The Jackson Identity

The 1980s vibes are strong at the moment. A quick mention first about Madonna stealing the limelight at Coachella. Her music performed live is still as spine tingling as ever even if she can’t bring the energy by herself anymore. Still, it was a great moment to see her and Sabrina Carpenter on stage together, uniting generations which often seem worlds apart on everything including music.

Far less comfortable is the idea of a movie about Michael Jackson that apparently doesn’t address the allegations of abuse. I’ll probably got to see it this weekend, against my better judgment and sit there with my eyes behind my fingers, knowing it is going to be a more awkward watch than the last hagiography ‘Moonwalker’ and likely to be the worst film ever made with the title ‘Michael’, of which there is at least one I know of that is embarrassingly bad (stand up Mr Travolta).

Truth be told, I’ve always been a little out of step with my contemporaries when it comes to the worship of Michael Jackson the artist. For example, I was a little bewildered by the obsession with his costume choices. White socks were naff. One glove odd, not cool. Also, there was the all-consuming nature of the album ‘Thriller’ when it came out. The impact of the title song’s video, a homage to ‘Night of the Living Dead’, was like a cultural earthquake. As an 8 year old at camp Beaumont, just outside Windsor, in the summer of 1984, I watched with fascination an amateur reproduction of it by several dozen adolescents, draped in zombie make up, swarming over a terrified couple in a car as the VHS cameras whirred. For me, it was a watershed moment … in a different way. I’ve adored the zombie genre ever since. That wasn’t really the point I know. It was also my own socially acceptable rebellion against the Michael Jackson mania. This worship continued to bother me well into the 1990s and when the abuse allegations hit, they seemed to justify my scepticism.

What many of my friends have always seemed to insist about Michael Jackson is that his genius is as much a gift to each of us, and that his music, style and above all, his dance moves, make the world a more loving, happy place. This hypothesis has always been too much for me. His fans have a touch of the deranged about them. It’s perhaps hardly surprising given the level of fame he reached (at a time without social media) that Michael Jackson was given a pass for the unhealthy things he did. What the tabloids referred to under the umbrella label ‘Wacko Jacko’ only confirmed his otherworldly genius for those who loved him.

Did this platform allow him the opportunity to groom children? Undoubtedly. Was he intentionally grooming children to abuse them? The victims who have come forward have persuaded me that he did. His fans though, to this day, largely dismiss his victims as another misunderstood facet of his life. His cultural impact had been weakened regardless … until now. This new film could add back some lustre to his legacy. It makes me nauseous to think it might.

When we have learned so much about the monsters who have been walking freely among us - Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein - and how they were able to abuse almost at will, their actions protected and hidden by others complicit in their horrific crimes, I won’t unsee who Michael Jackson really was.

Al Pacino films ranked

In honour of Al Pacino’s 86th birthday, the The Guardian put out a list of his greatest performances. It did not include ‘Scent of A Woman’ for which he finally won an Oscar.

My Top 10 best Al Pacino performances below (reply to this email to let me know what yours are):

1. The Godfather Part 3

2. The Godfather Part 2

3. The Godfather

4. The Irishman

5. Scent of A Woman

6. Donnie Brasco

7. Heat

8. Carlito’s Way

9. The Insider

10. Scarface

'Hoohah! How’s that for cornball? Thanks for reading .. until next time.