This year, a movie - "Searching for Neverland" - was released based on Michael Jackson's final years as told through his bodyguards.

The actor playing MJ was a British MJ impersonator name Navi who actually met the real MJ on several occassions.

I've seen this movie twice already - the second time really hit me. I couldn't beleive how isolated Michael was in his final years.

MJ was always isolated, especially after the Victory Tour, when he announced the tour was over (the look on the brother's faces was classic - the clip is out there on YT), and moved to Neverland. His increasing popularity and hit albums only closed him off more. He really was a victim of his own fame. Prince at least could go out in his hometown at times and be left alone to some extent (like riding his bike, or going to CVS, whatever he did).

It's easy to slip into your own world when you have the money and power to do so. However, MJ's thing about never growing up is a bit of an act to me, and gave him excuse to do dumb stuff, or gave others a paycheck to treat him like a child. He never grew up yet he can wheel and deal big record contracts, buy homes, raise children, stick to a performing schedule, etc. The duality was a bit too much for me (just like Prince going on about his Gemini side and having a dual character to a lesser degree).

I'm sure everyone that worked for MJ would have a variant story to a degree. Sometimes I think in his last few years he just sorta gave up on anything routine or normal. He raised his kids (and they're lovely children now) as far as he did, had a lasting impression on them, and just said "fuck it" to everything else. The MJ furor was never going to die down even without him releasing new material in years and years before his death. He could have dealt with it all a lot better. He chose to isolate himself to such great degrees.

Navi was pretty decent as MJ.

TrivialPursuit said:

Really depressing. Almost like a visual to the shit we read in the last few years, ouch.

purple05 said:

i don't think the never growing up was an act oercse. I think it was apart of him but a very small part of him. Like you're saying no one who has had such a successful career as MJ had the mind of a child. And to reduce him to that is crazy. He may have been naive and a big kid at heart but not child like. MJ was a very complex man and only presented to us what HE wanted us to see.

Oh please, he was no more complicated than anyone else. Artist types are fussy and cantankerous sometimes, almost always tortured in some fashion, but no one is any more complex than the next. We're all as simple as we are complicated.

And please don't reinterpret what I said. I typed 299 words. I was pretty clear on my point. He didn't have the mind of a child. No adult does. We're adults. He was an adult longer than he was a minor, twice over and then some. Doesn't mean he doesn't miss that part of his life or play into it sometimes, but he wasn't going around trying to be Peter Pan and raise three kids. Not even close. He wasn't naive. MJ had a really mean side to him, although rarely displayed. He wasn't a bad guy, though, by any means. He just made some bad choices in his life (who doesn't, right?). I'd agree he was a kid at heart in some fashion. Anyone only shows what they want people to see. Cuz you and I both know, we all have a skeleton somewhere to hide. Again, typical human, not special or unique in any regard to MJ.

TrivialPursuit said:

purple05 said:

I've never said 'MJ was more complicated than anyone else' or 'that he was the most complicated person'. I just simply stated that he was a more complex person than people give him credit for. When people think of MJ, don't take into account that he's human are are complex like the rest of us. I actually was agreeing with your overall point and adding to it. Not disagreeing

I gotcha. I hate that I can't emote sarcasm or humor online. I really was just expanding on the conversation, too.

MJ will always be a mystical character in pop culture. Prince, too.

TrivialPursuit said:

purple05 said:

TrivialPursuit said:

I gotcha. I hate that I can't emote sarcasm or humor online. I really was just expanding on the conversation, too.

MJ will always be a mystical character in pop culture. Prince, too.

I'm not good at it either. Combine that with little sleep and things are t going to go to well lol But I live and admire that about Prince & MJ. I don't care what anyone says, it takes tons of confidence to do what they did and how they did it. We have very few artist, especially black men who will do that today

Searching for Neverland was a piece of that belongs in a 1 out of 5

[Edited 11/21/17 17:48pm]

alphastreet said:

Ok ok, lets make this a fun thread Was anyone else laughing at the acting in the scene where mj is getting ready for Elizabeth Taylor's party? How about how staged the Katherine Jackson holiday visit looked? And gosh, who were those white kids? 😂 And last time I checked the movie wasn't called searching for wonderland 😂 [Edited 11/25/17 20:57pm]

I liked the scene when MJ was getting ready for Elizabeth Taylor's party. One of the best scenes in the movie.

SoftSkarlettLovisa said:

alphastreet said:

Ok ok, lets make this a fun thread Was anyone else laughing at the acting in the scene where mj is getting ready for Elizabeth Taylor's party? How about how staged the Katherine Jackson holiday visit looked? And gosh, who were those white kids? 😂 And last time I checked the movie wasn't called searching for wonderland 😂 [Edited 11/25/17 20:57pm]

I liked the scene when MJ was getting ready for Elizabeth Taylor's party. One of the best scenes in the movie.

Yeah like something out of SNL I doubt the real mj acted goofy like that while dancing around with his guards doing the same. It was almost satirical looking if you ask me