Michael’s Memento

With the release of This Is it -a documentary-film on the life and times of Michael Jackson, fans of the popstar got an extraordinary glimpse into the final hours of the ultimate showman. Adewole Ajala was at Lekki-based Genesis Deluxe Cinemas (in Lagos, Nigeria) which opened its interiors to global premieres of the show

Escapism comes in many forms. One is a two-hour piece dedicated to the memory of a certain departed pop star that attained global popularity for his skills in the realm of entertainment. Michael Jackson’s death triggered a deluge of ambivalent comments but after the Kenny Ortega documentary, critics are now being  forced to have a rethink about a personality who might have utilised his talent to the fullest in spite of all the drama and distractions

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With a name as popular as Walt Disney and Coca Cola, this film on the King of Pop with its doses of forgone greatness and sparks of what could have been if he’d made his proposed 50 shows was a good way of saying goodbye to the stage. And if you were still doubting, $2.2M on its premiere alone would erase all your doubts.

Of course many have dubbed it shameful profiteering after back-breaking rehearsals preceded Michael’s death. But the 120 minute film almost restores Michael’s  past glory by evading all the drama that occupied his 50 years on earth – most of the footage come from rehearsals at the Los Angeles-based Forum and Staples Centre in California prior to scheduled final performances at the London-based O2 Arena. The scenes on This Is It  depict a tireless performer in full control of his gifts rather than a drugged man forcing himself through 80 hours of rehearsals.
There are some tears in the piece though as dancers selected from far & wide to tour with him are all overwhelmed after meeting him. His voice also remains in segments where he croons his popular tracks while decked in the clothes that made him the quintessential showman

Innovations come with a remake of Thriller and Sooth Criminal-a throwback to classic fifties mobster movies where he stars alongside Rita Hawthorne, Cary Grant and other screen legends in Gilda, Tokyo Joe and His Girl Friday in a remake video for ‘Smooth Criminal’-a black and white segment ending with Michael escaping a hail of bullets delivered via Humphrey Bogart’s machine gun.

Despite being fifty, the signatory groin clutching and hip lifting alongside his dancers in preparations for ‘Beat It’ retains a flawless clarity that can only be peculiar to the progenitor of the popular dance steps. He is horribly lean but exudes rare energy for his age, silencing those who thought his dance skills had ebbed with time. Words from guitarist Orientha Panagaris, Jonathan Muffet, Judith Hill, production designer Michael Cotten are another angle to an embellishment of the pop king’s character- glowing terms which go in tandem with whatever inferences the audience arrive at concerning the pop king’s character.

In the final scene, an end to rehearsals shows an effusive Michael thanking everyone for giving their all while expressing optimism for the coming shows (which he will never make after passing away a few weeks before the gigs could commence).

A development has seen some boycotting the film due to their animosity towards AEG Live for overworking him. But he might have had the last laugh over critics while adding another memento to a long list of bequeaths like the moonwalk, weird costumes and a list of unparalleled hits. And like the fictional Beowulf, Michael might just be a larger than life character who remains with us even in death.