Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Halftime’ on Netflix, In Which We Bear Witness To Jennifer Lopez’s Turbulent Super Bowl Preparation

Jennifer Lopez gets the pop star documentary treatment with Halftime, which follows her career in one of her most memorable years yet. After premiering at New York City’s Tribeca Film Festival, the documentary is streaming on Netflix.

HALFTIME: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: At 50 years old, Jennifer Lopez had one of her most illustrious years of her life. She starred in the critically acclaimed film Hustlers in a role that earned her a Golden Globe nomination (and one that many thought would garner her an Academy Award nomination), she performed at the Super Bowl halftime show, and she would also perform at the presidential inauguration of Joe Biden. The documentary Halftime takes fans behind the scenes in the months of prep work for the Super Bowl show and invites audiences to share in her creative process and the ups and downs of the business.

What Will It Remind You Of?: With political undertones, and a star examining their process and journey, Halftime shares some DNA with Taylor Swift’s Netflix documentary Miss Americana.

Performance Worth Watching: It couldn’t be anyone other than JLo herself, who is vulnerable, feisty, empowering, and ultimately human in the documentary.

Memorable Dialogue: An ongoing theme is JLo’s push for authenticity and respect in her work, and the behind the scenes look at crafting her halftime show shows how much thought is put into her performance and her image. “I’m trying to give you something with substance, not just us up there shaking our asses and fucking belly dancing,” she tells an NFL producer who is trying to pare down the production. “I want something real, something that’s gonna make a statement, that says we belong here and have something to offer.”

Sex and Skin: Save for a trip down memory lane to her infamous and revealing green jungle print Versace dress, none. Halftime isn’t interested in JLo’s personal life, and the film is better for it.

Our Take: As an entertainer, Jennifer Lopez has been around for the better part of three decades and has conquered dancing, acting, and singing in her career. She’s made headlines for her body and the revealing outfits she’s worn, and for her star-studded love life, but rarely has she gotten her due as a thoughtful artist with something to say. The new Netflix documentary Halftime approaches her in this vein right after her 50th birthday and on the cusp of one of her most visible and important years.

“Halftime” is a literal reference to the documentary’s primary focus — Lopez’s 2020 Super Bowl halftime performance with Shakira — but it’s also a metaphor for this stage of her life. She’s in phase two, refining her image and what she wants to say with her art. While Lopez is preparing for her huge performance, she’s also juggling the awards circuit for the well-received film Hustlers — enjoying the moment and the praise while also managing her expectations. It’s hard not to feel for Lopez when she doesn’t get her expected Oscar nomination, and her vulnerability and openness in embracing the good with the bad makes her a great documentary subject.

I would ignore the clickbait headlines that claimed Lopez was throwing shade at Shakira or complaining about having to share the spotlight — that conversation manifests more as an argument about the type of message she’s trying to put out rather than a diva moment. If nothing else, Halftime will make you respect Jennifer Lopez. She fights with higher-ups at NFL who want to dampen the human rights statement — showing kids in cages — that she’s trying to make with her performance set, she champions her Latina heritage, and she’s open with her disappointments. JLo wants to be seen as more than the tabloid headlines, and the film meets her there.

Our Call: STREAM IT. A peek behind the curtains brings authenticity to Lopez’s career and image.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.