Leaving Neverland is the 2 part HBO Documentary film about Michael Jackson and how he allegedly abused young boys. If you have a weak stomach or get upset easily regarding the topic of child abuse, then this is not something you should watch. There is a point where boys describe what they say Michael Jackson did to them. It details how he lured them in and then pounced on them like a tiger hunting it’s prey. It all sounds very plausible. While it’s uncommon that the likes of an average kid would come into close personal contact of a star as famous Michael Jackson.
My personal opinion is that I believe the boys who are now men and what they say happened. It makes 100% sense to me. I do feel very sorry for them because their lives and the lives of their families were changed forever. I realize that Mr. Jackson isn’t alive to defend himself so this is kind of unfair but at the same time I don’t know that this would have been made public if he were alive. His family stands behind him and defends him saying that this never took place. A child’s imagination does run wild but there is no way those kids fabricated or manufactured their stories. You have to heart them to understand what I am saying.
Wade Robson was one of those kids and he turned out to be a very successful young man because of his affiliation with Jackson. Much to my surprise Robson is straight, married and had a child. I was thinking that somehow he would have identified as gay. He’s a handsome man and seems well rounded despite what happened to him.
Oprah did a follow-up to the documentary and it too is available on HBO. This is a very intensive look at things and will occupy a fair amount of your time. Each of the 2 parts of the documentary were 2 hours in length and then Oprah’s follow up is 1 hour. I watched them on a Sunday and then took in the documentary while I was at work on Monday.
While I don’t focus on it, I was abused physically when I was a child. So I understand the brain washing that comes with this, how you have to keep a secret and can’t tell anyone. Problem is I don’t keep secrets about stuff like that and most of it was obvious by the evidence left on my body. I identify with them and understand their pain. The abuser plays tricks on your mind and really fucks with your head, that in and of it’s self is hard to overcome then combine it with what happened and you have quite the disaster. It’s not just physical or sexual abuse but it’s mental abuse. However, this is one tiny part of your life and if you dwell on it, it will eat you alive. You have to move on and not look back. It’s important to come to terms with what happened and to acknowledge it. I can tell you that to this day there are lasting effects on me.
The whole story is very sad and unfortunate. It takes a lot of bravery to come forward and publicly admit what took place, especially when there is a famous person involved and it’s picked up by the media. They sensationalize it and what was a problem becomes much larger and it’s all people are talking about.
If you can deal with the subject matter, I recommend watching. If you have seen it and/or do see it, please feel free to come back and comment let me know what you think.
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