Michael Jackson's This Is It

It has been twelve years since the King of Pop had gone on a world tour and since then, some thought he had lost his touch, some thought he still had it, and some thought he was just weird due to cases alleging child abuse back in 2005. At the beginning of this year however, Michael announced a comeback tour. Michael stated that, "This is the final curtain call," knowing that this would be his final shot to gain back his fame. Sadly, those words turned out to be more true then anyone would have thought. Michael never intended to have the concert shown on the big screen but after his death in June, it was decided that people needed to see what he worked on with all his energy and will by showing clips of his rehearsals. "Michael Jackson's This Is It" did not disappoint.
The film not only shows us clips of Michael singing 24 of his famous songs(Black or White, Billy Jean, and of course Thriller were my favorites) but also shows us glimpses of backstage work, sound checks, video shooting(for visual parts of the show), and several interviews with those who worked with Michael. Let me say before going on that this combination of greatly organized shots came together to create an amazing documentary that was dazzling to witness. The King of Pop hadn't lost any of his talent. He still had a great voice and of course his sweet set of dance moves which he used from start to end with the same energy people remember from years ago.
It seems that Michael's vision for the show wasn't only a concert, but part film, part concert, part Broadway, and part visual awe. For several songs including Thriller, Michael basically recreated his world famous music-video in which they shot a video of the undead crawling from their tombs in 3-D. After Michael sings the first verse of the song, the zombies jump out and they perform the dance everyone wanted to learn back in the 80s. Other songs like Black or White, have added on portions(which happens in most concerts). In this song's case, two incredibly talented guitarists come forward and perform about two minutes of guitar solo madness. Visual aspects like fire, sparks, lighting, and wind were highly integrated throughout the show.
One thing that I enjoyed seeing was how Michael interacted with the band, other workers, and director Kenny Ortega who directed the "High School Musical" films. It seemed to me that everyone included Kenny treated Michael like a god by making sure all of his needs and wants for the show were taken care of. Don't take this the wrong way, Michael didn't seem full of himself at all in this film and also seemed very grateful and compassionate towards all of his co-workers.
Of course all Jackson fans will probably feel sad as they watch Michael sing, perform, and put his all into his show. I personally felt bad that everyone else couldn't see this masterpiece which would have no doubt given him the fame and success he wanted. I was amazed at the work that all of the people put into this show and I came out of the theater a true Jackson fan. Michael wanted to once again touch the world with his music and spread the message of love to all. Near the end of the film, the crew came together and Michael gave a speech which ended with the words, "Love is important, love each other, we're all one."
"This Is It" was truly magnificent and would have been the most amazing stage show/concert ever put on by an artist. My only regret seeing this film is that fans will never be able to see it in it's entirety. Michael showed us that he still had it all and he poured out all his strength so that he could dazzle us all with his lyrics. I was impressed 100% with this concert film. R.I.P. Michael...you did well. 5 stars out of 5.
"Michael Jackson's This Is It" has a running time of 112 minutes. It is rated PG for some suggestive choreography and scary images.