UPDATE 2-'This Is It' shows Jackson could still entertain
* Film opens in 17 cities
* Jennifer Lopez, Will Smith, Jackson brothers at LA show
* Film wins early praise from critics, fans (Recasts with premiere, adds quotes from critics, fans)
LOS ANGELES, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's "This Is It" premiered to a star-filled crowd including Will Smith, Jennifer Lopez and four of the singer's brothers on Tuesday, winning early praise from critics and showing fans that the King of Pop could still entertain.
Culled from 80 hours of videotape taken of Jackson's final days of rehearsals for a series of London concerts planned for July, the film has been called "a story of a master of his craft" by director Kenny Ortega.
Several hundred fans, many of them wearing a single sequined glove like the one the pop star donned in the 1980s, gathered for the Los Angeles premiere and a simultaneous opening in London. Some 150,000, including fans from Brazil and Australia, watched the Los Angeles event live on the Internet.
Premieres were also held in 15 other cities including Seoul, Johannesburg, Rio De Janeiro, and Berlin.
Motown Records founder Berry Gordy and Jackson's brothers Jermaine, Tito, Jackie and Marlon were among those who paid tribute to Jackson, who died suddenly in June.
Ortega opened the Los Angeles premiere by describing Jackson as "a man who's heart pumped to make this world a better place. Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' is and always has been for the fans."
The movie opens with the singers and dancers Jackson had chosen to be part of the show giving testimonials on how they felt to be working with the superstar, then dives directly into his hit "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".
What follows is nearly two hours of Jackson rehearsing to perform some of his biggest hits for the "This Is It" show. It would have been filled with dances for songs like "Beat It," a new film version of the ghostly "Thriller," rocking tunes like "Black or White" and the moving "Man in the Mirror."
Throughout the film, audiences see Jackson working with his singers and dancers to create a show that would wow his fans, and the premiere audience seemed impressed, cheering at least seven times through the show.
EARLY PRAISE
Claudia Puig, movie critic for USA Today, told Reuters after the film that it "gives you a sense of the show" and is "a window into his still powerful ability to entertain."
The Hollywood Reporter critic Kirk Honeycutt wrote that "with quiet confidence, he clearly was putting together a spectacular concert for the London stage." Continued...
