It didn’t take long to get “This Is It” fast-tracked into theaters following Michael Jackson’s recent death. The film opens on Oct. 28, 2009, for a limited two-week run. It offers a behind-the-scenes look at the pop star as he developed and rehearsed for concerts that would have taken place beginning this summer in London’s O2 Arena.
Kenny Ortega, the man behind “High School Musical” and Miley Cyrus’ concert film, is directing this film, which is being produced by Randy Phillips, Kenny Ortega and Paul Gongaware. Executive producers are John Branca and John McClain.
I’m curious to see this film, …read more

New on DVD and Blu-ray this week is a fun group of movies and TV shows. Check it out, and be sure to order through the Film Gecko Amazon Store links below.
To see everything in Film Gecko’s Amazon Store, click here!

Mad Men, Season 2 (DVD) (Blu-ray)
The State: The Complete Series
Leverage: Season One
Grey Gardens
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero: Season 1.1
ER: The Complete Eleventh Season
Michael Jackson: The Trial and Triumph of the King of Pop
Bleach Uncut Box Set, Vol. 3: The Rescue
The Towering Inferno (DVD) (Blu-ray)
Wire in the Blood: The Complete Sixth Season
The Haunting in Connecticut (DVD) (Blu-ray)
The …read more

The sudden death of Michael Jackson has left filmmakers scrambling to tweak or delete any scenes involving the pop star. Such was the case with "Bruno," where a Jackson-related sketch ended up getting cut just hours before the Los Angeles premiere.
After much discussion, Universal Pictures removed a scene from the movie where Bruno, the flamboyant Austrian journalist played by Sacha Baron Cohen, interviews an unsuspecting Latoya Jackson about several topics, including her brother.
The sketch included jokes about Jackson’s high-pitched voice and his trademark white glove.
I mean, basically, the movie is really over-the-top anyway, so had Jackson …read more

Now that I’ve posted my favorite Michael Jackson video ("Thriller"), it’s time for a post about Farrah Fawcett, who died at the age of 62 today. I grew up with both of these icons, listening to Michael’s album "Thriller" and watching "Charlie’s Angels" with my mom and dad. Yes, even though it was about three hot babes, it was still a fun family show, along the lines of "Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island."
But lest we forget, Farrah also did a lot of movies during her career, including the critically acclaimed TV movie "The Burning Bed," about an abused …read more

Wow, it’s been a rough week in Hollywood, with the passing of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and now Michael Jackson. While he was known more for his music than anything else (well, and his eccentricities), I think we can all agree that "Thriller" is a great music video that really qualifies as a movie short. Here’s the short version of the smash-hit video (thanks to MTV!).