MICHAEL JACKSON'S THIS IS IT
By: Iggy Michniacki on 1.25.2010
The Movie Itself:
When the name Michael Jackson is spoken now-a-days, its often with reference to indecent activity with children. Not in my house though. Michael Jackson will forever be remembered as the man who changed everything in the music industry. The King of Pop, the legend that has more record sales than any other artist, the man that is responsible for the music video, the man that donated more time and money to children in need than possibly any other entertainer, and the man who cared about his fans. If we want to talk about his trials and the accusations against him we can, leaving me to mention that he was also the man that America judged quickly and for some reason doesn’t fit the motto ‘innocent until proven guilty’… yeah, many of you forget he was acquitted of all charges.
But beyond the man that he was for the past decades, Michael Jackson wanted to be the man who finished his career with a bang, and that bang was called ‘This is It.’ A concert series that would span over a year, to countless of sold out crowds, performing the music that made him as famous as he was. Unfortunately, on June 25, 2009 Michael Jackson passed away before he was able to deliver that dream to the world. Leaving behind a large crew who was ready to entertain and as many questions about concert series as there were about his life.
This is It chronicles the preparation, training, dedication, and just about anything else that everybody involved poured into the ‘This is It’ concert series during the Spring of 2009. The preparation was all filmed to help fill the extras of a home video release as well as be part of Michael Jackson’s video collection. AEG LIVE, trying to recoup the money they poured into advertisement and preparation for the series, sold the rights of the video to Sony Pictures bringing life to the ‘This is It’ series once more, this time on the big screen.
This is It captures more than anybody could have ever imagined and displayed the magnitude the concert series was going to be displayed at. Classic film spliced in between songs, fireworks, moving stages, plenty of back up dancers and screens so big one could only imagine getting to use it for movie watching were all just pieces of the giant puzzle Jackson and his producers had put together for the show. Being able to see what ‘This is It’ would have been, made this worthwhile. One can only imagine what the concert would have been like during Humphrey Bogart chasing Michael Jackson to introduce ‘Smooth Criminal.’ Or what the new footage of ‘Thriller’ would have looked like in 3D, standing five or so stories above the stage. Also, the imagination will have to fill in the blank for the artists that would have been involved, because all the rehearsals were done with the hired backup dancers and singers although press releases later identified many big name artists that were going to partake in the spectacle in London.
Less on the concert and more on the movie itself was the chopped footage, the tag line and the interviews. The tag-line of the movie war marketed as the opportunity to see a side of Michael Jackson that nobody had seen before, and I don’t think This is It was able to follow through with that in the way they meant it. The creativity, the (somehow) humble arrogance, the dedication and the knowledge were all there but had all been seen before. The difference came in the frail, somewhat crippled looking behaviors and appearance Jackson brought to the stage every day. Sometimes allowing himself to go all out, only to catch it rather quickly and say he need to save his voice and energy. The obviousness of his condition came front in center, but the dedication and commitment were there as well.
The interviews were an incredible part of the feature as well, intertwined throughout much of the footage showing how much Michael Jackson meant to certain, up-and-coming artists and dancers. And the footage, where most dish out as the complaint, was a collection of different shots with different cameras and locations at the helm.
This is It can not be compared to most concert movies as this is very different and fits settled in between Concert Release and Documentary. Those looking for a concert or a documentary may not find exactly what they are looking for. Those looking for the mix, with a dose of reality in what they were doing (don’t expect the finished product) and a chance to see a legend work one last time will find a treat waiting for them when they put this in their Blu-ray player.
Rating: 9/10
 The Presentation:
This is It, although has many concert tendencies, has to be grouped in with the documentaries, especially when discussing presentation. The footage is collected from different cameras, using different styles and the audio also comes from a variety of sources. However, This is It doesn’t falter into the world that many documentaries have and holds up pretty strongly throughout the entire presentation.
The full 1080p Mpeg-4 transfer is a good looking transfer considering the fact that each moment seems to be a different camera, with a different aspect ratio. At it’s widest ratio, This is It opens up to 1.78:1, but it also shrinks down to other ratios. This can not be held at the fault of the studio, as the footage was put together the best it could have been. Saying that, I will say there really aren’t many more complaints about the video.
The transfer has a great overall look to it, keeping a strong amount of detail and color. The change in cameras can lead to scenes looking a bit different, with the most notable difference being the softness of some of the shots. As mentioned, the colors hold up quite well throughout the entire presentation. There’s also a large amount of pop to the image, with the majority of it looking three-dimensional. With the source material they were working with this shows to be an exceptional transfer, and it is most notable in the most recent filmed areas.
The DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 track is something that takes the cake though. Each song comes across loud and clear filling the room with Michael Jackson’s greatness. Each speaker is completely in the action, making the experience as if you were there. There are no problems with front heavy or back heavy, as the levels stay quite perfect and clear. The biggest issue comes with a factor that has nothing to do with the transfer and everything to do with the performance itself, and that is the lack of hearing Michael Jackson sing at times. However, everything else is full of life with a wide array of depth and a great, clear sound the entire way through.
Rating: 8/10 (video 7/10, audio 9/10)
 The Extras:
The extras for This is It are entertaining and fitting for the release. It seems that nearly every release still fills its extras with standard definition content, but Sony treated Michael Jackson’s finale with a load that is entirely in high definition.
- MovieIQ: Much like other recent Sony releases, MovieIQ connects to BD-Live and gives you real time information on something related to the movie, cast or crew.
- Thriller Vignette with 5.1 Audio (3:52) (HD): The really awesome revamp of Thriller that is in the movie can be seen in its entirety here.
- Smooth Criminal Vignette with 5.1 Audio (3:57) (HD): The equally impressive Smooth Criminal footage, filmed for the concert, starring Humphrey Bogart (yes, I typed that right) can also be seen in its entirety.
- Making Smooth Criminal (11:09) (HD): Go behind the scenes and watch how the vignette for Smooth Criminal was put together.
- Staging the Return (40:47) (HD): A lengthy documentary that covers the entire process of what This is It was going to be out in London. Much of the crew sits down and discusses the ideas, processes and plans that were in motion to make this an epic concert series.
- The Gloved One (15:14) (HD): Featuring the very interesting costume designer, The Gloved One explores the costumes that MJ and the dancers were going to where during the concert series.
- Memories of Michael (16:20) (HD): Much of those involved sit down and discuss what they remember about Michael Jackson as well as his impact and how much they miss him.
- Auditions: Searching For the World’s Best Dancers (9:50) (HD): All those dancers that were crying at the beginning of the feature; well, this is them (as well as others) auditioning to get the chance of a lifetime.
- Theatrical Trailer (2:32) (HD): The theatrical trailer, don’t think it needs much explanation.
- Previews (HD): Various Sony release previews.
- BD-Live: Nothing available at time of review
I’d also like to note that Sony was kind enough to send us the Two Disc, Special Edition CD with the Blu-ray. This is It’s soundtrack features many of the more popular songs heard as well as the new song, This is It.
Rating: 7/10
Overall:
What can a fan say about Michael Jackson that hasn’t been said over the past year? His life ended way to soon, and his impact was huge. His concert series, This is It, was poised to be epic and would have left a lasting impression on the entertainment industry just as he had done time and time before.
This is It captures the preparation and allows the fans to see how epic these final performances would have been. The Blu-ray, well it’s great as well. With a strong video presentation and an explosive audio track no fan can go wrong. But Sony didn’t stop there, as they loaded us with a fair amount of extras all featured in high definition. Fans, don’t hesitate (as if you would have), everybody else should still check this out.
Rating: 8/10
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