Michael Jackson's This is It

[Dice]

Saw the movie Saturday. I'm not a big fan of concert movies but I tell you that I was impressed by this one.

I used to think that James Brown was the greatest musical entertainer of all-time BUT it looks like Mike might have him beat.

[RoyalBoyle78]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

Saw the movie Saturday. I'm not a big fan of concert movies but I tell you that I was impressed by this one.

I used to think that James Brown was the greatest musical entertainer of all-time BUT it looks like Mike might have him beat.

LOL, M.J had him beat forever now.

[spankdatazz22]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

Surprised a thread hadn't started before now. Saw it Saturday night too; really liked it. The thing that surprised me was how well he still moved and how well his voice sounded. When he broke into Human Nature I was like - damn that sounded good. The band and dancers were all kick-azz also; for the most part the music sounded just like the records. Overall the show looked like it was going to be a beast - I really liked the new stuff they were doing for Smooth Criminal, Thriller, Earth Song, etc. The lead director (or whatever his title was) did seem to cowtow to Michael a little too much in terms of how he addressed him all the time but I guess it's like that with lots of stars. Overall MJ seemed mostly down to earth, and really in touch with his music and what he wanted to deliver to the audience.

[Dice]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

LOL, M.J had him beat forever now.

I know. But when he first came out solo, Mike was doing stuff that James Brown was doing 20 years before him. And I remember in an interview, Mike said that most of his dance moves was inspired by James Brown.

But it seems like Mike took it to another level.

[DJ]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

Surprised a thread hadn't started before now. Saw it Saturday night too; really liked it. The thing that surprised me was how well he still moved and how well his voice sounded. When he broke into Human Nature I was like - damn that sounded good. The band and dancers were all kick-azz also; for the most part the music sounded just like the records. Overall the show looked like it was going to be a beast - I really liked the new stuff they were doing for Smooth Criminal, Thriller, Earth Song, etc. The lead director (or whatever his title was) did seem to cowtow to Michael a little too much in terms of how he addressed him all the time but I guess it's like that with lots of stars. Overall MJ seemed mostly down to earth, and really in touch with his music and what he wanted to deliver to the audience.

Agree with a lot of this. Kenny Ortega (director) and MJ go way back and I think he was being over-sensitive to MJ just to keep his energy up for the rehersals.

It was really interesting to see MJ craft a performance and the music to a song. He was very particular about what he wanted and his vision, more times than not, was spot on. His voice was strong and he could still move very well for a 50-year-old man. You could, though, see how frail he was, which was sad to see.

Overall I enjoyed the movie but was still sad when it was over, as it's still tough to realize MJ is no longer with us. It's too bad he couldn't control his demons because there's no question the man was supremely talented and he appeared ready to make a comeback.

[Whaaaazuuuuup]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

hoping to see this movie in a few days...

[Po Pimp]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

I've been hearing good things about this movie. At first I was against it because it seemed like they were exploiting MJ's death, but everyone said it was well done and in great taste. I might have to check it out.

[Skerik]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

Going tonight! Last chance to see it on the digital projector and I can't miss it.

[Skerik]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

I hate to reply to myself....but....wow.

This movie really surprised me. I had heard so many stories about how frail MJ was, and how he could never possibly pull off these shows, and how he was basically just on his death bed and taking all these drugs, yada yada....he still had it. Big time. And the thing is, these were rehearsals and not the real thing, so he was kind of half-stepping at times. But he was a perfectionist who rehearsed like he performed and these rehearsals were totally worth the price of admission. Watching him, I get the same feeling like when I watch Stevie Ray Vaughan play guitar - the music just POURS out of him, like he's not even trying. Like you don't feel like he's dancing, or marking out steps, he's just letting the music push him around the stage. And sure he's old, but his dancing was still incredible. He had this crew of backup dancers who were all really good, and young, and spry and limber and all that stuff, but when MJ was dancing with them it was like you just couldn't take your eyes off him. He was still 100% captivating.

