MICHAEL JACKSON
This Is It
As a fan who had his ticket for the scheduled opening night performance in the O2 in July, the wait is finally over. After months of hype since the death of the 'King of Pop' in June, we've been told about this movie featuring rehearsal footage for his 'This Is It' 50-date residency at the O2 in London.
So, was it worth the wait? Well yes, if you're a Michael Jackson fan or a fan of music in general. You'll appreciate what director Kenny Ortega is trying to get across here. There are no emotional speeches about how great Michael was or anything of the like. All the footage we see was shot before his untimely death.
The film opens with rehearsal footage of 'Wanna be Startin Something' dispersed in with comments from his auditioning dancers. You hear Michael saying 'I want it funkier' when talking to his band and from the beginning it's clear that he has a hands on approach in every aspect of the concert.
'Jam', 'They Don't Care About Us - She Drives Me Wild' and 'Human Nature' all get full performances but 'Smooth Criminal' is fantastic. Not only was Jackson promising a great concert, he'd also spent a long time in pre-production filming clips of recent footage in black and white and inserting himself into classic gangster movies, namely 'Gilda' with Rita Hayworth, and 'The Big Sleep' with Bogart & Bacall.
There's a very relaxing lounge slowed down version of 'The Way You Make Me Feel' during which Michael dictates to the band 'you've got to let it [the music] simmer' and the musical arrangement here is superb.
During the Jackson 5 medley, he stops singing and insists 'someone's fist is in my ear, bring it down a bit' which Ortega naturally obliges to. He also mentions his mother and father Katherine & Joseph, as well as his brothers at the end of 'I'll Be There'. On 'I Just can't Stop Loving You', he directs his co-singer Judith Hill, and tells her where he wants her to stand, what hand to raise etc, but all done tastefully without raising his voice. He comes across as a joy to work with.
'Thriller' is fantastic with its 3-D effects, graveyard scenes, and the often neglected third verse by Vincent Price all thrown into the mix to create the ultimate horror sequence. This would have looked and sounded fantastic live. He even intended to have scary images running through the crowds of the O2 Arena while performing this number.
More favourite like 'Beat It' and 'Black or White' are also included. On the latter he wants his 23 year-old Australian female lead guitarist [Orianthi Panagaris] 'to shine'. He insists she get her moment in the sun at the front of the stage by holding down on the note for longer than she planned. It shows he didn't want all the limelight for himself. 'That's why we do rehearsals' he says on several occasions when little mistakes were made within the band.
A brand new video was also developed for 'Earth Song'. We see the little girl walking through the forest, the dramatic waterfalls, the polar bears, and then the fires burning. 'I respect trees' he adds, in the voiceover', and this performance culminates with a digger been driven onto the stage behind him, but he insists to the band, that the music stops before the digger drops down its plough, to create a better effect. 'Billie jean' and 'Man in the Mirror' are also included towards the end. From the selection of the dancers at the auditions, to the lighting during Billie Jean, and the musical arrangement of every song he's calling the shots, and this movie captures the magic of the man at work, which we've never had the chance to see before.
Fan, or not, in terms of music, choreography, lighting, and visual effects, there is no doubt in my mind, from the evidence of this movie, we have been deprived of possibly the greatest concert of all-time.
So, was it worth the wait? Well yes, if you're a Michael Jackson fan or a fan of music in general. You'll appreciate what director Kenny Ortega is trying to get across here. There are no emotional speeches about how great Michael was or anything of the like. All the footage we see was shot before his untimely death.
The film opens with rehearsal footage of 'Wanna be Startin Something' dispersed in with comments from his auditioning dancers. You hear Michael saying 'I want it funkier' when talking to his band and from the beginning it's clear that he has a hands on approach in every aspect of the concert.
'Jam', 'They Don't Care About Us - She Drives Me Wild' and 'Human Nature' all get full performances but 'Smooth Criminal' is fantastic. Not only was Jackson promising a great concert, he'd also spent a long time in pre-production filming clips of recent footage in black and white and inserting himself into classic gangster movies, namely 'Gilda' with Rita Hayworth, and 'The Big Sleep' with Bogart & Bacall.
There's a very relaxing lounge slowed down version of 'The Way You Make Me Feel' during which Michael dictates to the band 'you've got to let it [the music] simmer' and the musical arrangement here is superb.
During the Jackson 5 medley, he stops singing and insists 'someone's fist is in my ear, bring it down a bit' which Ortega naturally obliges to. He also mentions his mother and father Katherine & Joseph, as well as his brothers at the end of 'I'll Be There'. On 'I Just can't Stop Loving You', he directs his co-singer Judith Hill, and tells her where he wants her to stand, what hand to raise etc, but all done tastefully without raising his voice. He comes across as a joy to work with.
'Thriller' is fantastic with its 3-D effects, graveyard scenes, and the often neglected third verse by Vincent Price all thrown into the mix to create the ultimate horror sequence. This would have looked and sounded fantastic live. He even intended to have scary images running through the crowds of the O2 Arena while performing this number.
More favourite like 'Beat It' and 'Black or White' are also included. On the latter he wants his 23 year-old Australian female lead guitarist [Orianthi Panagaris] 'to shine'. He insists she get her moment in the sun at the front of the stage by holding down on the note for longer than she planned. It shows he didn't want all the limelight for himself. 'That's why we do rehearsals' he says on several occasions when little mistakes were made within the band.
A brand new video was also developed for 'Earth Song'. We see the little girl walking through the forest, the dramatic waterfalls, the polar bears, and then the fires burning. 'I respect trees' he adds, in the voiceover', and this performance culminates with a digger been driven onto the stage behind him, but he insists to the band, that the music stops before the digger drops down its plough, to create a better effect. 'Billie jean' and 'Man in the Mirror' are also included towards the end. From the selection of the dancers at the auditions, to the lighting during Billie Jean, and the musical arrangement of every song he's calling the shots, and this movie captures the magic of the man at work, which we've never had the chance to see before.
Fan, or not, in terms of music, choreography, lighting, and visual effects, there is no doubt in my mind, from the evidence of this movie, we have been deprived of possibly the greatest concert of all-time.
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