[Marcel Lee]

Putting aside everything I've heard about this "documentary" (which other countries got to see days before the U.S.), I assumed that what was hyped as, and supposed to be, unbiased journalism would turn out to be no more than yet another one-sided TV tabloid designed to further add to what seems like a decade-long media conspiracy to ruin one man's image in the eye of the public.


Barbara Walters, the host, who decides to introduce the program as "bizarre, unsettling and riveting", goes on to mention that, as she watched the show, she felt "first sympathy, then shock, and finally, sadness."

That's her first of one too many carelessly-worded appearances between segments.


The very first segment shows Michael Jackson and a seemingly friendly Martin Bashir (the interviewer who asked to live with Michael Jackson for eight months so he could put together this documentary). They stroll thru the amusement park of MJ's Neverland Ranch, side by side. If you didn't know any better, you would think they were old pals.

The last segment of the program, taped eight months later, shows an emotionally distraught Michael Jackson weeping as the final interview is cut short and Bashir is ordered to leave.

What goes on between those two segments is 8 months of Living with Michael Jackson edited down to just over 120 minutes, so keep in mind that we only see what Martin Bashir wants us to see.


The first half of the show is actually pretty good.

Bashir appears to be an unbiased journalist who just wants to hang-out with the King of Pop and get some questions answered for the program. If the whole program were presented in that fair, unbiased tone, it would be a remarkable piece of work, worthy of much praise.

We get to see exclusive shots of Michael Jackson's world, both literally and figuratively.

We get to hear how Billie Jean was created and he even dances for us at Martin's request, proving he's still got it.

We get to see him climb his favorite tree, which he says he enjoys even more than sex.

As he sits up there in the branches, with the placid music playing in the background, it suddenly hits us that this 44 year-old man is a virtual child trapped in a man's body.

And, as eccentric as that may be, it's cool. I mean, yeah, it's different (meaning most men would rather have sex or play basketball than climb trees), but since when is being different necessarily a bad thing?

Besides, he's not hurting anybody. And, despite the questionable intentions of Martin (who sounds less like a good journalist and more like a devious reporter for The National Enquiror as the show goes on), the tone of the program seems to respect that fact.

As he talks about his abusive father and the effects that abuse had on his life, we actually begin to understand Michael Jackson, possibly giving long-time haters an opportunity to develop feelings of compassion and respect for the man, instead of being so quick to judge him based on what the media told them about him.

As he talks about the time his first girlfiend Tatim O'neal tried to have sex with him and how scared he was, we laugh, "Michael Jackson scared of puss? No surprise there. Hahaha."

"Did you not feel tempted at all?" asks Martin, as if a young man who's not ready to have sex is totally un-heard-of.

As MJ goes shopping, big spendin like ballers such as Jay Z can only dream about, spending millions in one store, literally destroying any rumor that he's going broke, we smile, "Damn, Mike."

"How much has Mr. Jackson spent?" Martin asks the store manager, as if exact figures are any of his or the public's business.

Questions like that, along with Barbara Walter's commentary (which transcends to out-right attacking MJ by "correcting" his statements with alleged facts from their "industry resources"), serve as a clue to what is to come.

"Didn't Prince get poked in the eye?" asks Martin later in the program, knowing damn well Prince (Michael's son) didn't get poked in the eye, but also knowing damn-well that just mentioning it would ultimately add fire to his reason for making the documentary in the first place (which is why that part wasn't edited out).

Another thing that got me in the interview is when Mike was talkin about Peter Pan and he said, "That's me. I'm Peter Pan" (meaning that he could relate because that's how his life is) and that faggot Martin Bashir said "No, you're Michael Jackson," as if he thinks Mike really believes he's Peter Pan.

He knew damn-well what he meant.


Yes, it is soon realized, by both us viewers and Michael Jackson himself, that the only reason this Martin Bashir guy befriended him and gained his trust was so that he could stab him in the back.

And that he did.


