Michael Jackson: This Is It Review

Okay, I know that PattyTherre and I were going to see the Michael Jackson movie This Is It on the same day.  I haven't read her review yet but I will as soon as I finish mine.  Going to this movie was interesting for me.  First of all, my coworker couldn't go so I ended up going by myself yesterday.  Then I got there and we soon realized that I was the only one in the theater.  I sent a message to Patty on Twitter and let her know I was in the movie by myself.  A private showing perhaps?

I was given a commemorative laminated backstage pass on a lanyard so it looked all official like the press people wear.  Being in the theater by myself was an opportunity of a lifetime; especially since it was a concert.  I was able to keep my cell phone on and I would call my friends and let them hear Michael perform certain songs.  I was also singing along with the show and I didn't have the usual interruptions (people talking, crying, food container noises, etc.).  Seeing Michael on the big screen was like being at the concert and I loved it!

I've been telling my friends that I think it's hard to produce a spoiler for this movie because it's like telling someone how a concert went.  For me, seeing Michael perform on the big screen was like being at the concert because he was so life like.  The movie opened with a black screen and white text scrolling down telling you WHY this movie was made.  The movie covered April 2009 to eight days prior to his death.  And then bam!  You see the This Is It billboard and the show begins.  I was teary eyed from the start because I felt like this was just proving to me that this talented man really was gone too soon.  After leaving the theater I cried just knowing that no one would ever get to see him perform again and how much we have lost in the entertainment industry.  This should not have been a finale but a new beginning. 

The movie begins with the auditions for the principal dancers, background vocalists and band.  I remember one lady saying, "Even if I don't make it I know I made it this far."  I loved seeing Michael in the audience critiquing the people and hearing him shout, "She's the one!"  These were mega talented people who were given the opportunity to showcase their talents with the King of Pop.  I loved seeing the dancers match Michael's moves and seeing Michael share the stage with young up and coming artists.  These people have the ability to go places because on their resume they will be able to put their involvement in This Is It.  I thought Michael had enough confidence to put people onstage with him that could match him in dancing skills and yet know that he was still somehow the leader of the pack.

At times I was a bit confused.  Sometimes I didn't know if I was watching a movie, a concert in the making or music videos in the making.  You didn't have a beginning, middle and end and everyone would know the final outcome but I did wonder if they would put footage of the funeral at the end of the movie.

I was impressed with how well Michael performed at his age.  This generation would have got to witness what we saw during his glory days in the late 80s and early 90s.  He still had all the right moves, a little too much crotch grabbing, and his voice was still strong as ever.  You never would have known that he was almost 50, battling with painkillers, etc.  But you could understand the possible need for painkillers because he rehearsed so much until it was perfect.  I remember them telling him to pick up at a certain part and he said no he wanted to take it from the beginning.  He worked hard and he perfected everything. He was a genius in his time and his talent is going to be hard to match.  Some may imitate him but none will duplicate him.  There was some footage where he was wearing red pants/jeans and I thought he looked a little healthier.  He didn't appear as gaunt looking and you could see some good muscle tone in his legs.  I also loved seeing the various costume/wardrobe changes.  And I can only imagine how spectacular the show in London would have been without interruptions and full cast, wardrobe, lighting, etc.

As a dancer I really loved watching the choreography parts.  Michael was always so meek and mild.  Even when he was giving directions on changes he wanted made he did it with a very gentle voice.  He didn't appear to be as demanding like many people say people in the film industry are. I loved how everyone respected their employer.  It was always, "Michael Jackson (or Mr. Jackson or MJ) may we do this" and when Michael would agree it was always, "Thank you sir."  When the dancers, vocalists, etc. weren't on the stage they were on the ground cheering him on.  I'm sure many would say that the film only included footage that people wanted us to see and we may not have seen the bad but in my opinion it was spectacular. 

I got a little scared when I watched The Thriller production on the big screen by myself.  I thought Smooth Criminal was like a cops and robber movie and just too cool; especially with the old black and white movie footage.  The making of Beat It and Billy Jean were too cool.  I have a question for Patty, did they ever show him doing the moonwalk?  I was glued to that screen and during Billy Jean I really couldn't see the moonwalk jump out at me.  It appeared that he did the side step version of the moonwalk but nothing like was his trademark.  Maybe I was concentrating too deeply with anticipation of it happening.   

Watch the movie to know why I enjoyed the following:

• I'm not sure what my fascination was but I loved seeing MJ chewing gum and just being so relaxed.
• The auditions.
• Story about the cherry picker.
• Taking 11 principal dancers and turning them into 11,000 for They Don't Care About Us.
• How Michael dealt with the inner ear problems and sound systems.
• How they incorporated the Jackson 5 music into the show.

The music was wonderful!  Michael performs a lot of his greatest hits and then you get to see two more songs (This Is It and The Earth Song). A little frustration was that because we were viewing rehearsal footage we didn't get an entire song uninterrupted.  There were stops and repeats, let's tweak this, and so forth.   I was totally amazed at watching the making of videos and the ending, well, you just didn't see it coming. 

One final thought, Elizabeth Taylor has been asking people on Twitter to support this movie.  I watched this movie and thought how proud she must have been of Michael and how much it must hurt for her to see him in this coverage and to know that this come back tour will never happen.   

I would go see this again if someone wanted me to.  I will definitely add it to my DVD collection.  The backstage pass says you can get information on reserving a copy of the DVD or Blu-Ray with never-before-seen extras at sonystyle.com/thisisit  I watched the movie all the way to the last credit.  This movie has an accompanying soundtrack which I bought tonight. 

I just went to the website and you can pre-order:

• CD for $14.99
• DVD for $19.99
• Blu-Ray for $29.99

They said they will ship the CD immediately and the videos once they are available to the public.  You can also do a bundle package CD and DVD or CD and Blu-Ray for about $10 cheaper.   I thought they would sell this for $30-50 because it would be in such demand.