St. Stanislaus School benefit, 9 to 4 in Kolbe Hall, Adams. Bake sale, snack bar, games, Chinese auctions, money raffle, crafts, and pierogi.
Blackinton Union Church, 1373 Massachusetts Ave., North Adams; 10 to 2. Crafts table, bake sale, Chinese auction, the Christmas table, and kid's grab bag. Lunch $4, $2 kids.
First Congregational Church, North Adams, 9-2.
Nov. 28 Becket Federated Church, Route 8, holiday bazaar from 9-3. Lunch, crafts, baked goods, holiday and other items. Information: Mary Peltier, Parish House, 413-623-5217.
Dec. 5
Holiday Fair at First Congregational Church, 25 Park Place, Lee, from 10 to 3; handcrafted items, raffles, children's shop, bake sale, cut Christmas trees and lunch from 11 to 1. Includes angel-themed goods from SERRV. Information, 413-243-1033 or www.ucc-lee.org.
Dec. 12-13
North Adams Country Club, crafts 9-4; food from That's a Wrap from 11-2. Information: Sheryl Morehouse at 413-822-3329.
Planning a bazaar this season? Submit information to info@iberkshires.com to have it listed here.
We're trying out blogs to offer shorter, easy-to-find news. Let us know what you think.
Send press releases and announcements to info@iberkshires.com. Need to contact someone at iBerkshires? Here's how.
Mammography Dispute The government's issued controversial new guidelines stating that women shouldn't get annual mammograms until age 50, rather than age 40.
iBerkshires will be meeting with local medical experts Monday. Have a question you'd like answered on this issue? Send it info@iberkshires.com with "mammogram" in the subject line.
'Michael Jackson's This Is It': But It Is Always There
By Michael S. Goldberger iBerkshires Film Critic 10:45PM / Saturday, November 07, 2009
Popcorn Column
by Michael S. Goldberger
Columbia Pictures
'This Is It' reveals the maestro, but Michael Jackson remains mystifying to the end.
I'd be afraid to work for the King of Pop, even if I could sing and dance. Per "Michael Jackson's This Is It," the postmortem paean culled from rehearsal film by director Kenny Ortega, it looks too hard ... all those steps. While we get no new skinny on Michael, this colorful peek into the precision he aspired to is sometimes a divulging testament in itself.
out of 4
In comparison to the tabloid besmirching that became part and parcel of the controversial entertainer's uniquely strange charisma, this footage will seem clinically sterile. Nope, we're not taken behind the curtain that human nature would curiously wish. But it is revealed, rather ironically, just how much practice it takes to be truly mystifying.
Expect no plot or story, except for what you might read into this well-edited batch of recent remembrances as Mr. Jackson readies for his much anticipated, 50-date "This Is It" concert tour. Indeed, appearances are deceiving. A first impression is how well he looks. Credit an air of command and perfect posture for belying his only 5-foot-10 frame.
Fact is, he's a giant to the young hopefuls who, a la "Chorus Line," pray that they'll make the cut and become a part of what is then immediately touted as family. Kisses are blown and hugs gestured. Being a sycophant is A-OK. Of course this instant loyalty and reverence is more stage-speak than a reflection on Jackson's management style.
But from what we are shown here, though it may be a bit of self-serving prestidigitation, it's Kenny Ortega, the journeyman choreographer ("Dirty Dancing") and concert tour director, who anticipates and relays his boss's every creative desire. He appears in charge.
Only Kenny can exchange banter with Michael, and then it's always about business.
So call us cynics. We know very well where the power lies and dare surmise that Jacko's dictums to his concert guru are whispered off camera. Likewise, nothing of real pungency is exchanged between any of the documentary's dramatis personae. And yet they're all into the love. That's right, it's about the love, and the music, and the love.
Oh, and about the dancing, too, which, after all, is also about the love. One hesitates to opine it's also about the Benjamins, as that might seem a bit Philistine considering the tireless dedication suffusing each frame. There's no denying Jackson & Co. reach for every bit of creativity they can summon. The husbanding of talent is simply dazzling.
Assembled for the tour that, alas, never was, the troupe seems destined to become the song-and-dance counterpart of the Air Force Thunderbirds, so great is their execution and attention to detail. Holding court on stage, MJ issues subtleties. Kenny interprets each nuance with a knowing nod. It seems so indiscernible, but not to them.
And that's showbiz, Michael Jackson style. Which leads us to the drug thing. While doubtless exaggerated ever since the first court jester sought confidence in a goblet of wine, it is nonetheless probable that more members of the artistic community have bolstered their nerve with assorted pharmaceuticals than, let us say, air traffic controllers.
