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment and is rated PG-13 for some brief language and thematic elements by the MPAA.[6]

References
  1. PopMatters
  2. Morales, Tatiana (2004-08-06). "Flex Alexander Plays King Of Pop". cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2009-05-23.
  3. DVD Talk Review of the DVD Video
  4. TV Guide
  5. The image of Michael Jackson is murky in 'Man in the Mirror' – seattlepi.com
  6. Amazon.com
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