HOLLYWOOD—The buzz for the biopic, “Michael” has been chattered about for more than a year if not longer. One thing I will say it’s not a musical, but you become so invested within minutes of the movie starting. The movie highlights a certain time frame of the pop icon who I don’t care what anyone says is the greatest pop star/musician of all time. Michael Jackson was not just widely known in the United States, but all over the world.

The audience gets a pinch of that pop stardom, and it was not always as glorious as we think. Let me be clear Jaafar Jackson is exceptional, as Michael. He immerses himself into the role in a way that is so scary. I thought I was watching the real Michael Jackson on the big screen. It is so scary how resemblant to his uncle he is. Not just the look, but his mannerisms and moves just scream MJ.

With that said, when we first meet Michael, he is a youngster portrayed by Juliano Krue Valdi who possesses an extreme level of charisma for the small tot who is the primary voice behind the Jackson 5. This is where we meet the determined Joe Jackson, played with a quiet intensity that explodes on the screen by Colman Domingo. Domingo is stellar in the role of the father who is destined at all costs to ensure his sons are successes in the music industry, even if it means robbing them of their childhood and teenage years in the process. Joe is all about practice, practice, practice and he is the man of the house.

I say that with respect, but its apparent because what he says goes, even his wife Katherine, portrayed with a softness by Nia Long, refuses to speak up and share her thoughts when Joe is a bit too tough on the kids, especially Michael. She will push a little, but not more than that. There is a seen where Joe punishes Michael for talking back and it just burns your heart as a viewer; you feel like you are in that room with Michael, Tito, Jermain, Marlon, Jackie, Joe and Katherine.

I do have a few qualms with the movie. There is no Janet Jackson or Rebbie Jackson. I’m not sure if that’s because the sisters didn’t want to appear in the movie, but that omission is noticed by anyone who knows anything about the Jackson family. There are small slices of Latoya Jackson, but nothing to make big mark in the movie. My other qualm is the movie has this time jumps, where it feels like critical time periods are ignored. I mean, hello, where is Detroit, Michigan and the large impact it had on Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5 courtesy of Motown Records and Berry Gordy before Motown moved to Los Angeles?

It felt like a large focal point of this movie was Michael emerging from the shadows of his brothers and notably taking control of his life from his father, Joe Jackson. Joe is all about what is important for himself and the ‘family.’ Michael is so afraid of his father, he as his record label to speak to his father about him wanting to do a solo deal. One would think that Michael wants his independence to the point that he would have immediately moved out of the family home when his solo album blew up.

His family is important to him, including his strong bond with his mother and his desperation to have real friends. We see those glimpses with him peering out the window as a child as kids play, while he practices musical routines. In addition, he brings home a chimpanzee and plays with animals and talks to them as real people because of the severe loneliness he is enduring. As a viewer you sympathize with Michael as a result, and director Antoine Fuqua hones in on those moments to bring the audience closer in.

The pacing of the movie is so well crafted, too much to the point that the moment the movie ends, you’re telling yourself, no way, that can’t be it right? It is. The movie stops at a pivotal point in Michael’s career, and no we don’t get the whole story of the child molestation allegations levied against the musician in 1993 and subsequent years. What “Michael” does so well to make up for that is deliver the nostalgia.

I mean the music just takes you back to that time period, especially if you’re someone who grew up in the 60s, 70s or 80s. For me, it was the 80s at Michael’s height, where my parents and siblings played his music nonstop, so the classics like “Wanna Be Startin’ Something,” “Rock With You,” “Beat It,” “Thriller” and “Billie Jean” just makes you want to dance in the movie aisle and the theater.

There has been talk that a sequel to the movie will happen, and more of Michael’s life will be explored and told. You have great faces in the movie in addition to Jaafar, Domingo and Long. We have Miles Teller as Michael’s lawyer John Branca, Laura Harrier as Suzanne de Passe, Deon Kole as Don King, Mike Myers as Walter Yetnikoff, Kendrick Sampson as Quincy Jones and Larenz Tate as Berry Gordy. There is even an appearance of Gladys Knight as Liv Symone. Overall “Michael” is a great time at the theater for all, young and old, but i would by lying if I didn’t admit when the credits roll, I kept telling myself, “Man, I want more.”