MichaelJackson Tagged Articles at Cinematical

When Michael Jackson died a few months ago, I didn't have an opportunity at the time to write down any of my feelings about his passing, much less his career, his legacy, and his impact on my own life. I didn't cry, I don't remember being "shocked," and I didn't really react at all, to be honest, except with some mild degree of incredulity over the way so many people were just wracked with sorrow over the death of someone many of them would have vilified the day before it happened.

But a couple of weeks later, I spoke to my mom, whose well-worn vinyl copy of Off the Wall still takes up a place in my record collection, and who gave me Thriller when I was seven. She mentioned that I was the first person she thought of when she heard the news. Somehow that actually affected me more than his actual death, and I really started thinking about how much his music really meant to me. While that ongoing reflection has mostly manifested itself in repeated plays of both of the albums mentioned, as well as Bad, it made me both curious and apprehensive about This Is It, the documentary Kenny Ortega put together about his final tour.

Last Wednesday I went to see the film, and I wasn't deeply roused by it, either as a Jackson fan or a general filmgoer. Part of this can no doubt be attributed to the fact that the footage was by all accounts never intended to be seen by anyone other than Jackson himself, so any real structure or polish applied to its rough edges in order to create dramatic momentum was done posthumously. But even though I never judged Jackson for endlessly transforming himself into an almost literal shell of his former self, watching him on stage in this documentary, struggling to maintain the energy and focus that once came so easy and natural (or at least looked that way), I couldn't help thinking that Michael Jackson was a figure better celebrated in our memories, even before he passed away.

Michael Jackson's This is It was the only new wide release this weekend, and essentially had the box office to itself. This may seem weird, but this is as it should be -- and it has more to do with Halloween falling on a Saturday than with any show of respect for the King of Pop. Predictably, This is It won the weekend, grossing $21.3 million for a total of $32.5 million since its Wednesday opening. That's a good number, and monumental for a documentary, though it is also an instance where the studio's hype machine may have led people astray.

Those who read the breathless press releases about the trumped-up advance ticket sales frenzy surrounding This Is It may be disappointed (or in any case surprised) by these figures. But over $30 million in five days for a concert documentary is nothing to sneeze at -- and I don't think that expecting much more was reasonable. (As a footnote, too, the movie made nearly $70 million outside of North America -- which also makes sense.)

The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day bowed on 68 screens and grossed just under half a million in 16th place, which isn't bad, really -- confirming the small cult following for Boondock Saints that everyone already knew existed. Among holdovers, Paranormal Activity continued to add screens, and continued to hold up well -- it should break $100 million by this time next week. Saw VI and Where the Wild Things Are both suffered drops over 60%; Wild Things will top out around $70 million (pretty good for an art film), while Saw VI will wind up making around (or just over) half of the next lowest grosser in the franchise. Will the next one go straight to DVD? (Probably not, but it might be time to start asking the question.)

The full top 10 after the jump.

As I watched Michael Jackson's This Is It, I found myself wondering exactly what I was supposed to be reviewing. It's nearly impossible to separate the context of the film from the film itself -- that it was supposedly never meant to be a documentary and is only now being seen by public eyes because of Michael Jackson's death in June as he was preparing for his last tour. And, as difficult as it is, I'm obviously not reviewing the person himself. Was I reviewing his performances? That's not it, either, because they're rehearsals and Jackson was saving his voice and strength for the tour. The documentary itself is a strange, confusing look into Michael Jackson's world, or at least the version of it that his friends, family, and/or estate wanted us to see.

Producer Randy Phillips is quoted in the production notes as follows: "What makes this footage so compelling is that Michael is so open and unguarded. From March 5 when we did the press conference [announcing Jackson's tour] to June 25 when Michael died – we had a three-person crew with HD cameras." The production notes also say they shot "more than 100 hours of rehearsal footage shot in Los Angeles." Why were three people shooting with HD cameras, producing over 100 hours of footage that "was never intended for wide release"? And if it was eventually going to be part of a behind-the-scenes doc, then why did it often look blurry or shaky, and why, if there was so much more footage to choose from, are we seeing rehearsals that seemed to be from a handful of different days, judging by the different clothes Jackson wore?

Almost everyone at Fantastic Fest noticed the auspicious timing of Sunday night's Secret Screening #3. It was scheduled for 9:30 PM ... and a couple of hours after that was the Michael Jackson Dance Party. So everyone in the rumor mill decided that it was going to be a screening of the Jackson concert rehearsal footage movie This Is It. Well, that Was Not It. Instead we saw The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (read our own Scott Weinberg's review from Toronto right here).

That didn't mean we were going to skip the dance party. Oh no. Especially since they spent a considerable amount of time teaching people how to do the "Thriller" dance. The dance floor was packed with folks going through all the moves over and over again so often that eventually the place started smelling like a gym. Women went and changed their sweaty shirts, men splashed water on their faces, and the dance off was underway.

Underneath laser lights we danced to everything from the bell-bottomed MJ in the Jackson Five, to "Beat It," to "Black or White," of course the ubiquitous "Thriller," and all of it culminating with an audience sing-along version "The Man in the Mirror." Kai Izumi from Robogeisha pole-danced to "Dirty Diana." Everyone seemed to have a good time, but a girl leaned over towards the end and asked me "So, I guess once famous child molesters die, everything's okay?" Ouch. But on the eve of Roman Polanski's arrest, some words to dwell on.

Tell me once again, who's bad?

