This Is It...No, Really THIS Is It!?!?!?

For better or worse, I took some time off of my mission to see all Oscar nominated movies to watch Michael Jackson's This Is It.  I know, shockingly Academy voters passed up this masterpiece for even one nomination so it's not on my list of must sees!  Full disclosure:  I've never been a huge, devoted M.J. fan - I like some of his music, but I never drank the Kool-Aid (Oh yeah) and I certainly didn't sob when he died, like certain others...ahem.  No, I never wanted or expected to have to watch This Is It, but Valentine's Day will make people do crazy things in the name of love...gag.

Regardless, I went into watching the movie with an open mind and hoped that as a documentary, maybe it would catch me by surprise and I might actually enjoy it; as long as there weren't any close ups of M.J.'s face because the likeness to the ghost mask in Scream gives me nightmares.  So we put in the Blue Ray, turned down the lights, and turned on the t.v. to a black and white montage of dancers talking about how much they loved being a part of the show and the M.J. legacy, a la Madonna's Truth or Dare.  After swallowing hard to prevent myself from being sick from self righteousness, I seriously questioned if love was really going to be worth the torment.

I can honestly say that for the most part it was what I expected, but it also impressed me at times....gasp.  No, I'm not a convert, M.J. hasn't saved me from the demons, but I did appreciate the interesting look behind the scenes at putting together a show of this magnitude, particularly the movies and sets that were produced but never saw the light of day.  I was taken aback at how involved M.J. was at every level of production, really getting into weeds about every detail.  He deserves a lot of credit for taking such a hands on approach, unlike many of the big talents today.  I was equally as taken back by how much ego could possibly fit onto one stage, I mean until I saw the 25th anniversary of We Are the World.  Without spoiling a thing, let me provide you with a portion of the transcript... 

Show director:  "Sorry Mr. Jackson, there's something wrong with your chair lift and it's not working.  We're so sorry, we'll get this fixed right way.  I'm so sorry Mr. Jackson.  You're still the greatest singer of all time and adored by everyone in the world."

M.J.:  "God bless you.  Really, God bless you.  I really wish it wasn't broken, but I know you're fixing it with l.o.v.e., love.  God bless you."  (now imagine that in a creepy soft tone, ten octaves higher.  It's o.k. to shudder a bit.)

Are you serious?  I can hand out some good bullshit, but I would last five minutes in this room before calling someone out.  There's handling someone with kid gloves, and then there's this.  If there was so much concern for the man, how could everyone have been so willing to send him on stage with enough pyrotechnics to turn him into a roman candle on the 4th of July? Wasn't flambeing his head once in the 80's enough?  Isn't that how this whole mess got started!?

While the up close look at the making of the concert was great, my biggest qualm was that there wasn't enough of it.  I would've loved a documentary film about M.J.'s final show, but unfortunately this was more a wannabe concert on tape.  It wasn't enough to be a full concert (thank goodness for me) and it was too one dimensional to be a good documentary, so it just stood in limbo between the two.  More narrative and context would have solved that easily, as well as a stronger focus on the creative process.

Don't get me wrong, I understand what the movie was meant to be, but they could've made it so much more which is disappointing.  They were very close to creating a fantastically interesting documentary as well as tribute - and that says a lot coming from someone like me.  As it is, it's more of a platform for obsessed fans than an actual movie - and even for them I think it can drag on and get a bit boring at times.  If all you wanted to do was listen to his greatest hits album... then why aren't you just listening to his greatest hits album?

Hence, I ended up saying to myself, this is it...This is IT!?  There was so much hype that I just expected a circus and as a result was underwhelmed to say the least.  No, this movie didn't thrill me at all and I don't recommend moonwalking to your nearest Blockbuster to rent it, but because of its attempt to show some part of the creative process, I'm comfortable in saying BREW AND VIEW IT!  Do it for the children.