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Movie Overview
Cast
• Michael Jackson
Director
• Kenny Ortega
MPAA Rating
PG - for some suggestive choreography and scary images.
Theatrical Release
Oct 28, 2009 (Wide)
Michael Jackson's This Is It (2009)

REVIEWS
NEWS
INTERVIEWS
OTHER
OFCS Rating: 65% Fresh
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2.5/5
"Although it's essentially a glorified special feature for a concert DVD, it's a fitting eulogy for fans (and fans alone) that is thankfully not overwrought with sentimentality."  Cut Print Review  Anders Wotzke

3.5/5
"As titles go, Jackson's own self-penned label lingers with hints of what could have been and what never will be. Still, for anyone still looking for a little bit of his magic, This Is It contains more than enough."  PopMatters  Bill Gibron

D+
"Strictly pressed factory floor sweepings, packaged and sold with questionable intent to a public aching for closure...takes Jackson's musical legacy and squeezes it for every last remaining nickel."  BrianOrndorf.com  Brian Orndorf

C
"A piecemeal attempt at putting a bow on Michael Jackson's overblown and bankrupt career, this clinical behind-the-scenes collage of the rehearsal process for MJ's doomed London performance schedule is more propaganda than documentary."  ColeSmithey.com  Cole Smithey

"As much as This Is It recalls Jackson's genius, it perpetuates the exploitation that shaped his life."  PopMatters  Cynthia Fuchs

A
"For fans of the late Michael Jackson who are hoping that Kenny Ortega's edit of the pop king's rehearsals will slash through the public vilification and help us rediscover his beloved music, this really is it."  EDGE Boston  David Foucher

3/4
"...an intriguing look behind the scenes at Jackson's attempts at staging a series of farewell shows..."  Reel Film Reviews  David Nusair

C+
"I was underwhelmed by this concert film of the most successful entertainer of all time."  Ozus' World Movie Reviews  Dennis Schwartz

2.5/4
"The film paints Michael Jackson in a glorious light, making certain that, since he did not live to see his visions come to fruition on the London stage, this cinematic rough draft would be a swan song worth being proud of."  DustinPutman.com  Dustin Putman

D+
"There's only going to be two camps concerning [This Is It]: those who will absolutely love it and those who wouldn't go to see it except under penalty of death."  FilmJerk.com  Edward Havens

2.5/4
"Given just how much material Kenny Ortega and his editors plowed through to whittle together a two-hour scrapbook and they still could only just barely come up with the presentable material here isn't exactly a vindication."  Slant Magazine  Eric Henderson

3.5/4
"I cannot image a visual record of any kind doing a better job of showing us what might have been, which makes it both a cause for celebration and its own unique tragedy"  Q Network Film Desk  James Kendrick

3/5
"It's fascinating, often in ways the people behind it might not have intended. It's shiny and slick and scary and cynical, and it's an epic portrait of all the contradictions in American celebrity culture and one of American culture's biggest celebrities."  MSN Movies  James Rocchi

"Parental Content Review"  Screen It!  Jim Judy

"This documentary movie can only help Jackson's artistic reputation, and the concerts, had he lived to perform them, would likely have done the same."  ReelTalk Movie Reviews  John P. McCarthy

1.5/5
"It was rough and half-baked, and even the big production numbers don't come off well."  7M Pictures  Kevin Carr

"[F]orgeteth thou the unpleasant autopsy and toxicology reports. Seeth how Michael was a man and yet not a man, a man and yet a seraph of spirit and light and moonwalking."  Flick Filosopher  MaryAnn Johanson

3.5/4
"Perhaps an even greater testament to Jackson's gifts and professional dedication than any full-blown show could ever be."  TheMovieReport.com  Michael Dequina

3.5/4
"This Is It avoids the kind of messianic fervor that characterized Jackson's career. The man's work is simply allowed to speak for itself. There could be no more fitting tribute."  Aisle Seat  Mike McGranaghan

B+
""This is It" is here to rescue us from the tabloids and remind us what true star power looks like."  Beliefnet  Nell Minow

3/5
"As a behind-the-scenes look at how a concert of this size and scope actually comes together, "This Is It" is undeniably intriguing but as a testament to the artistic talents of Michael Jackson, it comes up short in many areas."  eFilmCritic.com  Peter Sobczynski

3/5
"While it's not a particularly remarkable film, it's an entertaining backstage glimpse."  Shadows on the Wall  Rich Cline

3/5
"As a posthumous document, This Is It offers a veiled, vaseline-lens look behind the curtain. As a cultural event, it's more than a little creepy and depressing."  eFilmCritic.com  Rob Gonsalves

B
"It's got a story, it's got music, it even has a hero, but what it lacks is soul."  Laramie Movie Scope  Robert Roten

3.5/4
"a ferociously entertaining send-off for the musical icon, a coda that permits Jackson's legacy to end on a high note."  Charlotte Weekly  Sean O'Connell

10/10
"A touching tribute, an extraordinary pop culture phenomenon and a unique artistic memorial that gives devoted fans one final glimps of the "King of Pop.""  SSG Syndicate  Susan Granger
OFCS Rating: 65% Fresh
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