The title of the Reuters story says it all and so much more: Coroner completes Jackson autopsy, film deal set. Columbia Pictures will be distributing This is It, which will be comprised of Jackson's preparation for the tour of the same name. Kenny Ortega, who directed High School Musical 3: Senior Year and has choreographed everything from Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Dirty Dancing to To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar, will direct. (Ortega worked on the concerts with Jackson.)

Since some of the scenes shot for the concert were in 3D, we can expect to see Jackson coming at us in all three dimensions in some theaters this October 30th. The footage itself is owned by concert promoters AEG, who are desperately trying to take advantage of the mourning for MJ, so I would imagine that the company will be taking a cut of the profits. AEG is already working on numerous deals to try and recoup its $30M investment.

According to Reuters, "Lawyers spent much of Monday in court wrangling over merchandising deals still being planned and a traveling exhibition of Jackson memorabilia that concert promoter AEG Live, which backed the London concerts, wants to mount."

An attorney for AEG Live, which spent as much as $30 million preparing for the comeback concerts, argued the company needed to move quickly to take advantage of the resurgence in the singer's popularity to help recoup its investment. Several of the 'Thriller' singer's albums, for instance, have returned to the top of the music charts in recent weeks, whereas before his death his CD sales had languished.

'The longer we wait, the more time passes. Frankly the less interest there will be on the part of the public to come see the exhibit,' said Kathy Jorrie, an attorney for AEG Live."

Will you go see This is It? Or did you get your fill from the news networks' media circus surrounding his death?

Over the weekend, four studios have been bidding for Michael Jackson's final footage. Sony "has all but closed the deal," which is valued at more than $50 million, according to The Wrap. (That would make it the highest price ever paid for source material for a documentary.) Fox and Universal were also reportedly involved in the "pitched bidding war." The high-definition footage includes a full concert rehearsal "taped on the night before he died," production meetings, and auditions. The deal would also include several videos intended to be shown during breaks in the concert; at least two were shot in 3-D.

Previously, it was claimed that a final decision on the footage would need to wait until Jackson's estate is settled. Concert promoter AEG Live, self-described by company president and CEO Randy Phillips as the King of Pop's "partner in death," is also auctioning off TV rights. In a poll, Cinematical readers were divided as to how the footage should be used, with the leading choices being DVD/Blu-ray and "Free TV Special." More people voted for not seeing the footage at all than wanted to see a film.

The highest grossing concert film of all time is Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds, which made $65 million last year. (Adjusted for inflation, Richard Pryor Live on the Sunset Strip comes out on top at $85 million.) The Jackson film would be something different, obviously: we're talking about a global phenomenon that cuts across generations. Still, whatever studio wins the bidding war is no doubt counting on huge international numbers to make the documentary a profitable venture.

Obviously, when you think of Brett Ratner, the chubby fratboy who made the Rush Hour films and tried to ruin the X-Men franchise, you also think of Michael Jackson. They were like peas in a pod, those two! And on this somber day of mourning we ran across this clip of B-Rat and M.J. car-dancing to an R. Kelly song. Because why not?

(Actually, while Ratner has directed music videos for Mariah Carey, Jessica Simpson, and others, he and Jackson never collaborated on anything. I don't know why they were friends. They probably just liked going out to strip clubs and picking up women together. Anyway, here's the clip. Enjoy.)




[Via BuzzFeed.]

Now that the initial shock over the untimely death of Michael Jackson has passed, his concert promoter is making it known that he has "more than 100 hours of footage that could be turned into live albums, a movie and a pay-per-view special." Randy Phillips, president and CEO of AEG Live, told The Associated Press (via The Hollywood Reporter): "He was our partner in life and now he's our partner in death."

Jackson was filmed in rehearsal for a planned series of 50 concerts in London, performing songs such as "Thriller" and "Beat It." The high-definition footage includes production meetings and auditions. Phillips claimed the production budget for the shows reached $25 million, which also covered 3-D "mini-movies" of "Thriller" and "Earth Song." Phillips said the Jackson estate would get the "lion's share" of any profits from the rehearsal footage, though obviously his company would benefit as well. As Jackson's "partner in death" (a rather ghoulish turn of phrase on his part), Phillips raised several possibilities for using the footage, though a final decision will have to wait until the estate is settled, which could take months or even years.

Do you have any desire to see the final footage? What form should it take? A film? TV special? DVD? Online for free? Take our poll and let us know. And feel free to express yourself in the comments section. Will it be celebratory to watch the final footage of the "King of Pop"? Or poignant and sad to see MJ just days before his death?

One of the things us genre fans remember most about Michael was his love of sci-fi and fantasy. It oozed out of almost everything he touched, and as visionary filmmakers like James Cameron and George Lucas began making advancements in special effects during the 1980s, Jackson was right there, incorporating his talents into the most memorable music videos of our generation.

Here, SciFi Squad's Mike Moody remembers Jackson's love of sci-fi and comics, and points to some really great content from around the web as all of us come together today to mourn the loss of a pop-culture legend.

Michael Jackson, the king of pop, whose music left an indelible mark on the popular music landscape, died yesterday at the age of 50. It seemed there was little about Jackson's life that didn't make the news or tabloids throughout his long career, with the possible exception of his love of science fiction and comic books.

Jackson was a huge comic book fan, and even considered buying Marvel Comics in the 1990s. MTV Splashpage looks at Jackson's history with comics, and notes that the pop star owned a giant collection of superhero books, costumes and statues that recently went up for auction. Comics Alliance has a rundown on Jackson's 5 greatest moments in comics, including his last public trip to a comic shop and the fate of his Moonwalker comic.

Read more at SciFi Squad