‘Becoming’ Film Review: Michelle Obama Plays Nice in Celebratory Documentary
In the Netflix film, the former first lady reserves her harshest words not for Donald Trump but for the black, young and women voters who helped him win the presidency by staying home
A celebration rather than an examination, “Becoming” is the Michelle Obama documentary you might expect from Higher Ground Productions — the company founded by the former first lady and her husband, under whose Netflix deal the film is premiering on Wednesday, May 6.
There are no big revelations or buried secrets in “Becoming,” no uncomfortable moments for the film’s subject except in archival footage and no attempts to probe deeply into her psyche. Instead, it’s Michelle Obama as she chooses to present herself — in her memoir for which the film is named, on the book tour to promote that memoir and in interviews that are interspersed through the film.
That makes the film less artful and less significant than Higher Ground’s first two documentaries, the Oscar-winning “American Factory” and this year’s Sundance hit “Crip Camp.” But it’s not necessarily a bad thing that “Becoming” is about as authorized as a doc can get; in these days of bitter political divisions, the film is of interest almost solely to viewers who come in as fans of the Obamas, and those viewers will no doubt find both interest and comfort in this openhearted portrait.
The film won’t have the impact of Hulu’s recent four-part documentary series “Hillary,” about Hillary Clinton, which included the former secretary of state settling scores with Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, among others. In “Becoming,” Michelle Obama spends far more time inspiring than complaining, with her most pointed comments reserved not for Trump – who is mentioned only in passing – but for black, young and women voters who stayed home when Barack Obama wasn’t on the ballot.
“A lot of our folks didn’t vote,” she says in a Q&A shown in the film. “It was almost like a slap in the face. I understand the people who voted for Trump. The people who didn’t vote at all – the young people, the women – that when you think, ‘Man, people think this is a game.’
“It wasn’t just in this (2016) election,” she continues. “Every midterm. Every time Barack didn’t get the Congress he needed, that was because our folks didn’t show up. After all that work, they just couldn’t be bothered to vote at all – that’s my trauma.”
But the film isn’t concerned with rehashing that trauma, and Michelle Obama isn’t interested in talking about the current president except to tell an amusing anecdote about trying to motivate her daughters and their two friends who’d had one final sleepover on the morning of Trump’s inauguration. (“Wake up, you gotta get out! The Trumps are coming!”)
“Barack and I are not interested in being at the forefront forever,” she says at one point. “Not even for that much longer.”
So “Becoming” is both a look back and a tentative look forward to an uncertain future of mentorship. Directed and shot by Nadia Hallgren, it includes fly-on-the-wall footage from her book tour, as well as onstage moments in which Michelle Obama talks about her life, talking-head interviews and what sounds like some passages from the audiobook version of her memoir.
Of course, these are not scenes from a normal book tour. Two years after leaving the White House, Michelle Obama spoke about her book at 34 sports arenas around the country, with celebrity moderators who included Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Stephen Colbert and Conan O’Brien. We see snippets from those conversations as well as backstage moments and visits with high school students, which are clearly a particular passion for the former first lady.
The story that emerges is one of a driven young women who took affront when her high-school guidance counselor told her she wasn’t “Princeton material.” She got into that college anyway, where she found that “for the first time in my life I stood out” because of her skin color; in fact, the mother of one of her roommates insisted that the girl switch rooms rather than live with a black roommate.
At Princeton, though, she also learned that the classmates who looked as if they belonged weren’t necessarily any smarter or more deserving than she was. “There’s all kinds of affirmative action,” she says at one point. “There’s legacy, there’s the college athletes … Universities have a right and an interest in diversifying – the problem is that when it comes to students of color, poor kids, all of a sudden that’s ‘affirmative action’ and that’s a problem.
“I have been at probably every powerful table there is in the world,” she continues. “I’ve been at G summits, I’ve been in castles and palaces, in boardrooms, in academic universities, and I am coming down from the mountaintop to tell every young person that is poor and working-class and has been told, regardless of the color of your skin, that you don’t belong – don’t listen to them. They don’t even know how they got at those seats.”
This is typical of Michelle Obama in the film, in which the anger she no doubt felt along the way is turned into messages designed to give strength to young people. “Becoming” briefly follows a couple of those young women in their own lives, but these sequences feel oddly out of place; Hallgren either needs to change the approach to make more of them, or stick with the woman who’s at the center of this story.
