George Michael: Freedom

'Freedom' is a documentary about Geroge Michael's life mostly put together by the singer himself before his untimely death last year. And it was an interesting life, that of a Watford schoolboy who became a global pop star, a legal warrior fighting his record company, and a gay man who finally embraced his sexual identity. Unfortunately, this film is not particularly interesting: Michael was a private man, and the story as told doesn't feel particularly personal. Nor is there a great discussion of the music, beyond the obligatory parade of talking heads who gush but offer no insight. The main thing that comes across is Michael's professional self-belief and ambition; though he talked of slavery in his battle with Sony, we get the sense less of a free spirit unable to work with the man, and more of someone angry he was not getting the respect he considered his talent deserved. I'd have liked to know more about the real George Michael; but here I felt I saw only what Michael wanted to be seen.