The often sadly true cliche, struck to template by Fredric March in "A Star is Born" (1937), is a complex, deeply personal syndrome. However, from watching Jackson's tightly wound demeanor in rehearsal, you become wary of the mechanical single-mindedness: no jesting, no personal disclosure and, most tellingly, no true joie de vie.
The incorporation of distinctly wooden soldier moves in the sweepingly lavish stage numbers hints at paradox. While art ideally offers a tabula rasa for limitless ambitions and boundless dreams, here there is always a token of military discipline. The amateur shrink in you wonders if this is Michael's poetic way of lamenting his lost childhood.
So yep, he took drugs and apparently died from an overdose. "But enough," we scold. We'd like to be better than the yellow press: objective and merciful if not understanding. Still, unless you're a starstruck fan completely blinded by the glitter, cachet and magic, it's always there, the plethora of unanswered questions, all too weird to be dismissed.
I think it was Henry Miller ("Tropic of Cancer") who asked that he be judged not by his personal life but by his works, offering that we would otherwise be disappointed. Well, duh. Sorry if we can't always issue that pass. Even if someone as irreplaceable as Jonas Salk were implicated in a major indiscretion, we wouldn't expect society to turn its head.
Granted, MJ was a bona fide superstar, a class that, via some perverse sociology, has assumed status as America's royalty. And this movie reaffirms his musical majesty, showing him at the top of his game. But without a little candid insight tossed into the entertaining but one-dimensional mix, "Michael Jackson's This Is It" just isn't all that.
"Michael Jackson's This Is It," rated PG, is a Columbia Pictures release directed by Kenny Ortega and stars Michael Jackson, Kenny Ortega and the “This Is It” concert troupe. Running time: 112 minutes
I feel this article is critisizing Michael for something it shouldn't.
Always remember people, this is REHEARSAL footage. It was never intended to be used in a film, and therefore it is obviously not going to be the best performance you are ever going to see.
As a dancer myself, I never really try my hardest in standard rehearsals until the final few rehearsals take place. A lot of things contribute to truly amazing performances, and one of those things is an atmosphere created by the audience, which needless to say, is absent here. The film really serves as just a showcase of Michael's creative process and as a peek at the concert that could have been. Just sit back, relax, and take 'This Is It' for what it is, not what it isn't.
from: b
on: 11-19-2009
Well well well - some lively commentary on the commentary. While I too find that the author has delved quite deep into his volcab and comparative allusions, I will share just a few thoughts.
I attended the film showing with my family. I have attended and written about many many hundreds of performences of may types over the years. I too believe that this film is edited to exhibit Michael Jackson in a certain manner - and success was acheived in showing him to be strong, creative, driven, kind and capable of pulling off the greatest show on Earth, which is likely what the tour could have been. Propaganda and story manipulation perhaps? It is a film with a purpose as defined by those who produced it, as are all film productions. Did this make us believe that Michael Jackson was strong, creative, driven, kind and capable of pulling off the greatest show on Earth ? I believe that answer is yes. Was he, in fact these things? We will never know.
All I know is that we saw a side of a massive production that we seldom see and my kids are enjoying Michael Jackson songs now, which are some of the most amazingly powerful and hook-laiden tunes of their time. And perhaps now too based upon current charts.
Now I just need to take the kids to see a Beatles show....
So no need to shoot the reviewer. And, please spare the "editor" comments. Unless the commentator can fire back again !
Just keep enjoying the tunes and telling yourself, "It's only Rock & Roll But I Like It...."
Or as Frankie say, "Relax....
from: BW
on: 11-11-2009
You said it was rude and uncalled for, for name calling but you supposedly being editor called mj as "jacko". This absolutely annoys me! Show the legend some respect. He's Jackson not Jacko.
Editor: Celebrities often have nicknames they're known by that they may not like. "Jacko" and "idiot" are not comparable.
from: Manners
on: 11-09-2009
'But without a little candid insight tossed into the entertaining but one-dimensional mix, "Michael Jackson's This Is It" just isn't all that.'