All in all, once Michael's face and children (both his own children and other children visiting his ranch) are brought into the picture, it is evident that the purpose of this entire program is to portray Michael as a "freak".

That's where the fact that eight full months of Living with Michael Jackson is edited down to just over 120 minutes, by a journalist who'd rather jump onto the "anti-MJ" band-wagon with a tabloid video to get more publicity and media coverage instead of presenting a fair and unbiased (and probably less scandalous, therefore less popular, therefore less money in his pockets) documentary comes into play.


Martin Bashir (like what seems like most of society) just can't seem to grasp the fact Michael Jackson truly has a great, almost obsessive, non-sexual love for children.

For Martin Bashir (and what seems like most of society), it is totally impossible for a 44 year old man to lay in bed with children and not have sex with them.

For Martin Bashir (and what seems like most of society), the alterations of Michael Jackson's face is more important than both the astronimical accompishments he's achieved in music and the millions (and millions) of dollars he's given to charity thru-out his life.

The fact is that Michael Jackson has done more good for the world than Martin Bashir and all the other critics combined.

The fact is that there are plenty of real child abuse going on all around the world.

Why isn't the time and energy that's put into criticizing and "exposing" Michael Jackson, who (judging by blowing the "baby dangling incident" waay out of proportion and holding on to past accusations without asking themselves what kind of mother would settle out of court if their child was really sexually molested, among other things) they obviously have nothing on (other than the fact that he's not exactly the "boy next door"), put into exposing the real criminals that are really throwing babies out of windows and really molesting kids?


Not to say that I know for a fact that Michael Jackson isn't molesting kids, because I don't and I'm not claiming to.

Then again, that also holds true for Michael Jordan, Oprah Winfrey and anyone else but myself.


All I'm saying is that with an exclusive program like this, the world had an opportunity to see Michael Jackson as he really is and finally get a chance to get inside the man's mind and heart.

Instead, we get yet another one-sided TV tabloid designed to further add to what seems like a decade-long media conspiracy to ruin one man's image in the eye of the public.

My assumption was correct.


If I had to sum the program up in three words, I'd say it's "bizarre, unsettling and riveting".


As I watched, I felt "first sympathy, then shock, and finally, sadness."


And none of it was because of Michael Jackson.



My Rating = 2 (of 5)

[Speed]

*gives Marcel the grammy*

I must be the only person who didn't actually watch this as i forgot. But I do have to agree with Marcel on most of this as he has put forward a very good argument. But i will find someone who has it on tape first and watch it then I iwll get back to you

[ILLigitt]

this program actually offended me, I was talking to my friend ashley on AIM and shes like "theres a thing about michael jackson on 20/20, what a freak" so I went to watch it, and the whole program was obviously biased against him, and the interviewer was a dumbass, if you're going to accuse a man of changing his face, bring pictures proving it, and say "look, in picture one there's this, and in picture two it's completely different" but instead all he did was "I've seen pictures, it's clearly different"...I came back after the program was over and got into arguments with ashley, and a couple other of my friends. it seems like I'm the only one who understands :-/ then I saw marcel online and was like "that's right!" lol...no but really...the program was shit, and michael is a lot of things, but a bad person is not one of them. the man took in and supported a boy with cancer, and he gets criticized for it and called a child molester. society is truly fucked up.

[STILL ALIVE]

Marcel pretty much said what I wanted to, now all I can do is put it in my own words.
(I'm watching it again right now to make sure I'm accurate.)

There were obvious pros and cons about the program last night. The first ten minutes were simply to draw in the already excited audience and get those people to call more people to turn on ABC. Hell, I had been ready all day and tellingeveryone...
I come away from that special wanting to know more about Michael Jackson, and I don't think I'm the only one. What I don't understand is how people can say he's a 'bad person'. Misunderstood, and sensationilized yes, but mean-spirited or evil, no. In the first moments with his children shows how normal he truly is. The interviewer goes "He's not running, he has good shoes." (like he's a huge diva) and Michael's like 'I can run. Paris, do you wanna run?" Also, when he's first talking to his fans he's just like you and I. You can't fake that.

