So, I just got back from seeing Michael Jackson’s “This Is It”. I finally saw it. My thoughts? First I like to say that I know that MJ has been getting a lot of hate over the years, but if you go see this film, I think this film will silence the nay sayers completely. Michael Jackson, The King of Pop has been accused of being faked and a manufactured pop star for years.
Well, this film will prove you wrong. In Michael Jackson’s, “This is It” which would have been a 50 concert dates at the O2 Arena in London, the rehearsal and behind the scene footage is shown in this film.
While the concert was directed by Kenny Ortega who instructed most everything, Michael Jackson is really the director here. MJ was telling Michael Ortega what to do. MJ and Ortega would even have heated arguments at times. The thing with Michael Jackson is that he won’t stop until he gets what he wants of what he sees in his head for his vision of the show.
Michael Jackson instructed everything. The stage design, he choreographed the dancers moves, he even instructed the musicians in the live band, etc. Best of all, MJ’s vocals were sung live, he didn’t lip synch. Proof on that, he complained that he couldn’t sing higher notes ’cause he had trouble hearing other things. He also wanted more echo on the vocals and did sound check on the vocals quite a lot which also gave proof that he sang live for reals.
One of my favorite parts of the movie, before the song, “The Way You Make Me Feel”, Jackson was instructing the keyboardist on how to start the song off with piano with a slow intro. If the keyboard player didn’t get it right, Jackson would keep teaching him until he got the piano part right. The keyboardist would kind of argue with Jackson a bit, saying to Jackson that’s the way he liked playing it his way, but Jackson replied back, “I’m just doing it the way the audience wants to hear it”. So the keyboardist agrees and did it Jackson’s way.
So for all you nay sayers out there that think Jackson is a fake at music? You may want to see this film and then you would feel really bad for your accusations of MJ being a fake after finding out he was real. Michael Jackson was also backed up by a live band with real musicians, they certainly weren’t going to fake this concert at all. This movie proved it.
In this film, you would see that Michael Jackson really worked his ass off to put on the best concert of all time. When I went to see this, I was thinking that this film was going to be a typical music documentary. It was tons more than that.
Seeing this film made me feel like I was at a Michael Jackson concert, that’s what the film felt like. It felt like you were watching a concert, not a movie. The film was intense, mind blowing and I had goosebumps throughout the entire movie. Very tight and amazing performances with lots of energy.
Does this film deserve BEST PICTURE for the Oscars next year? HELL YES! All the way!
Only thing I was dissapointed in was the “Thriller” performance ’cause the CGI Ghosts, the new zombies, and Jackson arriving on stage by coming out of a Spider was all kind of goofy. Other than that, the rest of the movie was phenomenal.
I think this is the best film I’ve seen all year long. Definitely the best film of the year. I would go see it again. Michael Jackson was never a fake. He did it all himself to get where he is today. Michael Jackson fan or not, you gotta see it. It’ll give you an idea that MJ was a real profesional and you may change your opinion on him after you see it.
Score for Michael Jackson’s “This is It” = **** (4 stars as in “excellent”)
Kev