A couple of days ago my wife and I decided on a day out. We ended up watching Michael Jackson’s This Is It, had sizzlers for lunch and a general day of great fun.
To begin with Michael Jackson’s This Is It is not a movie and nor is it a video of a Michael Jackson song. It mainly comprises of behind the scenes footage of Michael Jackson rehearsing for his magnum opus concert This Is It which unfortunately never happed with the passing away of Michael Jackson. Seeing as it comes in place of the concert that did not take place and in the absence of any new music from Michael Jackson, this is definitely a welcome event for Michael Jackson fans. While I would not term this as a must watch I would definitely say it’s a must for the diehard MJ fan and also for those who want to catch a glimpse of what Michael Jackson the musician and entertainer was.
This Is It would have been a concert unlike anything before is for sure. The footage shown here certainly attests to that. It also shows that MJ was shooting a new video of Thriller (at least for the This Is It concerts) and it was going to be as groundbreaking as the original Thriller video. I was also very much impressed by the videos of They Don't Care About Us with the millions of soldiers and Smooth Criminal featuring Humphrey Bogart and Edward Robinson along with Rita Hayworth for company. There was also a huge earth mover on stage for the Earth Song and as always MJ was ending this concert too with Man In The Mirror. All the other memorable hits like Billie Jean, Beat It, Black Or White, etc. were there too.
The movie also takes us backstage and gives us a glimpse of how MJ was involved in the entire process be it the props, the music, the musicians, the stage, the performers and dancers, in fact just about everything. This Is It would have definitely crowned MJ the King of Pop once again and put him back at the pinnacle of the entertainment industry, that’s how huge the show was but sadly ended up not being. I cannot comment on the person MJ was (not having known him personally) but as an entertainer and performer he was certainly the best that ever lived. He was meticulous and knew everything about music and entertainment, a thorough professional to the core and who was involved in every step, process and stage of the entertainment process as this fascinating behind the scenes movie shows. This Is It is definitely a must for every Michael Jackson fan.