As it is, we see many examples of what Michelle Obama means to people of all ages, along with glancing acknowledgments of how much she and her husband were hated by others. “Barack and I lived with an awareness that we in ourselves were a provocation,” she says at one point.
But provocation is not what “Becoming” is about. Toward the end, on the last stop of the book tour, Michelle Obama tells Stephen Colbert, “The energy that’s out there is much better than what we see. I wish people didn’t feel badly, because this country is good. People are good, people are decent.”
She adds, “We’re at a crossroads where we have to think about, ‘Who are we as a nation?’ I remain hopeful that people want better – if not for themselves, then for the next generation.”
Some may find that blindness rather than optimism; some may resist the message because of where it’s coming from, or wish that there was more of an edge in the film. But those people aren’t the ones that the movie was made for. It’s tricky to tell a feel-good story in a time in which many people are feeling anything but good, but “Becoming” film insists on doing just that.
All the Hollywood Films Arriving on Demand Early Because of the Coronavirus
Since most U.S. movie theaters have shuttered in response to the coronavirus pandemic, studios are rushing out VOD home releases of movies that were only just in theaters.
Disney/Warner Bros./Universal
"Trolls World Tour"
The sequel to the 2017 animated hit announced it would be available for digital download on April 10 -- the same day it was supposed to land in theaters. Now it's a VOD exclusive.
Universal Pictures
"Birds of Prey"
The Margot Robbie spinoff of 2017's "Suicide Squad" debuted on demand on March 24. The film grossed $84 million since opening on Feb. 4.
Warner Bros.
"The Hunt"
The Universal/Blumhouse horror film was first delayed from release last fall due to controversy over its violent content -- and then sidelined after its March 13 opening by the coronavirus. It's available to stream now.
Universal Pictures
"The Invisible Man"
The Universal horror film starring Elisabeth Moss grossed nearly $65 million since its Feb. 26 release in theaters. It's available to stream now.
Universal Pictures
"Emma."
Focus Features' adaptation of the Jane Austen novel opened in limited release Feb. 21 -- and picked up $10 million in ticket sales until the pandemic shut down theaters. It's available to stream now.
Focus Features
"Bloodshot"
The Vin Diesel comic-book movie opened March 6 and grossed $10 million before theaters shut down. It's available on VOD now.
Sony Pictures
"I Still Believe"
Lionsgate's biopic starring K.J. Apa as Christian music star Jeremy Camp hit VOD on March 27 -- just two weeks after it opened in theaters.
Lionsgate
"The Way Back"
Warner Bros. released the Ben Affleck drama "The Way Back" -- which grossed $13 million in theaters since its March 6 opening -- on VOD less than three weeks later, on March 24.
Warner Bros.
"Onward"
Disney and Pixar’s animated feature was made available for purchase on Friday, March 20, and the film hit Disney+ on April 3.
Disney/Pixar
"Sonic the Hedgehog"
Paramount Pictures' "Sonic the Hedgehog" set a new record for video game adaptations with a $58 million domestic opening weekend on Feb. 14 and has grossed $306 million worldwide theatrically. It's available on demand now.
Paramount Pictures
"The Call of the Wild"
20th Century Studios' feel-good film starring Harrison Ford and a giant CGI dog is available on demand now.
20th Century
"Downhill"
Barely escaping an avalanche during a family ski vacation, a married couple (Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Will Ferrell) is thrown into disarray as they are forced to reevaluate their lives and how they feel about each other. It's available on demand now.
Fox Searchlight
"Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
"Never Rarely Sometimes Always" is the story of two teenage cousins from rural Pennsylvania who journey to New York City to seek an abortion. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and walked away with a Special Jury award. It's available for VOD now.
Focus Features
"Endings, Beginnings"
"Endings, Beginnings," a romantic drama from Drake Doremus starring Shailene Woodley, Sebastian Stan and Jamie Dornan, opened early on digital on April 17 and on demand on May 1. It was meant to open theatrically on May 1.
