Michael Jackson’s This Is It is a documentary film originally intended for Michael Jackson’s private collection; it was directed by Kenny Ortega (who had previously directed his Dangerous, and HIStory tours) and chronicles the rehearsals and experiences of Michael Jackson, and the people that worked with him, on what was scheduled to be his final series of live concert performances; showing what he was like behind the stage, and all of the effort and hard work that went into crafting his spectacular live shows.
As practically everybody now knows, Michael Jackson tragically died at the age of 50, only 18 days before the concerts were due to begin in London, and a mere eight days before the final dress rehearsals were to take place in the capital, and so for the legions of loyal fans that never got to experience his final showdown, this really is it.
The majority of the film is concerned with showing a good deal of footage of Michael Jackson practising several of the musical numbers for the show; which was to include all of his most famous classics from Billie Jean and Black or White, to Smooth Criminal, Thriller, and the Earth Song; all of which are featured in great detail showing dancing, stage movement, technical effects, and more importantly (for real fans at least), copious footage of Michael Jackson practising not only his brilliant singing, but his spectacular and unique style of dancing.
As well as all the fun and insightful footage of Michael practising (which is an amazing and intimate watch that is sure to dazzle everyone, MJ fan or not) there is also a huge amount of footage of him singing with his backing singers, dancing along and getting lost in the bands music (particularly with the two different guitarists, and the drummer during Billie Jean), and contributing to just about every possible aspect of the show.
Watching This Is It provides a very unique look behind the scenes of a major concert tour, and allows viewers to really appreciate just how much effort and work goes into developing and perfecting a show such as this, and also shows just how far Michael Jackson insisted on going in order to create an experience that his fans would never forget; he got involved in everything from the obvious dancing and singing, to sound and lighting checks, auditioning the dancers, helping direct several short films that were to be used, and getting involved with costume creation and set design.
And even though MJ got involved with many aspects of the shows production that he didn’t really need to, it is clear that everyone who worked for him respected, admired, and loved him, as they were clearly in awe of him yet at the same time felt relaxed around him and able to have a friendly joke with him. Many of them also state (in very brief interviews) how grateful and lucky they felt to be working with The King Of Pop.
This Is It also shows what a creative genius Michael really was, how truly invested he was in his music and live performances, and even though it doesn’t delve into any aspects of his private life, gives viewers a unique insight into the character of a musical legend. Watching the film, Michael’s character really shines through and he is nothing like you would expect for someone who has done so well and been such an icon for so many years, and remained strangely humble right up until his final days, never seeming spoilt or expecting anyone to jump to his orders (he was definitely no Mariah Carey); in fact he had a real dislike for discipline, clearly hating having to tell anyone that they had fouled up, and even telling Kenny Ortega to go easy and leave it alone when he would begin moaning at people, showing that he was very understanding; and was often extremely apologetic if he ever messed up or thought that a misunderstanding was his fault, and wouldn’t hesitate to jump to the defence of anyone who he thought needed it.
Perhaps one of the more fascinating aspects of the film is the technical side, which helps viewers get an understanding of what the finished show would have looked like, and how some of the more complicated and spectacular moments were to be achieved; moments such as having a giant man made from video screens of Michael’s past videos that Michael was to burst out of, how the Smooth Criminal video was to make the transition from screen to stage, how a bulldozer and full size jet were to make an appearance on stage, why during one song MJ was to appear from the belly of a giant black widow, when he was to stand on a cherry picker above the audience, and how the newly filmed Thriller intro and background video was filmed, and how ghosts were to make an appearance over the audience during the same song.
This Is It is a very hard film to classify, as it’s half concert film, and half documentary, even though it wasn’t really intended as either (it wasn’t even intended for public viewing originally); but what it is, is the closest thing that anyone can possibly get to ever seeing the final set of live performances that Michael Jackson was to perform, a show that everyone involved in creating and perfecting believe was to be the greatest ever live concert performance imagined, and judging from the footage and explanations given in the film, really would have been.
