SEE THE EVENT OF A LIFETIME AT THEATERS - LOOK FOR IT SOON ON DVD AND BLU-RAY. Michael Jackson's This Is It will offer Jackson fans and music lovers worldwide a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the performer as he developed, created and rehearsed for his sold-out concerts that would have taken place beginning this summer in London's O2 Arena. Chronicling the months from April through June 2009, the film is produced with the full support of the Estate of Michael Jackson and drawn from more than one hundred hours of behind-the-scenes footage, featuring Jackson rehearsing a number of his songs for the show. Audiences will be given a privileged and private look at Jackson as he has never been seen before. In raw and candid detail, Michael Jackson's This Is It captures the singer, dancer, filmmaker, architect, creative genius and great artist at work as he creates and perfects his final show. Directed by Kenny Ortega, who was both Michael Jackson's creative partner and the director of the stage show.
It's hard not to watch This Is It without feeling a mixture of sorrow and elation. When he passed away in the summer of 2009, Michael Jackson was in the midst of rehearsals for his final tour, an ambitious 50-date engagement. In editing 120 hours of rehearsal footage together, Jackson producer Kenny Ortega proves that it would've been an event for the ages. Michael performs material that spans his career, from a Motown medley to multi-platinum hits from Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad. Though he hadn't toured in 10 years, it becomes instantly apparent, despite rumors to the contrary, that Jackson was still in full possession of that unmistakable voice--high-pitched whoops and all--and that he still had the gravity-defying moves of a man half his age. Jackson and Ortega also collaborated on some real showstoppers, such as a graveyard-set "Thriller"; an imposing "They Don't Care About Us," in which several dancers appear to morph into thousands; and a film noir sequence in which the singer slides in and out of Gilda and other black-and-white classics, singing "Smooth Criminal" all the while. Not everything works, like the Jackson 5 numbers, in which he flubs a few lyrics, claiming that his earpiece isn't working properly, but as he readily acknowledges, "That's what rehearsal is for." It's a tragedy that he didn't get the chance to share this dazzling show with the world, but Ortega allows fans to feel as if it actually happened--at least onscreen. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Stills from Michael Jackson: This Is It (Click for larger image)
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
A Fitting Tribute to the Gloved One as a Master Orchestrator:
Even though it represents the name of the concert tour, the film's title is a bit of a misnomer because it's more accurate to say this could have been it. Nine months after his death, Michael Jackson is unlikely to move anywhere close to obscurity soon. As the first post-mortem tribute to his legacy, this 2009 documentary, filmed at the Staples Center in LA and directed by choreographer Kenny Ortega (Dirty Dancing), is testament to an idiosyncratic talent driven by an even more amazing level of dedication... more info
You don't have to be a Michael fan.:
You don't have to be a Michael fan to realize the talent he had in everything that he did. He had vision both on and off stage when it came to the creativity that made his shows and videos so fantastic. This last performance was going to be completely brilliant. One really interesting aspect was the black and white of Rita Hayworth and the gangster three-D of him sliding down the stairs. How was that going to happen? He was the "Smooth Criminal" :-). He knew when to make songs "simmer" and to make his... more info
Experience Michael Jackson's Last Concert:
This Is It is more than a concert. It gives a feel for what his last concert might have been like, but it also takes you through a bit of the creative process for each performance that was being created. It gets to the heart of what Michael was like at work. You walk away with the feeling that you really know a little bit more about what Michael was like, not just what you've been blasted with by the media. You meet some of the finest dancers in the world. You see ground breaking special effects that have... more info
This is It! The King sings it BEST!!!:
Though I will miss him making any new great music, I will watch this movie over and over. He is and always will be the KING!!! I will Cherish my memories of MJ thru this movie and soundtrack..
