My only worry is that it is going to be another Jacko wank-fest. I hope the focus is candid interviews, rehearsal footage and the creative vision of the man, and not overlong montages of fainting fans or self-adulation. On that note, I can't see it being worse than Moonwalker 2 (bar the Speed Demon and Smooth Criminal sequences)

The estate might lose out, but damned if AEG are getting a single penny out of me.

spacedolphin said:

how is it gonna have montages of fainting fans and stuff when it's rehearsals?

dag said:

I'd rather he was alive.

I'm gonna wait until I can read some reviews here. Haven't made up my mind whether to like this project or not.

If this is an honest attempt to create something truthful which shows his mental and physical condition and the way he lived his life in the last couple of weeks/months before his passing I could support the idea.

Who would get the money, can't be Sony/AEG cash cow only, right?

BlueNote

BlueNote said:

Jackson's estate is slated to receive 90 percent of its profits, according to reliable press reports.

purplesweat said:

You think I wouldn´t? I still get tears sometimes.

So AEG is making money off MJ in death because they couldn't make money off him in life and his supporters have no problem with that? I would think his fans would want people to leave him alone. So many people that surrounded him in life that were using him and it's still happening. That is so sad to me.

Vendetta1 said:

That´s true.

dag said:

That's why i'm not going. They are partially responsible for his death imo.

Bring on the unreleased music and tour DVD's.

Marrk said:

Well, I probably won´t resist. I´ll will go to see it. Even though watching it is gonna be really painful and I hate the fact that they will make so much money off him, but I just gotta see Mike.

Vendetta1 said:

Michael died indebted to creditors in amounts greater than $400M. How would you propose repaying that debt and generating future income for Mrs Jackson and the kids?

Copycat said:

They could release some of the unreleased music. I am sure the whole world would buy it regarding how well do his albums sell right now.

Releasing rare tracks would not equate to using him for financial gain? Sony would profit from the sales, yes?

AEG owns the "This is It" rehearsal footage. They are within their rights to seek a financial return on their investment, having reportedly paid MJ an advance of up to $10 million.

Let's face facts: the estate needs to earn money regardless of whether it through the box office, record sales, merchandise, and licensing deals.
[Edited 8/24/09 8:14am]

seeingvoices12 said:

I agree, it's all a little raw emotionally isn't it?

ViintageJunkiie said:

I've seen the old material you're referring to as well. Not dancing at 100% (and instead at about 70%) back then still did not look like his last rehearsal. Even though there is more from this AEG film that we haven't seen, the way Michael was moving in the clip looks like he was in pain rather than him just practicing at a slower speed. He appeared somewhat stiff, and it looks like his back was bothering him to a point where he couldn't bend it backward. While I hope the rest of this rehearsal footage proves me wrong, I honestly don't expect it to.

Marrk said:

I understand.

this is just another angle to profit off of MJ's death. I'm not the least bit interested in this mess. The family should protest it to be honest.

missfee said:

Taj Jackson said he don't think his uncle would've accepted the footage to be released.

Call me morbid, but there's that matter of the $10M check AEG gave MJ before his untimely death. They have to recoup their losses somehow, someway.

Copycat said:

Yes, but attempting to reclaim these funds back in this manner is a bit distasteful don't you think? Why does it have to be at the expense of MJ's death that they try to collect these funds? Surely there has to be some other way, or they might just have to eat the amount. Going about it in this manner just seems so wrong.

missfee said:

Obviously a lot of money was invested and spent on the O2 "shows" before he hit the stage, he was already rehearsing. The stage was ready, the dancers, and obviously this footage we are about to see.... all stuff that they paid for.

Cinnie said:

How much money did AEG make off the souvenir tickets MJ's fans decided to keep? The footage should have been given to MJ's family for them to decide what to do with it.

Vendetta1 said:

Anyone ever get one of those "hologram" tickets?

all this business about AEG "using" MJ is such a bunch of bullshit. they paid the man to put on a show. he agreed to do it. he agreed to the extra dates. the man died and AEG invested a massive amount of money into the project. why shouldn't they recoup some of that?

MJ fans, you can't have it both ways. You can't act like he was a brilliant artist and a driven performer and a shrewd business man and then in the same breath act like he was this naive childlike figure bumbling through life being taken advantage of left and right by greedy corporations.

dag said:

No, I just won't be excited about seeing footage of the tour that killed him.

Cinnie said:

Yeah and???? so what. How was MJ and his family suppose to know that he was going to die soon after that? That's not MJ's fault that they out the money now. They took a risk, that is what business is about.

errant said:

And that's what is FUCKED up about it. I'm seeing contradictory reports from fans about how "they saw Michael and how was he doing". As Richard Pryor would say, "it's enough to drive you CRAZY!"

Timmy84 said:

Yeah, he was either looking great, full of energy, or dazed, thin, frail.... hell, some of them even contradict themselves.

errant said:

One of the things I hate about being a fan of Michael. Bullshit stays flying