This Is It

Last night after coming home from work, I changed quickly into my favorite jeans, patchwork faux python sandals and my favorite purple sweater and waited for D to pick me up. We were on our way to go see This Is It , the proclaimed last performance of Michael Jackson. I had my doubts, assuming it would be nothing more than cheaply done, rushed footage of things Michael probably didn't even want anyone to see. But our mood was pretty light as we caught up with each other's lives in the car on the way over, found a parking spot and headed into the theater.

I'll admit that I wasn't overly surprised that the theater was only two-thirds full, and that some woman with a bad weave job fell asleep half way through the movie, making me feel really bad for her poor date who brought the most boring woman in the world to dinner theater. I have been to maybe 10 or so clubs in Houston, 5 or 6 lounges and countless movies....there never really is a crowed in very many places from what I've seen.

The beginning of the movie was Micheal's dancers talking into the camera about how grateful they were to have the opportunity to work with Jackson. I could tell it was filmed after he died, because most of them couldn't hold it together enough to finish their sentences and it was also very delicately scripted. My expectations for the movie suddenly fell towards the floor.

But then Micheal got on stage. I never realized how extensive rehearsal was for live concerts. Micheal was singing in his flawlessly vibrato voice, and dancing across the stage as if his shoes were dipped in oil. 50 years old, months away from his final breath and he was just a kid again putting on a show.

Going to see this movie, you have to take it for what it is; a marketing scheme. Jackson left a large amount of debt, and in that way I wonder if he'd even be upset about the footage being put in theaters. After all, I'm sure he didn't want to leave his family with that much debt. But aside from all that, the movie is also a tribute to his fans. Its proof that Micheal lit up when he was on stage, that he was a big kid at heart, that he loved nature and the world and that music meant everything to him. He knew every beat of every song, every chord, every rip, every note. He seemed to be taken back to his childhood when he performed a few Jackson 5 numbers, loosing his voice suddenly and looking as if he could barely make it through the song. But he knew every step of the dances and performed them as if his legs were on strings and his body was transported to the hay-day of his childhood career.

Bottom line, don't see this movie if you don't want to support the exploitation of Micheal's fame in order to pay off his enormous debt. But...see this movie if you just want to walk away from Micheal Jackson's legacy knowing that he was in fact an entertainer and, still could wipe the floor with any of the so-called "pop stars" of today.

Good for him.




(©2009 Lotus B.)