Superstition said:

exactly


anyways, i loved it and i'm going again sunday

mimi07 said:

me too.

I love how Michael inspires others around him to be better. Oshiana (?), the female guitarist was amazing! She could do the Van Halen and Steve Stevens licks effortlessly. Great job.

Mike doesn't have the musical vocabulary of a Prince or a Quincy Jones. When he wants a certain sound he'll say something like "put some more love in it" or "let it simmer" or "it's like a fist in my ear", where his musicians look at him and think "What the hell does that mean, Michael? You want me to play an F chord or what??"

It was a great movie. R.I.P. Michael. You were one of a kind.

Alasseon said:

It was like he saw the music as a physical being if you will


How he told Bearden to make the music sound "like you're dragging it out of bed"
I hope the DVD has more footage of those sessions with the band

Just saw "This Is It" and I'm sorry to say, I wasn't feeling it as much as I thought I would. I thought the rehearsals were simply "okay". One of my favorite parts was the Thriller segment (I loved how they used the unreleased rap from Vincent Price). I hope the DVD has a lot more to offer than what I saw in theaters.

Dangerous rehearsals >>> This Is It rehearsals

I think the movie just had too much editing for me. He seemed "out of it" in a lot of performances.

bboy87 said:

Co-sign.

ViintageJunkiie said:

Dangerous tour rehearsals band wasn't as tight, and MJ seemed to dance and practice more here, but then again wasn't the footage of the Dangerous rehearsals done at Neverland? Here (on This Is It_, he seems to be giving a bit more energy in the performances, if not as many live vocals as the Dangerous Tour.

It's probably a bit of a toss-up, but because this was professionally edited and the band was tighter, I'm giving the nod to This Is It.

I can't believe these bigwig f*ckheads are protesting the DVD being released earlier. Can they think of the consumer for once? Just let people have this disc to enjoy during the Holidays.

I just went to see the movie tonight, what surprised me was there was only maybe 10 people watching the movie when me, and my friend went. However the movie was good, the only part I did not like was the thriller part. Just not into that type of things, also did not like that the Beat It song during rehearsal did not have the original sound, not sure why the live version was going to be changed. Also got the feeling that Michael was not in control or was not being allowed to take as much control as he wanted for his show, seemed he was being told how to do the show, and I could see some of his dissapointments coming out in his expressions.

Now what I did like the most, Earth song, I had tears rolling down my cheeks, that song always makeS me cry, it is a deep song, and Michael sings it with so much honesty it is hard not to feel this song.... I did not see the Michael that the tabloids spread rumors about, the sickly thin man who could not possibly do the shows. What I saw was a very energetic, healthy, fit, and enthusiatic man ready to take the stage.... What struck me most about Michael was how much of real artist he was, he knew exactly what he wanted, how things should sound, watching very closely the dancers making sure they were on que. He knew every step each dancer was making if they were on que or not, he knew.

Superstition said:

Yeah I liked these rehearsals more than the Dangerous rehearsals


What I REALLY want to see is the Bad tour rehearsals

I just went and saw it again, in a bigger city and a better cinema. And I was right, the audience and the better screen changed everything. People actually laughed along with me at the cute parts and said wow out loud at the amazing parts. So I definitley enjoyed it more. I wish I hadnt even bothered with the first time. I still absolutely loved the Threatened part. I dont really like the album that much but you can tell Invincible would of sounded incredible live. I would of loved to have seen an Invincible tour.

dvd will contain 2 - 3 hours additional footage !

interview with kenny ortega

http://www.collider.com/2...vdblu-ray/

motownlover said:

this review says it all.....

http://www.guardian.co.uk...son-london

I am queasy, uneasy – so disturbed I need a new face. Because this week the Michael Jackson Death Cult rolls into London like a great, golden surgical mask, floating down the Thames. We don't get the actual corpse. (I bet his family considered it, but dismissed it, reluctantly, on logistical grounds.) But we do get This Is It, a film of Jackson rehearsing his final concert tour – edited to make him seem happy – a new album, and an exhibition of his personal objects, including the creepy glove. You know the one. It is the one that Freddy Kruger would have worn if he were into Liberace. And I am sitting in this puddle of biblical-style garment-rending and inconsolable wailing, and thinking: Why are we doing this? And also – is Bubbles coming?

I never bought Michael Jackson as King of Pop. I knew that he was not singing for me. His love songs are unbelievable; even Frank Sinatra, wife-beating crooner, was more convincing when pretending to like adult women. There is no truth to his torch songs – he was a child serenading a chocolate bar. When Michael sang, "I just can't stop loving you," I was convinced he was talking to his dermatologist. When he sang, "I want you back," I thought he was talking to his face. He was, for me, floating in the Lionel Ritchie firmament. He was gifted enough in his bendy, needy, nose-free way – but no king. I will cry more when Barry Manilow falls down and is carried into a Copacabana afterlife.