Also, people say "He had no childhood." all the time. In fact I say that everytime someone attacks him in his defense, but then I think, wait...he had no life, let alone a childhood! The only normalcy he knows is what he taught himself. He was sheltered and told he was ugly his entire life. Until someone grabs you and tells you "Look, the world is not that way." for a long period of time to balance it you will always believe it. This is most prevalent when he speaks about taking the baby from the hospital out of fear of there being something wrong. Also, he recognized the fact that his children
can not have a regular life.

Although he seems eccentric and weird at first glance, people put a creepier twist on what he says because of WHO he is. He doesn't think Tinkerbell visits him at night and can fly straight on 'til morning, but he does want life to be fun and childlike. Who the hell wouldn't want an amusement park in their backyard!?!? Also, if Jennifer Lopez said in an interview tomorrow "I want to live forever." people world wide would be like "She's so driven."

I'm not excusing his taking his children through a crowded zoo, or "dangling" a baby from a hotel room but I remain at his defense. His judgement is cloudy quite often but he is obviously surrounded by chaos, money, fame, hate, and love none of us can ever understand.

The only problem I have is talking about sleeping in the same room with children. That segment was screaming for a publicist. I, in my own heart, don't think he has ever acted impure but that's here nor there. I'm open minded but the audience that watches 20/20 is, in fact, not.

I found myself closing my eyes as I watched just to put his appearance aside, do you know what I heard, a man who cares very much for people, change, and love in the world.

***Favorite parts: Talking about the fan who jumps in front of the car dancing all of Michael's moves "He can never get on a roll." and he's laughing in the car.

***Worst parts: When Michael was feeding "blanket" the baby, Bashir was trying to remove the cloth, and even said "Just take that off." No wonder Michael's behavior was disturbing. The guy doesn't understand his children's safety. Also, you can tell Michael's trying to be fake with Bashir in the next part of the interview before the auction, he "closed up" because he knows Bashir is full of shit. That's how I act to my boss when he's like "Oblige me or your fired." What choice does Michael have
but to seem ok with this asshole when he's doing a documentary on him?!?!

Does Bashir actually call himself a journalist?

[Tyrant]

i think they should leave the poor guy alone, he's not dumb, hes not going to admit to letting children sleep in his bed (whilst he sleeps on the floor not in the bed) unless its perfectly innocent, and they constantly crying about dangelling his kid over the balcony, its not as if the guy was actually going to drop the child, god damn! I didnt catch the show but i saw clips of it. Well written review Marcel.

[Wade4Life]

IMO people naeed to lay off the baby thing first of all, he held that shit over for like 1/2 a second.

2nd he aint a sicko, pedo at all, i think he couldn't hurt a fly and maybe he just hasn't grown up yet

[Tasha 17]

Thats right

[Tia]

What the fuck is wrong with sharing a bed with a child? Everyone keeps talking and talking about that, but it's no big deal at all. I know when I was a child I shared a bed with different adults like babysitters, family members, and friends of the family. People are being so fucking rediculous.

[~#klee#~]

I think its because of the whole child molesting case of 1992/3(cant remember the year). people probably wouldnt want their children sleeping in the same bed of an accused child molester, regardless of whether or not he DID do anything wrong

[Sarcazm]

the guy is a fuckin fruit cake mahn...

[moe4sho]

LOL* This junk is all too funny to me. I dont take any of this shit seriously. In the end it's all about money and ratings. That's why I just look at it as entertainment.

[Anthony]

i just really hate it how these people such as barbara walters can have shows on not making fun of people who are different, and showing sympathy for them... but since it's michael jackson a 44 year old man who has had such an estranged life, and maybe has been affected by it badly, and doesn't do everything the "normal" way... she can make fun of him by showing this, and citisizing him for things that she has no clue what it's like to go threw... just gotta hate it

[Lucky Luciano]

Good review. That interview seemed lurid and exploitative. And why dwell on this child molestation shit? The guy was never charged, let alone convicted.