Immediately after Michael Jackson's death, grotesque rumors circulated about the singer's poor health. He was covered in needle wounds and facial scars, these reports insisted, his body withered to be a point where he could no longer sing or dance. Culled from rehearsal footage from Jackson's unrealized comeback concerts, Michael Jackson's This Is It proves those rumors wrong, showing the singer in fine voice and in fine health, dancing more rigorously than his frail frame suggested possible.
Actually, This Is It refutes all sorts of perceptions about Jackson. The singer's final years in the public spotlight were so unflattering that until his death much of the public imagined him an effete monster, too isolated from the rest of the world for even the most ordinary human interactions. But in This Is It, he mingles with his backing dancers and band, exchanging ideas and laughing at their jokes. In one scene, he reviews computer images with his director, smiling and pointing to one he likes as he noshes on a snack. Imagine that: Michael Jackson eating. He'd become such a mythological figure that it was difficult to imagine him performing even the most basic biological tasks.
Would Jackson have wanted this footage released? Probably not. The film itself depicts the singer as an ardent perfectionist, hands on with most every aspect of the production, from choreography to arrangements to visuals (Kenny Ortega, the concert's ostensible director, yields to Jackson's every request). It's doubtful Jackson would have ever signed off on releasing an unfinished product, especially since he rarely sang at full force during these rehearsals, insisting on conserving his voice. But though it may seen contrary to his wishes, This Is It ultimately serves Jackson's legacy well, perhaps even better than the completed concerts might have. While those shows would have reaffirmed Jackson as a great entertainer, This Is It attests to something far more revelatory: Jackson as a human being.
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