But disputing Michael Jackson's genius is like arguing with religious fundamentalists brandishing King of Pop Dancing Feet Mugs. Reason has zoomed off to the ever-lit funfair – it is all about faith. "Michael Jackson was the best!" scream the fans. If you argue, they cite Beat It as incontrovertible evidence of His Genius. Beat It is an OK song, although it is arguably sub-Wings. What else you got? "He was such a good dancer!" He danced well? Isn't that like saying he played volleyball well? Does that mean I get to buy merchandise and view the corpse? (Sorry, I forgot the corpse is not coming. Just the glove.)

What else? "Michael Jackson invented the modern pop video!" Ah, yes, the modern pop video, that exalted cultural medium where women writhe naked in cages and get called "bitches" by men in jewellery who can't look you in the eye. Jackson also, according to Vanity Fair, paid a witch doctor to ritually slaughter 42 cows, in the hope it might harm Steven Spielberg in some way. (This is possibly an argument in his favour.)

He was also, according to concert footage, very good at pointing, although I do wonder if he was indicating a body part he had lost, and wanted back. So – to summarise – an OK singer and good dancer who invented the modern pop video and enjoyed pointing and who hated Spielberg so much he paid for cows to be killed is dead. Can I put my mourning garb away?

But before I do, could we remember who Michael Jackson really was? What his greatest passion was, under the shifting form? It was to sleep with children. He was never happier than when lying in a pile of children. His enforcer, Anthony Pellicano, who recently served a prison term for stockpiling homemade hand-grenades, has said – and this is in Jackson's defence – "He did sleep in beds with little boys. There's no question about it. He's got a gigantic bed." Jackson also confessed this to Oprah. (Who else would he tell?)

One of the little boys, Jordan Chandler, received $22m from Jackson in exchange for not telling a court that Jackson had abused him aged 13. (Chandler's picture of marks on Jackson's genitals matches a photograph the police took of Jackson's genitals.) Jackson was never convicted of abusing children, although he was repeatedly accused; he paid witnesses off, while telling the media that he was targeted for extortion because he was Michael Jackson. But if he was guilty of child abuse, he got away with it because he was Michael Jackson. Abuse children? We aren't sure. But he did use them. He bought them and played with them and, when they reached adolescence, he dropped them. The bait was always money. Parents got houses and jewellery and cars. One child tells of golden eggs full of dollar bills in Neverland.

What was it like to be one of Jackson's child friends? What was it like to sit in bed with this faceless man and watch The Exorcist – it was his favourite, apparently – and hear that whispering voice? In fact, when I first heard he was dead – it was at Glastonbury, and the mourning was deafening - my first thought was, if he did abuse children, how do they feel now? Will they go and see This Is It? I think we need to take off the licensed Michael Jackson (Dangerous) sleep masks and ponder his sickness because, in the end, it is really the dysfunction that compels us. As an entertainer, Jackson was good. As a portrait of disintegration, he was amazing. And that is it.
[Edited 11/1/09 7:36am]

japanrocks said:

I hope Michael wins an Oscar for best picture, simply so this piece of utter-shit article (if you want to call it that) and more importantly, journalist can EAT IT.

Vanilli said:

coming from someone who defended Milli Vanilli? makes sense to me

[Edited 11/1/09 8:29am]

WW Box office estimate

total 101 million
domestic 32.5 million
foreign 68.5 million

http://www.variety.com/ar...ef=bd_film

Timmy84 said:

More crotch grabbing lessons!

japanrocks said:

Debbie <3

Last night the movie theatre was full. At the end there was a burst of applause, shouts, cheers, whistles and an enormous sense of respect between everyone walking out. As if we all believed in this something that was Michael Jackson and just how honoured we had been in our lifetime to experience his gifts. Strangers talking to each other, sharing their happiness and sorrow. It was a memorable experience. There was a sense of unity.

The movie itself was captivating. It portrayed Michael as he probably really was. This down to earth, casual guy, dressed in jeans and t-shirts, non matching shirts, messed up hair but still oozing sex appeal without being sexual in any way. His fluid motion in expressing music never ceases to amaze. He didn't sing all out but when going for some notes here and there, it just reminded me of why certain songs of his are so deep. Minimal music or none at all, the soul he put into his always shone through, asking not only to be heard, but also felt.

The new video footage is absolutely excellent. MJ always new how to produce music visuals to the maximum effect and I salute Kenny Ortega in his directing skills. I thought he was resepctful and concerned about Michael. Really funny when he asks MJ "please hold on" when he's being raised in the crane thing. He also lets MJ have the last say always checking he's ok with something. And MJ still childlike at 50, all set and ready to go straight up and singing, "I wanna go as high as it can go, you know that!" Lol, what a pity more humans don't keep a part of their childlike magical emotions as they age.