It’s also an opportunity to see the creative process used by Michael Jackson, a true musical icon, and get the best feel (for an outsider) possible for how everything comes together, how hard it is to create a show of this magnitude and all of the effort and investment that everybody involved poured into it. It’s a unique look into Michael Jackson’s character, and shows just what a nice, kind and generous person he really was (watching the film all of the crazy tabloid stories and allegations made against him seem so unbelievable), and it sure to make every single person that watches it realize just what a shame it was that not a single show ever happened, and what a true tragedy it was that Michael Jackson, the musical legend, died when he did.
There are one or two minor disappointments with the film, but they come mainly from the fact that it makes you sad that you never got to see the final finished show (or even that there wasn’t a finished and fully recorded dress rehearsal included), and that Michael tends not to sing to his full potential as he was saving his voice for the real shows in London (something he does apologize for several times), but this really is a brilliant watch for anyone; obviously it will appeal to Michael Jackson fans and music lovers more than anyone else, but is sure to entertain just about anyone and make them appreciate just how hard it is to make a show like this, and as none of the shows were performed this is the closest anyone can hope to seeing them, this is it.
Picture:
This Is It comes to Blu-ray via a 1080p transfer that looks impressively stunning, especially when considering the fact that not only was it never intended to be seen, but also mixes standard definition footage with high definition audio.
It goes without saying that the standard definition picture looks noticeably inferior to the high definition scenes, with less detail, jagged edges, poorer colour and a noticeably grainy picture with several technical issues and aliasing, however, the standard definition clips, thankfully, are in the minority, and probably combine to a total of far less than 10% of the films total runtime.
Unlike the standard definition clips, the high definition footage looks fantastic and has a good deal of crisp detail visible, showing all of MJ’s stubble, every bead of sweat and tear on the backing singers and dancers faces, or beads and stitches on Michael’s outrageous outfits. All of the colours, from Michael’s bright and sparkly outfits to pyrotechnics, laser shows, and generally bright lighting, are exceptionally well represented, always looking extremely rich and vibrant (with perfect contrast levels) despite the picture often having a fairly subdued look. And skin tones appear perfectly naturalistic throughout.
Backgrounds are often very dark and quite hazy, but look fantastic as the black levels are pristine and extraordinarily deep, and there are entire sections of the film that are literally flawless; most noticeably the short films that were created for the show, from the little girl playing in the luscious forest (created for The Earth Song) to the zombie laden cemetery (obviously suited to Thriller), and the interesting short where Michael Jackson was inserted alongside big screen legends Rita Hayworth and Humphrey Bogart to create a gangster themed chase for Smooth Criminal.
The change over from high-def to standard-def is noticeable, but never that distracting, and the higher quality picture fills the screen for over 90% of the film, and provides for a visually impeccable experience that is truly amazing, and very hard to pick fault with.
Audio:
Like the picture, the audio soundtrack for This Is It is simply stunning, but unlike the picture, this high definition soundtrack (a lossless DTS HD MA 5.1 mix) is clearly not mixed in with standard definition sound, and even manages to top the picture in terms of overall quality.
Obviously as it is essentially a concert film, it is the music that carries this feature and fortunately it is represented perfectly here; every track sounds impressively clear with a level of clarity that has to be heard to be believed, as every guitar riff, percussion drum beat, and second of appropriately pumping bass combine with the faultless representation of Michael’s impressive vocals to produce a sound that is perfect for every single track, and sounds just as they were intended to be heard.
However it isn’t only the musical sounds that are represented well, and it is during the quieter scenes that the DTS HD MA mix truly establishes itself as a thoroughly impressive track; with all of the softer dialogue and other quieter sounds (such as dancers clapping after hearing Michael practising) remaining stunningly crisp and clear, just as the louder sounds of pyrotechnics, fireworks and gunshots do.
All in all this is a perfect soundmix, with a supreme level of clarity and depth that’s coupled with magnificent accuracy and pinpoint placement that not only sound brilliant during the quieter scenes but, most importantly, provide the best representation of Michael Jackson’s classic songs to date.
Extras:
The Blu-ray edition of This Is It comes supplied with a bountiful supply of special features that is packed full of useful and interesting information, some great extra footage, and some fun facts and great pictures that come in the form of other short documentary films (all of which appear to have been filmed after Michael’s Death) and are bound to entertain.
