Netflix documentary ‘Wham!’ makes the early-Eighties’ prettiest, shiniest pop duo seem more boring, more wholesome, dumber and less funny than they actually were, but it still manages to be a nice tribute to George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley’s unique bond
, the shiniest, prettiest UK pop duo of their day, in 1985, the boys bristled when the reporter asked a common question: What exactly did Andrew Ridgeleysaid, “He just plays the guitar and has a good time.” Since Wham! records had practically no guitar, fans had to assume that Andrew was having a VERY good time. But Ridgeley was more diplomatic. He said, “My role is everything people don’t see, because they’re not in pop bands.
But Andrew had a crucial job, the “everything people don’t see” part. He was the emotional support for his high-strung mate, which meant keeping his biggest secret. As George says in the doc, “The turning point with Wham! was me as I suddenly thought, ‘Oh my God, I’m a massive star and I’m gay.’ The depression was about that. It was about the way I boxed myself in. You know, be careful what you wish for.
The doc makes Wham! seem more boring, more wholesome, dumber and less funny than they actually were. It’s a bit of a stretch to call it a music doc, since there’s zero curiosity here about their actual tunes. Their second-best song, “I’m Your Man,” gets held back until the final credits, which is crazy. It’s mostly about their silly clothes—and their strangely touching friendship.
The best history of Wham! is still George’s “Freedom ’90,” where he’s extremely bitter about the whole experience—in the video, he sets fire to his leather jacket from the “Bad Boys” video. George slams the music industry, his label, his handlers, the boys at MTV. But the one person he has nothing negative to say about is Andrew. The only time in the song when you can hear him smile is when he sings, “Heaven knows we had some fun, boy / What a kick, just a buddy and me.
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