The movie reflected how involved MJ was in his music. He lived it, he breathed it, he knew every note, every move and he insisted that passion and soul came out in every song. He wanted others to experience the music as he did, not only his voice and the words, but the very music shade of colour as well. Clear examples to me were the "let it simmer" and the few lonely piano notes after the dramatic shift in Earth song. There is often just this added tiny fraction that speaks mountains. Will you be there at 1.45 is one example, although of course this wasn't in the movie. Those minmalistic musical sounds that leave space in your heart and head to experience what you are listening to.

At some moments with layered shirts and jacket, MJ looked healthy, moving well etc etc, but there were some parts when he had fewer clothes on when I thought, oh my god he was too thin. He didn't seem out of it at all, though once or twice I could pick up on small irritations, for example when the ear piece was too loud in his ear and he said it felt like a fist. All in all it would have been a fantastic concert as no one but MJ knows how to put on. The imagery was powerful.

Forget the media crucifications, and what the uniformed biased haters say, because they only dig up evidence for one side/party. Forget too, Michael's pyschological problems (which I believe anyone in his position would have had.) The crowd at the theatre last night, from small children to grannies and grand dads, demonstrated how Michael touched lives positively. Those lets say, who were open to his main message of love, those who understand the needs of under privileged children, that part of society experienced Michael as a joy and shining star in their lives. He gave them something to believe in and he shared it through music and dance and the fruits that they bore for him.

I think Michael Jackson achieved his life purpose even more than he could have ever dreamed of.

First look: 'This Is It' Won't Quit, Takes $101M Worldwide; Run Extended
November 1, 2009


Though it didn't live up to the outsize hype and had only a mixed start domestically, "This Is It" is looking like something of a worldwide hit.

The behind-the-scenes look at rehearsals for the late Michael Jackson's concert grossed $101 million over its first five days, more than two-thirds of which came from the 97 foreign territories, where it opened simultaneously Wednesday.

Although that's on the low end of what many at Sony Pictures and around Hollywood had expected given huge anticipation among fans for the film, it's a solid start given that the studio spent $60 million to make "This Is It" and marketing costs weren't too large.

Despite the movie's so-so start in the U.S. and Canada on Wednesday, domestic grosses stayed steady over the weekend, totaling $21.3 million Friday through Sunday. Although many predicted that Halloween falling on a Saturday could be disastrous for the picture, ticket sales declined only modestly from Friday, a sign of good word of mouth for "This Is It," which got an average grade of A, according to market research firm CinemaScore, from those who attended on opening day.

Sony got much better news overseas, however, where "This Is It" has grossed $68.5 million through Sunday, a healthy start that confirmed the studio's hope that the movie would perform significantly better in foreign countries, where Jackson's famous personal issues have not made as big of a public impact.

Concert movies typically fall off very fast at the box office, but given its strong word of mouth and decent play on Saturday despite the holiday, "This Is It" has a shot at breaking that trend and ultimately grossing about $200 million worldwide. Sony clearly has its eyes on that prize as it has, to the surprise of few in Hollywood, extended the movie's run beyond the previously announced two week. "This Is It" will play until Thanksgiving weekend in the U.S., about as long as any movie that opens now would keep showing, and have runs of varying lengths overseas.






http://latimesblogs.latim...ox_office/

japanrocks said:

Is that sarcasm or should I have added another finger to my reply to the review-just for you?
[Edited 11/1/09 10:14am]

'This Is It' Showcases Michael Jackson's Fashion Comeback

The performer came to rehearsal in striking personal outfits put together with stylist Rushka Bergman. His designer-made tour costumes are not in the movie but will be shown on the DVD.

November 1, 2009




In "Michael Jackson's This Is It," moviegoers will not see the elaborate costumes created for the tour that never was, bedazzled with 4 million Swarovski crystals and lighted up using LED technology. Those are on display at the O2 Arena in London, where the engagement had been scheduled to begin in July, and will go on to New York and Tokyo.

But what they will see, in addition to tough and tender moments that humanize the pop singer, and one hell of a music and dance show, is an amazing array of designer outfits Jackson wore to rehearsals.

A black leather, pagoda-sleeve jacket and a crystal-trimmed tuxedo are among pieces designed by the likes of Christophe Decarnin for Balmain, Kris Van Assche for Dior Homme and Tom Ford that speak to Jackson's renewed relevance in fashion circles and the changing relationship between music and fashion.

Jackson became a style icon in the 1980s because of his individual, often theatrical styling choices for the stage -- the single sequined glove, the white socks, the fedora. But his recent comeback effort was engineered with the help of fashion designers, with Balmain's Decarnin recognizing the retro appeal of tennis-ball-shaped shoulders and over-the-top embroidery, and Jackson appearing in his designs.

