Michael Jackson's This Is It

What it's about:

The movie takes you behind the scenes as Michael Jackson, his band, dancers and crew rehearse for his series of already-sold-out concerts at the O2 Arena in London. This Is It was shot just weeks before his death on 25 June this year.

What we thought:

Wow. This really is it. You wouldn’t guess from watching Michael Jackson sing, moonwalk, gyrate and prowl the stage during his intense rehearsals, that just a few short weeks later, the pop icon would be dead.

That chilling realisation feels like a sledgehammer to the heart because the evidence presented onscreen tells a story of a performer so attuned to his music, his audience's expectations and the enormity of the project he was undertaking, that he was unstoppable. Even though he was nearing his 51st birthday, and hadn’t performed for a live audience in over a decade, Jackson still appears to still have 'it' – that singular ability to command your attention by simply being in your frame of vision.

When he first appears on stage, running through "They Don't Care About Us" with his dancers, it has the urgency of a live performance, and the trend continues throughout. It is an astonishing and eerie sight. For one, This Is It takes pains to portrays a man who lived and breathed music and performance for the sake of his fans. Jackson is so free of ego and pretence when working on his craft that the entertainment industry’s reputation for breeding divas and posers seems incomprehensible. Collaborating with him every step of the way is his long-time creative partner and the director of the eventual This Is It, Kenny Ortega. Their relationship is harmonious, with Ortega sometimes acting as the pop star's minder - gently scolding him to be safe when taking to the air in a lift crane designed to sweep over the heads of the audience - and ever-mindful of Jackson's every need onstage.

It’s obvious what makes This Is It so compelling. The pleasure is in getting an unprecedented fly-on-the-wall perspective on the music and artistry that went into crafting his legend. Most of the hits, from "Smooth Criminal" and "Billie Jean", to "Human Nature" and "Beat It" are performed in full, with full backing and lighting. All that's missing is the thousands of ravenous fans who had lapped up each and every ticket for the proposed 50 shows.

The rehearsals also leave no doubt that the concerts, had they been realised as Jackson and his team envisioned, were bound to put the biggest Vegas spectacle imaginable to shame. The show incorporates a 3D sequence for "Thriller" featuring a cast of lolling zombies, aerial acrobatics, eye-popping pyrotechnics and the kind of choreography Jackson fans are all too familiar with. Those moves, still astounding to behold, seem to come forth as easily as his next breath. Jackson's troupe of dancers deserve a round of applause too. In the opening scenes of the movie, they tearfully share their disbelief at the loss of a golden opportunity to work with their idol, but in the footage of them onstage, their dreams are all still going to come true. Lean, agile and finely attuned to their leader's every move, they define poetry in motion, even viewed through choppy camera angles on a bare stage. 

There have been numerous conflicting claims about the state of his health during those last few weeks. Far from being conclusive proof that Jackson was indeed fit and prepared for his gruelling live schedule, This Is It shows a performer whose best days are behind him, but who still puts his whole heart into what he loves best. To say that he looks out of it at times is par for the course since he hasn’t looked quite himself for a very long time. And even when his voice and body can't keep up with the boundless energy around him, Jackson still soldiers on.

"Why do you do this to me? I shouldn't be singing right now. I have to save my voice," he complains after an impassioned duet with back-up singer Judith Hill on "I Just Can't Stop Loving You". But the mischievous smile on his face tells a different story.

This Is It is precisely what the fans want in the wake of Jackson's death - an opportunity to see him at work, perfecting what he did best. The circus surrounding his persona and numerous controversies is omitted, leaving behind the unshakeable image of a flawed hero who will forever remain a mystery. There will be tears, goosebumps, loud whoops of joy and moments of quiet wonder in the audience at This Is It screenings over the next two weeks.

* The premiere of Michael Jackson's This Is It was hosted by Ster-Kinekor Theatres. The movie will run at cinemas for a limited period of two weeks.