“This Is It” is a weird movie to review. The first question, of course, is what, exactly is “This Is It?” Well, it’s a concert movie, sort of. And it’s a documentary, also sort of. It’s both magical and morbid, kind of like looking at a half-finished pyramid with the dead pharaoh’s sequin-covered socks sticking out.
“This Is It” was culled from more than 100 hours of backstage footage of Michael Jackson’s This Is It concert series, which, had he lived to see it, would have been a massive, 50-date spectacular in London’s O2 Arena. It’s comprised of footage of these dress rehearsals, which are in various stages of development, as well as interviews with principles (smokin’ hot background dances, choreographers, lighting people) during the audition period. This is nice because it rescues the movie from any post-mortem sentimentalism. There’s no “he was the most amazing entertainer that ever lived, this is a real tragedy,” there’s only “I am thrilled at this opportunity.”
The rougher aspects of the tour, like sections that would have been completed with sophisticated hydraulics and whatnot, are seen as computer generated renderings. One involves a giant robotic figure made out of LCD screens that would then open up, with Michael falling out of its cavernous chest. Another had a bulldozer coming out of the stage, to stop inches from Michael Jackson, as he concluded “Earth Song,” his histrionic plea to help the planet. We also get to see Michael and director Kenny Ortega (the mastermind behind the “High School Musical” trilogy) film a new version of “Thriller,” filled with all new graveyard spooks, in 3-D (we don’t get to see it in 3-D, but there’s already rumblings of a re-release).
It ends up being a pretty good approximation of what the concert would have been. Where something falls short, like, say, watching one of the greatest dancers of all time sliding around on stage in oversized Ed Hardy sweatpants, you get a nice supplement in the form of his various tailors talking about how his costumes would have been out of this world. So by the end of the movie’s nearly two hour running time, you may not have seen Michael Jackson’s final concert, but you’ve got a damn good idea.
While Michael both looks, dance-wise, amazing and sounds as good as he’s ever sounded, there are a few uneasy moments in the film’s running time. Occasionally he sounds aloof and overmedicated, and his frail, thin body is enough to make you shutter, even if his dance steps are pulled off flawlessly. You feel that you’re watching a man on the edge of a precipice. Could pulling off this string of concerts have brought him back from the personal and professional torture he’d put himself through for the past ten years? Probably not. You can tell this is a man too far gone. But seeing all that sparkly hope that he and his crew exude in this film makes you wish it could happen.
And that’s where the main conflict comes from while watching “This Is It” – it’s the fascination, the sheer wonderment at the audacity and imagination of many of the set pieces Michael had concocted. One has him inserted into an old gangster movie, which segues into “Smooth Criminal.” Another, seemingly inspired by the “Rhapsody in Blue” section of “Fantasia 2000,” for “The Way You Make Me Feel,” featured dancers climbing down from a digitally augmented building site. The “Thriller” stuff is impressive and all but would have been even more so had there really been dancers getting sprung out of fresh graves.
But then there’s that other part of your brain that creeps in, the one that says, “Wait a second, these are the last few months of a deeply troubled man’s life.” And, truthfully, it is pretty ghoulish. But most of that ghoulishness has been pushed aside to focus on the spectacle. This concert would have been a cranked-to-11, fireworks-and-pyro show that probably, if not resorted his artistic credibility, than at least reminded the world of his boundless imagination and willingness to please (on the largest scale possible).
As it stands it’s more like a weird time capsule; a strangely intimate and affecting look at that same troubled life. Introspective it’s not. What it is, is telling. The moments when he scolds and corrects his huge staff with platitudes and nonsense about “love” are the most telling. Since his father beat the shit out of him when he screwed up, he’s going to respond to imperfections with stern words and a cuddly deliver. Even his perfectionism couldn’t get in the way of that.
The movie is a masterpiece of editing more than anything else, and when it’s really on fire, like when Ortega looks at one performance through various rehearsals, the movie splitting into multiple screens, then you understand the real power of the movie (and the man). Still, the movie is about ten minutes too long. And some of the things that were included (like that “Earth Song” moment, which includes a little girl running through a computer-generated rain forest) that seem like they were included more out of obligation than necessity.
“This Is It” is strange, for sure, and strangely compelling. We don’t think we’ve ever seen a concert movie quite like this. It doesn’t answer any questions about the fabled performer, but as a fleeting glimpse at his last attempt at artistic genius, it’s a hell of a show. [B+] — Drew Taylor
[ed. The AP asked today, “Could ‘Michael Jackson’s This Is It’ win an Oscar?” and it’s funny they ask because we actually know the answer to this one: No].
Very very great to hear that it's good. I've heard nothing but good things about it.
I refuse to see this. He molested two children. He's as much of a bastard as Polanski is.