Samuel Goldwyn Films
"To the Stars"
"To the Stars," a period drama set in 1960s Oklahoma that stars Kara Hayward, Liana Liberato, Jordana Spiro, Shea Whigham, Malin Akerman and Tony Hale, was bumped up to a digital release on April 24 and an on demand release on June 1. Martha Stephens directed the film that premiered at Sundance in 2019 and was meant to be released theatrically by Samuel Goldwyn Films.
Samuel Goldwyn Films
"Impractical Jokers: The Movie"
truTV's first-ever feature-length film arrived early on digital on April 1. Follow James "Murr" Murray, Brian "Q" Quinn, Joe Gatto, and Sal Vulvano, aka The Tenderloins, playing themselves in a fictional story of a humiliating high school mishap from the early '90s.
truTV
"Artemis Fowl"
Disney's adaptation of the Eoin Colfer fantasy novel "Artemis Fowl" was meant to debut in theaters on May 29 but premiered exclusively on Disney+. The film is directed by Kenneth Branagh and stars Colin Farrell and Judi Dench.
Disney
"The Infiltrators"
The theatrical release of Oscilloscope's docu-thriller "The Infiltrators" has been postponed, and the film was released on both Cable On Demand and Digital Platforms starting June 2.
Oscilloscope
"Working Man"
The March 27 theatrical release of "Working Man" has been canceled due to the theater closures, and the film premiered on May 5 via Video On Demand.
Brainstorm Media
"Jump Shot: The Kenny Sailors Story"
"Jump Shot: The Kenny Sailors Story," a sports documentary executive produced by NBA star Steph Curry, was made available for streaming on the new service Altavod between April 16-18 for $7.99 and is available for pre-order beginning April 9. 10% of all the proceeds will be donated to COVID-19 relief efforts. The documentary tells the story of the player, Kenny Sailors, who pioneered the jump shot, and it features interviews with Curry, Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, Clark Kellogg, Bobby Knight and more.
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
"Scoob!"
Warner Bros. announced on April 11 that it would release the family animated film “Scoob!” for digital ownership and premium video on-demand on May 15, making it the second film (after Universal's "Trolls World Tour") to cancel a planned theatrical release and head straight to home release pandemic.
Warner Bros.
"The King of Staten Island"
"The King of Staten Island," the comedy starring and co-written by "SNL" star Pete Davidson and directed by Judd Apatow, skipped its theatrical release date of June 19 and opened one week early on VOD everywhere on June 12.
Universal Pictures
"The High Note"
"The High Note," the latest film from "Late Night" director Nisha Ganatra that stars Tracee Ellis Ross and Dakota Johnson, made its premiere on VOD on May 29. It was meant to open on May 8 theatrically.
Focus Features
"Waiting for the Barbarians"
Ciro Guerra's film starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson was originally slated for a theatrical release but was picked up by Samuel Goldwyn Films to instead be released via cable on demand and on digital in August
Samuel Goldwyn Films
"Irresistible"
Jon Stewart's latest film, a political comedy called "Irresistible," will skip theaters and make its premiere online for on demand digital rental on June 26. The film from Focus Features stars Steve Carell and Rose Byrne and was meant to open in theaters on May 29.
Daniel McFadden / Focus Features
"My Spy"
The Dave Bautista action comedy "My Spy" was originally meant for a theatrical release from STXfilms and was due to hit theaters in March. Amazon then acquired the film from STX and will now release it on streaming on June 26.
Amazon Studios
"The One and Only Ivan"
The animated Disney film based on Thea Sharrock's best-selling children's book "The One and Only Ivan" is the latest feature to skip theaters and move to Disney+. The movie features the voice talent of Angelina Jolie, Danny Devito, Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston and Helen Mirren. The film was previously slated for theatrical release on August 14 but will now debut on Disney+ one week later on Aug. 21.
Disney
"The Secret Garden"
The re-imagining of the book "The Secret Garden" was meant to open in UK theaters in April but delayed its theatrical release until August. But STXfilms will now release the StudioCanal and Heyday Films movie on PVOD for $19.99 on August 7 in North America. "The Secret Garden" stars Colin Firth, Julie Walters and Dixie Egerickx.
STXfilms
1 of 29
”Irresistible“ joins a list of big films heading to digital home entertainment platforms early
Since most U.S. movie theaters have shuttered in response to the coronavirus pandemic, studios are rushing out VOD home releases of movies that were only just in theaters.