The “Wham!” documentary on Netflix hit me like, well, you can guess.
Wham! was formed in 1982, the year after I was born; by the time I turned four, the pop duo (OK, so it was kind of a quartet) was done. So you’ll forgive me if I lacked some context of the group’s real-time rise to stardom and ultimate split. Enter: Netflix, director Chris Smith (“Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond”), and Andrew Ridgeley’s mom.
When I streamed the self-titled Netflix doc, released on June 17, I didn’t expect much more than 92 minutes of schlock, a few catchy tunes, and maybe a good explanation for the “Choose Life” shirts from 1984’s very 1980s “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” music video. (We didn’t get much from the doc in the way of those shirts, but Google reminded me it was an anti-drug and anti-suicide statement at the time, and not an anti-abortion stance. “Wham!” does give a satisfying explanation behind the song title itself, however.)
To my surprise, what we also didn’t get from “Wham!” was much George Michael drama. If that sounds like a major omission, given his various drug charges and one very famous 1998 arrest for “engaging in a lewd act” in a public bathroom, it actually is not.
“Wham!” the feature, like Wham! the group, is the sweet story of friendship between English mates Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou) and Ridgeley. That’s the point, so that’s the doc. It is as pure as fresh snow; you’ll never again look at the “Last Christmas” music video’s dinner scenes with so much as a smidge of cynicism.
In their relatively brief time together as professionals, Michael and Ridgeley went from playing in clubs to taking their final bow at Wembley Stadium. Along the way, Wham! compiled a bunch of number 1 hits, invaded America, and became the first Western pop act to play in China. Like Wham!, “Wham!” ends exactly where it should, with Ridgeley having a front-row seat to Michael’s solo career.
We all know what happened to Michael from there. His stardom rose to new heights with classics like “Careless Whisper” (Ridgeley had a hand in that one), “Faith,” and “Freedom ’90,” among others. He died on Christmas Day 2016. George Michael’s story didn’t need to be told again, but the Wham! story did. And “Wham!” finally gives Ridgeley the spotlight he deserves.
Ridgeley was the band’s original musician/songwriter/dreamer. He was even the original Wham! heartthrob and playboy. Dare I say, at times, he may have even had the better hair; it was all just lost to history. To me, Ridgeley had just been the other guy in Wham! His entire life was reduced to a bad joke about who he was not in a band that I thought to be a joke itself. Now I realize we’d all be so lucky to have a best friend with such grace.
I should point out that with much of the documentary based on Ridgeley’s recollections and his mom’s scrapbooks, it wouldn’t be difficult to skew a little favor Andrew’s way. All I can say is, it doesn’t feel that way. (While not a credited producer on the doc, Ridgeley brought the idea and his memoir, “Wham! George & Me” to Netflix and Smith.)
The other great triumph of “Wham!” is the justice it serves to George Michael, the songwriter. Before this, I did not appreciate just how good the guy was at the craft, and just how much that specific recognition meant to him. For the fellow uninitiated, Smith, Ridgeley, and another lyricist who goes by Elton John will make you understand.
It is not just me coming around on Wham! According to Netflix, “Wham!” was viewed 4.4 million times last week, making it the streamer’s number 8 most-watched film (in any language) from July 3-9.
“Wham!” is currently streaming on Netflix. Give it a go(-go); your beats-per-minute will never be the same.