Movie reviewer is being chided for 'reviewing' that which movie reviewer believes to be *omitted* from said movie. Perhaps movie reviewer should familiarize himself with Occam's Razor: 'entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem.' Oh, and the facts -- just the facts, sir -- would be nice, too ::wink::
from: MiMi
on: 11-09-2009
The writer needs to get a life rather than try to hang himself by his words and hang others by his grandiose sounding words. I hope he can learn a bit about humility from Michael and bring that humility to his writing. He is clearly not in touch with his readers. He is definitely in touch with the grandiosity that he projects onto his semi-obscure words. I pity his friends. I doubt he has too many though.
from: Srini
on: 11-09-2009
Maybe if you were as thorough in your work as Michael Jackson is in his, you might have known a few facts, obviously not searched by you. Every person who has recorded in the studio with Jackson and on videos welcome's working with him. Why? Because he is prepared, he knows the words, the music, what he is supposed to do. Can record in a lot less time. Also, if you were aware of the concert tours that he did and donated ALL of the proceeds to charity, you might just think, it's not all about the money. It's all about talent and entertainment!
Editor: That's what he said.
from: LG
on: 11-08-2009
You know I consider myself an intelligent man and I read your article. However, the questions begs - why did you write it?
Just look at the movie and enjoy the process. I was not a diehard fan but I was amazed at what I saw on the screen. This man was superhuman. I don't believe all the rumors and innuendo. I found out long ago to only believe half of what you read in the media - after all - a human wrote it - with their own set of standards on veracity. Chill out! He's gone - you can't hurt him anymore.
Editor: The question begs why a movie reviewer is chided for writing - yes, a movie review. Or why people feel they have to defend Jackson. Why wasn't anybody defending the Coen Brothers last week? Weird.
from: Larry Hill
on: 11-08-2009
There are unanswered questions, but that's not what This is It was intended to answer. I, too, await a truly objective biography, but I can't think of who would provide it, and think it's years away.
from: honolulee
on: 11-08-2009
Wow, I hope you're proud of yourself. So many references to smart things! We, as readers, are truly impressed by your use of historical references and the Thesaurus. What an intellectual you are! My favorite part is "I think it was Henry Miller ("Tropic of Cancer") who said..." - as though this was something you just thought, and didn't look up on Wikipedia. I can only assume you wear some time of monocle and drink fine wines in a room full of non-Philistine reading material, preferably out-of-print versions of it.
from:
on: 11-08-2009
couldnt have said it better MiMi!
from: l.o.v.e
on: 11-08-2009
The movie was great for what it was/is.
Remember, this footage was NEVER intended for the public, at lest not in this form.
I never bought an album from any artist then wondered what kind of cereal they eat for breakfast. I'm a fan or not for their marketable talent, not their lifestyle.
I challenge anyone to compare this REHERSAL footage to the REHERSAL footage of any other performer of any time/era.
Even the "Great King" Elvis, was not so polished in REHERSALS.
Oh I'm sure MJ, had plenty of bad moments we didn't get to see. But there should be little question about his talent, and that should be what we focus on.
Also, that man was 50, and could still sing AND dance!!
from: Darkkewlz
on: 11-08-2009
Loved the movie. To see him create the way I feel when I hear his songs, it was truly amazing. Talent and feeling....and love.
from: Man in the Mirror
on: 11-08-2009
Me thinks you had a little too much butter on your popcorn. Try a pretzel next time. It's easier to hold onto, and you won't be slithering around on the ground licking up dirt for your next review.
Editor: Huh?
from: MiMi
on: 11-08-2009
That's way it has grossed over a million dollars. you are just another one trying to drag him down leave him alone for GOD sakes
Editor: This comment has been edited because we don't allow name-calling. It's rude and uncalled for. We encourage different perspectives and intelligent commentary, and accept a high-level of snark, but no ranting.
from:
on: 11-08-2009
I have grown up with MJ's music and was a dormant fan until he died. With all the tributes, my fandom was alive again. Seeing all of his career in a snapshot, I realised what an icon and legend he truely is. I do not believe all the lies and judgements that society have made on his private life-Having looked at the evidence availiable to me, I conclude that he is indeed innocent, perhaps too naive about the goodness and intent of human nature! For a fan on any level, the movie gets a higher rating. When the first song starts it makes your heart thunder and you think what a timeless hit! The cinema sound quality makes it a must see and you get a taste of that sold out concert that unfortunately never was. A sucessful comeback it would have been-Being a true legend-he has made a comeback through dying.
from: A grounded fan
on: 11-08-2009
Wellll. I'll get back to you once I've looked up all these words with a benjamin.
Then I'll be able to know what a virtuoso you are with words.
from: sjdaud
on: 11-08-2009
I thought it was great. It was fascinating to see how such a performance is put together. It seemed well done to me and I didn't miss a bunch of back stage stuff, it seems that's all we've heard since his death. I don't think he had the best life. I wasn't a fan during his life but I have respect for what he accomplished and his tenacity at picking himself back up.
from: Pat
on: 11-08-2009
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