The moves he was just snapping off, without any effort and without even thinking about it, were amazing. And they were just like throwaway moves. Like when you listen to a great drummer like Keith Moon and he drops these fills in the middle of Won't Get Fooled Again that you don't even notice, but then you listen to the song again looking for them and you're like, wow, that was amazing. MJ was just throwing all these things in and it's like they all go together and you don't take at face value how awesome each one of them is. The only audience for these rehearsals was really the production crew, his band, and his backup dancers. But MJ was totally switched on. Towards the end of the movie he does Billy Jean and about halfway through the performance you can see him just cut loose and it was like the old MJ. The other thing I noticed was that his band was absolutely beastly, which helped the performances big time. Songs like Billy Jean that sound so crisp on the original, a lot of times they'll sound muddy or lame when performed live by a band, but his band slayed tune after tune.

I really thought they were going to just roll this decrepit dude out in a wheelchair or something and he was going to fake his way through his old songs, but that movie was anything but the case. I'm really glad I saw it because otherwise I would have potentially believed all the stories I read about him. But seeing it for myself was really amazing. He was also totally involved in the musical aspects too, giving directions to the band about how to play things, tempos, modulations, etc. Still a total professional and still a consummate showman and entertainer. I appreciate the hell out of MJ because I remember growing up when Thriller came out and how it just blew the faces off everybody at the time, but I'm really glad I saw this movie.

Anyway. Your reactions may be different than mine, but anyone who likes MJ at ALL owes it to themselves to see this movie.

[collison31]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

i need too see this film, from what everyone has said about it it seems like it will really good

[spankdatazz22]

Re: Michael Jackson's This is It

I hate to reply to myself....but....wow.

This movie really surprised me. I had heard so many stories about how frail MJ was, and how he could never possibly pull off these shows, and how he was basically just on his death bed and taking all these drugs, yada yada....he still had it. Big time. And the thing is, these were rehearsals and not the real thing, so he was kind of half-stepping at times. But he was a perfectionist who rehearsed like he performed and these rehearsals were totally worth the price of admission. Watching him, I get the same feeling like when I watch Stevie Ray Vaughan play guitar - the music just POURS out of him, like he's not even trying. Like you don't feel like he's dancing, or marking out steps, he's just letting the music push him around the stage. And sure he's old, but his dancing was still incredible. He had this crew of backup dancers who were all really good, and young, and spry and limber and all that stuff, but when MJ was dancing with them it was like you just couldn't take your eyes off him. He was still 100% captivating.

The moves he was just snapping off, without any effort and without even thinking about it, were amazing. And they were just like throwaway moves. Like when you listen to a great drummer like Keith Moon and he drops these fills in the middle of Won't Get Fooled Again that you don't even notice, but then you listen to the song again looking for them and you're like, wow, that was amazing. MJ was just throwing all these things in and it's like they all go together and you don't take at face value how awesome each one of them is. The only audience for these rehearsals was really the production crew, his band, and his backup dancers. But MJ was totally switched on. Towards the end of the movie he does Billy Jean and about halfway through the performance you can see him just cut loose and it was like the old MJ. The other thing I noticed was that his band was absolutely beastly, which helped the performances big time. Songs like Billy Jean that sound so crisp on the original, a lot of times they'll sound muddy or lame when performed live by a band, but his band slayed tune after tune.

I really thought they were going to just roll this decrepit dude out in a wheelchair or something and he was going to fake his way through his old songs, but that movie was anything but the case. I'm really glad I saw it because otherwise I would have potentially believed all the stories I read about him. But seeing it for myself was really amazing. He was also totally involved in the musical aspects too, giving directions to the band about how to play things, tempos, modulations, etc. Still a total professional and still a consummate showman and entertainer. I appreciate the hell out of MJ because I remember growing up when Thriller came out and how it just blew the faces off everybody at the time, but I'm really glad I saw this movie.

Anyway. Your reactions may be different than mine, but anyone who likes MJ at ALL owes it to themselves to see this movie.

Well said. The things that still stick out to me from the movie - how good his voice sounded, how full of vitality he was (even though he was conserving himself), the band being completely kick-azz (and the dancers), his involvement w/so many aspects of the show... He was really looking to blow people away with a fantastic show. And they likely would've pulled it off