'This Is It': Does the Michael Jackson documentary redeem or fail to acquit?

The posthumous Michael Jackson documentary, “This Is It,” reported less-than-impressive numbers on opening night but has since garnered hope with its increasing ticket sales, says our Company Town blog.

The box-office surge is partially due to its popularity overseas (like in Japan), but also because of positive word-of-mouth recommendations.

However, readers’ reactions to the film still mirror public opinion seen and heard after Jackson’s sudden death in June: a battle between sympathy for the tragedy of losing a legend and repulsion to repeated allegations of child molestation during his life.

Times film critic Ann Powers gave the documentary an overall positive review, and some readers agreed:

Natalie wrote: 'This Is It' speaks loud and clear to debunk all the myths about Michael Jackson that media/tabloid has implanted in the public's mind. He is a true genius who masters his craft, yet he is also humble and childlike. There is so much talent and goodness in this man that the world has just chose to ignore -- and now we've lost him forever. This film is a gift to all of Michael's fans and music lovers.

For All Time wrote: Through 'This Is It' we learn more about the kind of person MJ really was inside than the last 30 years of slanderous gossip about him. His relentless pursuit of musical perfection, his rare kind of professionalism with fellow players and his unmatched energy level will never be seen in show business ever again.

But others stood by their opinion that Jackson’s personal problems overrode any good brought about by his music:

David wrote: Cant we let this narcissistic madman fade away?? Oops..there is still cash to be squeezed out of him.

archangel wrote: Oh, please Jackson "channeling God"! And which channel was he tuning into during his drug induced God delusions? The Baby Channel, Barney, Comedy Central, the Doper Channels (MTV/VH1). I'm in a quandary deciding which the worse pathos is; Jackson for his mediocre, tainted and trashed legacy... or the media for squeezing this landfill stench from a dead guy just to rack up the sales? Enough!

joel wrote: of course foreigners would cough up the money to see jackson they think he was a god. most countries over there think its ok to molest a child.

If you have seen “This Is It,” tell us what you think. Do you think we ought to appreciate a great film honoring this departed musical legend? Or is it impossible to separate Jackson’s personal life -- and his controversial relationships with children -- from his music?

And if you haven’t seen the film, are you planning on attending? Are you waiting for the inevitable DVD? Or have you had enough of the King of Pop?

-- Kelsey Ramos

Photo: Movie poster for "This Is It." Credit: Sony Pictures

Readers still split about Rihanna and Chris Brown as 'Rated R' is set to drop

It has been almost nine months since Chris Brown was arrested for assaulting Rihanna while the then-couple drove home from a pre-Grammy party, an incident that caused a huge uproar in the music community and among fans. Brown was sentenced in August to five years of probation and 180 days of community labor.

After the assault, readers responded passionately, both defending Chris Brown and supporting Rihanna as a victim of abuse:

What wrote: Plaxico gets 2 years of his life taken away for taking a gun into a club and shooting himself accidentally in the leg. Harming no one but himself. Chris Brown gets probation for beating the crap out of Rihanna. Our justice system/prison business is extremely flawed.

General wrote: I don't care if she spit in his face and called him an idiotic womanizer. I don't care if she called him every name you can think of. There is no excuse for what he did. A picture tells it all and he doesn't look too hurt to me. Biting someone? That is just sick.

Shakaila Jones wrote: I LOVE MY Christopher Maurice Brown 4get rihanna. I am ANTI-Rihanna right now. She has slaughtered Chris's good name and I dont like her at all. I didnt like when they started dating cuz she took my man and now because of this heck no. I never will like her again. Now everytime people mention chris brown name they are going to call him an abuser and all that nonsense. I will do anything to clear Chris name and rid him of that triffling, jealous, mean, RIHANNA!!!!!!!

Later this month Rihanna will return to the music scene with the release of her new album, “Rated R.” The album features the eye-opening serious single “Russian Roulette” that marks her music comeback from the February incident -- yet regardless of where Rihanna stands, the feelings of our readers remains strongly polarized (comments after the jump):

Sculpture installation at new LAPD headquarters: art or atrocious?

In today's column, Steve Lopez finds mixed reactions to the six cast-bronze pieces recently installed outside of the nearly completed LAPD headquarters downtown. Police Chief William J. Bratton said he walked by the installation to see whether "it's as ugly up close as it is when you're driving by." A passerby said, "It's nice, but is this a pig, or what is it?"

If you haven't seen the objects in person, take a look at a these photos. Let us know what you think of the installation.

Photo: Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times

Is 'Ratatouille' really gay? (Not that there's anything wrong with that)

We've got a live one over at our food blog, The Daily Dish.

Is the Academy Award-winning "Ratatouille" really a gay-coming out story? Ostensibly, the movie is a straight-forward tale about a rat whose true passion lies in the kitchen. But Times Staff Writer Betty Hallock found out about an upcoming lecture at UCLA that portrays the film as a homosexual coming of age, with a heavy dose of Oedipal and race conflicts.

Readers were divided. Here's what a couple had to say:

Says SaMo:

When I first saw the movie, I too thought there was a gay subtext in the fact that the rat, by its very nature, does not "belong" in the kitchen. The movie suggested that even this supposed taboo could be overcome...But it does the gay rights movement a disservice.  [That] to me was the problem with the movie: it set up an impossible to overcome hurdle. I don't want rats cooking for me, so I really couldn't root for Remy to succeed.  But I'm all in favor of gay people doing anything they want: marrying, adopting, fostering children, whatever.

Says Storm:

Okay, really I am gay and I did not see any kind of coming out from the RAT. You could apply the rats self awareness to simply growing up...this is a big push....Really, just let it go...stop looking for the gay angle.

-- Rene Lynch

Photo credit: Disney/Pixar

Does this really belong in a museum?

Times art critic Christopher Knight is taking the Los Angeles County Museum of Art to task for its new exhibition -- a collection of Vanity Fair magazine photographs, including the much-talked-about photo, above, featuring Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson. Says Knight: " 'Vanity Fair Portraits' is a vanity exhibition, plain and simple. And that's precisely what our historic moment needs least right now, especially from a major civic art museum."

Reaction to Knight's article so far has ranged from this:

Ugh. No wonder the East Coast looks down on us. -- Frank F

and this ... :