Moonwalker

It may seem hard to believe now, but back in the 1980s Michael Jackson didn't need to refer to himself as the King of Pop; we all KNEW he was, in part because his lifestyle and pecadillos hadn't yet started to overwhelm his music (back when his music was worth the effort of overwhelming). One of the offshoots of his amazing success was "Moonwalker," a movie basically designed to celebrate the awesomeness that is - or was - Michael Jackson, which was a massive cinematic Christmas gift for his fans in 1988 just about everywhere, except at home; Jackson's then-manager and one of the movie's executive producers Frank DiLeo demanded a massive share of the box office from its potential US distributor, and when they said no "Moonwalker" was released directly to video in the US.

The trouble is, viewed as a movie this decision isn't hard to understand - "Moonwalker" isn't so much a movie as a collection of music videos, all varying in quality. The bits dealing with Michael's younger years are truly fun, and so are some of the special effects throughout (like Will Vinton's work in "Speed Demon"), but the centrepiece of the short film "Smooth Criminal" (pint-sized villain Joe Pesci, as "Lideo" [get it?], wants to get all the children in the world hooked on drugs, and guess who has to stop him? Clue: His name appears 45 times in the credits) doesn't work, in part because the story stops dead to allow for the "Smooth Criminal" video to be shown in its entirety.

The movie's unending and unquestioning adoration of Michael Jackson gets its fullest flower there, although the video for "Leave Me Alone" (in which he basically exploits his life in song while at the same time telling us to go away, something he would later take even further in "Stop Questioning Me" and "Black or White," which set new standards for self-serving BS topped only by Geri Halliwell and Jennifer Lopez) comes close. Even at the time it seemed a bit much, and viewed today... well, remember how ill-timed the joke in "Addams Family Values" about a kid screaming at a poster of Michael Jackson was? The entire movie nowadays has that same feel magnified; plus it feels like a relic from another age.

The shame of it all now is that it reminds you that MJ really was a wizard once upon a time, but it's all changed now.

I remember watching this movie back in 1988 and was really amazed at many of the dance sequences and special effects. The best part of the movie is when Michael Jackson is dancing with a rabbit named "Spike" and is given a ticket for dancing in a "no dancing" zone, as Spike mysteriously disappears. There is really no plot to this movie but that doesn't mean that it isn't good because it is. This movie is really the last appearance of Michael Jackson at his peak (before he got all weird that is) He peaked in 1988 and after that I never cared for anything else he did. He just got too weird for my tastes. The music in this movie is probably the best Michael Jackson has ever done. Like another poster pointed out, it was basically a really long music video for the album "Bad" as just about all the songs from the movie appear on that album. But it was really cool though. It's definately worth watching on a rainy day or if you have nothing else to do

I was quite surprised to read some of the comments on this work, honestly. Some people were looking for a plot??? OK, when this video came out over a decade ago, I watched it for what it was: a collection of music videos. It's not a movie. It doesn't have a plot, nor a central storyline. It's a rather artistic anthology of mostly long-form videos, all of them rather smartly or creatively done. Michael Jackson may be considered a freak these days, but, after all, this was the man who gave us Thriller (considered by many to be the greatest music video of all time) and set trends with Billie Jean and Beat It. With Moonwalker, he and the filmmakers and artists who collaborated with him once again took his music and dance moves to create some vividly entertaining stuff, incorporating claymation, special effects, live performance footage, and even self-parody (the "Badder" sequence). And for those wondering what Joe Pesci was doing there, this video came out just a tad before he became a household name, and was one of his most memorable appearances on film. And, IMHO, I think the Smooth Criminal sequence (the choreographed section) beats anything else Michael Jackson did up to that point!

If you see this movie, you know you will see an extense video-clip of popular music. But you will find more. Incredible FX, great music and a nice time to enjoy with your kids. If you compare this movie, you have to remember is a pop extravaganza. Clips of "Man In The Mirror", "Leave Me Alone", "Smooth Criminal" and Beatles' "Come Together".

I love this movie! But of course I am a Michael Jackson fan, so there you go. This film reminded me of the abstract films made by the Beatles in the '60's, only for MJ. It was excellent- the music, Michael, everything was great. Oh, yes, and in response to another persons review of this movie, MICHAEL DOES NOT URINATE DURING THE "COME TOGETHER" NUMBER. I don't know where he came up with this crazy idea, but I personally watched that sequence again, watching specifically for that, and does not do it. So, sir, you should not spread untrue rumors about Michael. Hasn't he been through enough? Sheesh. Anyhow, this is one special, great movie. So if you like Michael, or just want to watch something that may one day become a classic( like "Yellow Submarine" or "Help" for The Beatles), see it. You won't regret it.