There are features that touch on numerous aspects of the shows production and the people that were involved in it, such as a feature that allows viewers to meet the vocalists, one that allows viewers to meet the band, another entitled ‘Meet The Dancers’ and even one that shows the audition process that the shows dancers had to complete and pass, all of which are valuable inclusions, particularly so in that they show aspects of the show that do not directly centre around Michael Jackson, and are more concerned with the show itself, and some of the lesser known people that would have made it so special, had it taken place.
Also presented in full are the vignettes for Thriller (originally filmed in 3D but presented here in 2D) and Smooth criminal, which are very short watches and seen pretty much wholly during the main feature, but are nevertheless an interesting watch and worth a look to see how they would have looked finished and uninterrupted, as they were to be played on the giant LCD screen behind the stage.
There is also a making of Smooth Criminal, which shows just how the vignette for that song was made, and focuses on things from the difficulties of finding appropriate films to insert MJ into and stringing them into a cohesive storyline, to green screen effects and interviews with those involved discussing how Michael basically created the music video genre and really understood the filmmaking process. Again this is a short but interesting watch that contains some insightful interviews and really expands in great detail on what was to be a fairly small aspect of the overall show.
‘Staging The Return’ is a two part film in which many of the people involved with the show talk about what it could, and hopefully would, have been had they got to open. There are clips of old concert footage, talk of how it was he agreed to perform at the O2 arena (including needing a house in the country for his children, and getting the Guinness Book of World Records to appear at his 50th show) and the unexpected, record breaking, speed and number of ticket sales, among other things such as his bullet proof jacket, and a more detailed description of the shows planned opening and finale. It’s a brilliant short that actually feels like more of a television behind the scenes special than a bonus feature as it is so detailed, full of such fascinating information, and is generally so well crafted.
Other features include a theatrical trailer, a feature called ‘Dancing Machine’ which discusses the shows choreography and shows footage of Michael and his lead choreographer brainstorming, as well as footage of unfinished rehearsals and a good quality photo collection. There’s also one called ‘Memories of Michael’ which consists of interviews with many people involved with the show discussing their first and finest memories of the singer, and provide another insight into his mysterious character, and a final feature called ‘The Gloved One’ in which fashion designer Zaldy discuss all the different costumes that were created for the show, and the creative process behind them, which included spending millions of dollars on crystals, and even consorting with scientists.
In short, this is quite possibly the best collection of features ever put onto a disc as each one is more than worthy of a watch, as they provide in-depth looks at practically every aspect of the proposed concerts, and are actually just as worthy as the main movie itself. It’s true that there is a good deal of footage reused from the main feature, but everyone of these shorts provides much more detail on every single aspect of the show than the main film, and they are all surprisingly interesting and are sure to appeal to anyone.
The Bottom Line:
Michael Jackson’s This Is It, is the closest that the general public can ever hope to get to seeing the legend’s ill-fated comeback/farewell tour; a tour that was, according to everyone involved and judging by the filmed footage, going to be the best set of live concerts ever performed by any artist, and ones that would easily top his previous tours.
The Blu-ray has top quality picture and audio, and the classics like Billie Jean, Smooth Criminal and the Earth Song, sound the best that they have ever sounded thanks to a perfectly crafted 5.1 mix, that is bound to astound anyone that hears it, and is extremely difficult not to want to sing and dance along to.
The disc also comes with one of the best collection of bonus features ever included on any movie, as they are all as worthwhile as the main film and packed full of useful information, extra footage and interesting facts.
This Is It is everything that a Michael Jackson fan could really hope for given the fact that he died when he did; it gives viewers a unique look at his character, and an exclusive look into the creative process behind creating one of his amazing concerts, and is sure to captivate any audience, whether they be comprised of avid Michael Jackson fans or people that were less than keen on his music or the man as a whole. It’s a film that is sure to dispel any rumours that he was feeling too weak to perform, and will provide anyone that watches with a real sense of shame and sadness, when they realize just what has been lost, and the tragedy that not even one of the shows ever made it to the O2 arena. A real must watch, and excellently presented disc that makes for an outstanding Blu-ray buy.