We had been used to seeing Jackson show up for courtroom appearances in scrubs, surgical masks, armbands and other kooky attire, some of it designed by his longtime L.A.-based costume designers, Michael Bush and Dennis Tompkins, who have a Michael mannequin in their Los Feliz studio.

But his look changed with an introduction to fashion stylist Rushka Bergman, and it is her work that is mostly front and center in the film, as Jackson's everyday clothes end up as his de facto costumes.

A pint-sized powerhouse from Serbia who says things like "forever daaahling," Bergman first met Jackson when she styled him in Dior Homme for the October 2007 issue of Italian L'Uomo Vogue.

Some might say it was the beginning of his comeback when she put him in Hedi Slimane's slim-line suits, fashionable at the time with Mick Jagger, Beck, Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand and nearly every other credible male rocker.

The morning of the film's premiere, Bergman pulled out snapshots of Jackson trying on clothes at his house, and called him her "supermodel" because he fit into anything, including women's clothes. She emphasized his sex appeal ("He's sooooo sexxxy!"), which comes into focus in the film for the first time in a long time, despite Jackson's surgerized face.

"When he wears Balmain on screen, you say, 'Wow!' " she said.

In the film, Jackson looks fabulous much of the time, save for a few unfortunate print shirts and patched sweat pants that could well be the influence of L.A. fashion impresario Christian Audigier, who had approached Jackson about collaborating on a line.

But more often, you notice sharp tailoring and light-reflecting color. In a Tom Ford tuxedo worn during dancer auditions, skinny orange Dior Homme jeans, a red leather Balmain motorcycle jacket with crystal-studded shoulders worn during the "Thriller" rehearsal and a Balmain suede military jacket worn with Alessandro Dell'Acqua gold sequin pants, Jackson looks powerful and contemporary.

"Seeing the clothing Rushka had selected, you could see Michael's influence," said Travis Payne, assistant director and choreographer for the This Is It performances.

In recent years, pop stars have turned to fashion designers for costumes with increasing regularity, with Kylie Minogue choosing Jean Paul Gaultier for her recent North American tour, and Beyoncé enlisting Thierry Mugler.

Payne wanted to bring fashion relevance to Jackson's on-stage persona too, so he solicited sketches from several designers, including John Galliano and Alexander McQueen.

Ultimately, New York-based fashion and costume designer Zaldy was tapped. Having worked with the Scissor Sisters and Gwen Stefani, while producing his own clothing line, he bridged the worlds of music and fashion.

Jackson was to have 10 costumes by Zaldy and six by Bush and Tompkins. Bush also helped dress the dancers and singers, as did Jennifer Rade, a Hollywood stylist whose star client is Angelina Jolie. The tour costumes will be featured in a "This Is It" DVD.

"Zaldy is the new cool thing and working with him gave Michael credibility," Payne said. "But Michael Bush is near and dear to his heart. So I wanted them to collaborate."

Bush's "Smooth Criminal" costume is a white, 1940s-inspired pinstripe suit. Zaldy's updated "Thriller" jacket is hand-embroidered to look as though it has blood dripping from the shoulders.

"That was probably the hardest piece to do because it was so iconic," Zaldy said.

But his "Billie Jean" costume was the pièce de résistance, with a jacket, tuxedo pants, ankle socks and a single glove that would light up using remote control, thanks to new Lumalive LED textile technology rushed through development by Philips Research in the Netherlands.

Zaldy remembers, "In the fitting, when Michael tried it on, his mouth literally dropped and he said, 'It's everything I always wanted.' "




http://www.latimes.com/fe...6606.story

I saw some of the movie scenes of the songs- Jam, Thriller, Billie Jean, Black or White-- wow MJ was amazing. He was doing great with the songs.

japanrocks said:

Utter BS.

Copycat said:

I suspect the movie will do well as long as it's running because there are of course many fans that will see the movie multiple times.

japanrocks said:

article doesn't suprise me. Always her kind saying that bullshit. Oh wait, the person who posted this article is her kind.

Vanilli said:

ignore him..he's a bitter troll. Still stuck in the eighties and mad that Prince hasn't been relevant since 1987. he trolls mj threads all the time.

Phishanga said:

ehh like I said earlier....doesn't suprise me at all. always her kind talking shit.

Arnotts said:

I have to say I thought the opposite, he was a bit lost and confused and he blamed the ear piece, thats what I thought came across, like when he fudged the beginning of Smooth Criminal and he said he was just simmering?
Found those bits quite sad, as I thought it was clear (to me anyway) that he was
a bit foggy. I loved the film but I don't agree with everyone saying he was 100% all the way through. He certainly was at times, and those scenes were dynamite. The others showed his fallibility and not so great health. To be honest even these scenes made me like him even more. he was a human, just an exceptionally talented one.