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M Poetica: Michael Jackson's Art of Connection and Defiance

suzynyc said:
Sometimes the author makes it sounds as if everything Michael ever did was carefully calculated and done with a purpose. But I'm not so sure about that. Many things he did were done that way but a lot of stuff was just Michael being Michael. I'm not sure how to articulate what I'm trying to say. But I'm almost at the end of the book and it's been intriguing.
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I agree. I don't think Michael calculated things as much as the author makes it sound. That includes his songs and videos. Sometimes I think she reads more into them than what Michael intended to say. That doesn't mean Michael wasn't clever and deep artistically. He was, but whether he was indeed trying to express the things this author sees in his work is another question. Only Michael could tell. It reminds me of an anecdote we have about a poet of my country. When he read a critic or analyist analyzing one of his poems and he was writing stuff like "... and the poet thought this and this...". The poet then wrote a comment on the edge of the article: "WTF? I didn't think this!" LOL.

But this is what art is all about! An art piece carries a different meaning for everybody. For every spectator as well as for the artist. And honestly, it doesn't have to mean the same thing for everybody and it doesn't have to mean the same for the spectator as for the artist.
 
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respect77 said:
I agree. I don't think Michael calculated things as much as the author makes it sound. That includes his songs and videos. Sometimes I think she reads more into them than what Michael intended to say. That doesn't mean Michael wasn't clever and deep artistically. He was, but whether he was indeed trying to express the things this author sees in his work is another question. Only Michael could tell. It reminds me of an anecdote we have about a poet of my country. When he read a critic or analyist analyzing one of his poems and he was writing stuff like "... and the poet thought this and this...". The poet then wrote a comment on the edge of the article: "WTF? I didn't think this!" LOL.

But this is what art is all about! An art piece carries a different meaning for everybody. For every spectator as well as for the artist. And honestly, it doesn't have to mean the same thing for everybody and it doesn't have to mean the same for the spectator as for the artist.
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Exactly.
 
@respect77, well said! :clapping:

I completed reading this book a two weeks ago. Although I don't agree with every one of the writter's opinons, it's a good read. Like you said, to the writter, Michael calculated every single one of his images, even the bandages. I beg to differ. I find it hard to believe Michael intended to play a prank in historical scale on a global stage. To quote Dr. Kamangar, it's "inconceivable". I wholeheartedly agree how Michael blurred the boundaries between musculine and feminine. He challenged the traditional stereotype. To me, BOTDF is a prime example of what a man can be feminine and musculine simultaneously. I see a man's man in all his hotness wearing eyeliners and red lipstick, things we think only women can do.

In additional to the image, the writter also provides good background information of some songs. I'm intrigued to know Michael referenced some lyrics of Dangerous to the line of an old Hollywood film noir (the name of the film and novel escape me now.) I'm truly amazed by how well read Michael Jackson was. He can draw inspiration from anywhere.
 
One other thing I didn't like in the book was the quotes from Ian Halperin's and J. Randy Taraborelli's books.

Probably the author wasn't well informed about the credibility (or rather lack) of these authors. I find it's a bit of shame to litter this great book with quotes from those trash books - even if she picked positive quotes. But all in all Halperin is a tabloid writer with all the tricks of a tabloid writer (lies mixed with some truth to make it sound credible). Same for JRT. These guys are simply not credible, they are simply tabloid, so I think no self-respecting author should quote them on anything and put their name in her book as references for anything.
 
respect77 said:
One other thing I didn't like in the book was the quotes from Ian Halperin's and J. Randy Taraborelli's books.

Probably the author wasn't well informed about the credibility (or rather lack) of these authors. I find it's a bit of shame to litter this great book with quotes from those trash books - even if she picked positive quotes. But all in all Halperin is a tabloid writer with all the tricks of a tabloid writer (lies mixed with some truth to make it sound credible). Same for JRT. These guys are simply not credible, they are simply tabloid, so I think no self-respecting author should quote them on anything and put their name in her book as references for anything.
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I'm also surprised to see quotes from Ian Halperin. I asked the same question. Why an author who aimed to write a serious study of Michael Jackson would rely on such uncredible sources. I get a feeling theat Willa Stillwater is also a knowledgeable fan. It's difficult for me to imagine she's not informed about the nature of Ian Halperin's book. She should have read it herself.

All in all, this book is still a valuable read. We can always analyse and reason what we read and come up with our conclusions. In doing so, we enhance our knowledge and appreciation on Michael. That's why I enjoy reading this kind of books.

IMO, regarding this book, the good outweight the bad. And, I don't think fans should discredit her efforts because of the quotes from Ian Halperin.
 
It's a shame because she could have made her points without Halperin as well. You don't need Ian Halperin to find quotes from kids who say Michael never molested them. Their quotes are everywhere.

Yeah, overall the positive outweights the negative and I think, while Willa Stillwater is a fan - maybe she was not aware of Halperin's reputation. (Though if she read his book, she should have realized the tabloid parts for what they were. And if there are deliberate lies in a book I'd rather not touch it altogether as a reference for anything, not even the seemingly positive parts.)

There are several kind of fans. Stillwater may be one who is mainly interested in Michael's music and art, but is not familiar with other details. So I don't hold this against her. She obviously meant well, she was probably just uninformed about Halperin. It's just a pity.
 
I finished the book today. The chapter about "Smooth Criminal" is amazing. I never knew all this stuff about how it's rooted in old Hollywood movies and what all those references in the video mean (Michael dressed like Fred Astaire in "Girl Hunt Ballet" etc.) It's amazing how much insight Michael had and how knowledgeable he was about art and entertainment. Even the character "Annie" is from this "Girl Hunt Ballet", but it's not like he just copied a character from there. It has a meaning why he picked that name and in this case I think Willa Stillwater is onto something in her interpretation of it. Wow. Truly amazing.



Here it is: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8gyon_band-wagon-girl-hunt-ballet-segment_shortfilms

Also notice the words at 3:16

"She came at me in sections"

and

"She was Bad. She was Dangerous"
 
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respect77 said:
I finished the book today. The chapter about "Smooth Criminal" is amazing. I never knew all this stuff about how it's rooted in old Hollywood movies and what all those references in the video mean (Michael dressed like Fred Astaire in "Girl Hunt Ballet" etc.) It's amazing how much insight Michael had and how knowledgeable he was about art and entertainment. Even the character "Annie" is from this "Girl Hunt Ballet", but it's not like he just copied a character from there. It has a meaning why he picked that name and in this case I think Willa Stillwater is onto something in her interpretation of it. Wow. Truly amazing.


Here it is: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8gyon_band-wagon-girl-hunt-ballet-segment_shortfilms

Also notice the words at 3:16

"She came at me in sections"

and

"She was Bad. She was Dangerous"
Click to expand...

I just finished that chapter. It's fascinating.

It's taking me forever to finish this book!
 
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