Sunita Patel stayed up late for today’s early morning Jacko film premiere.

It was billed as the cinema event of the year – and it didn’t disappoint.

The King of Pop looked back to his Thriller best, meticulously crafting his trademark moves and performing some of his most beloved hits in his final curtain call.

The film, which was intended for Jackson’s personal library – charts a fascinating insight into his final months before his death when his only audience is a small group of his musicians, dancers and technicians.

It is based on more than 100 hours of behind-the-scenes footage from rehearsals for the 50 sold-out London shows Jackson had planned to perform in July and which would have been his return to the stage.

Sony executives snapped up the footage for 60 million dollars (£36.8m) after watching just a few minutes of video.

Directed by Kenny Ortega – a long-time friend of Jackson’s and the choreographer of the superstar’s ill-fated shows at the O2 arena – the two-hour nostalgic movie celebrates the artist’s dancing, singing and songwriting genius, offering a tantalising glimpse of what might have been.

Jackson is seen putting the finishing touches to his comeback show, working out dance moves to classics such as Thriller, They Don’t Care About Us, Billie Jean, Beat It, Smooth Criminal, Jam, Man in the Mirror, Earth Song, I Just Can’t Stop Loving You, History, Gotta Be Startin’ Somethin’ and Black or White with his backing dancers and band.

The star is also seen performing The Way You Make Me Feel with a solo girl dancer, followed by an energetic sequence with some male dancers dressed as construction workers.

The mean, gorgeous and hot dancers are an extension of the legend himself, who sometimes appears a slender and fragile figure, but comes to life in a single beat rhythm.

At one point he drops to the ground in a press-up pose and leaps back up.

You see a Jackson who is very hands-on. He knows his records and does not shy away from calling all the shots from fine-tuning a piano, to the choreography and the mechanics of the stage show.

Pleasing the fans is the solo goal. It is clear this is what makes him happy as you see him laughing, having fun and cracking jokes with his team.

“You want to show them a time that they have never seen before,” he tells his crew.

The passion and drive for perfection – and to be adored and loved – is still strong.

Chronicling the months from March through June, 2009, the priceless archive shows him in good health, and good song.

It was like he had been holding back for years and then suddenly he was back to performing like he used to – a return to the 80s and early 90s, before the child abuse allegations and his odd messianic behaviour.

And it appears his ambition to go that one step further to achieve that wow factor and jaw-dropping spectacle never ceases to amaze. Speaking ahead of the world-wide extravaganza, Ortega revealed: “I think Michael wanted the world on stage, and he wanted the wonders of the world represented on stage.

“We had choirs and children and dancers and singers and musicians and effects and movies and the world’s largest 3-D hi-definition screen. “What Michael wanted was the Victoria Falls in 3-D pouring over the stage – with him in front of it, singing!”

Jackson died of an overdose of prescription medicine at his Los Angeles home on June 25, aged 50.

It was hoped the movie would be part of the ‘healing process’ for Jackson’s fans – but it has sparked a backlash from followers who have slammed it, claiming it covers up the extent of his declining health.

Protest website this-isÑnot-it.com stops short of calling for a boycott of the movie, but it says people should watch it “with different eyes”.

One of his greatest fans – actress Elizabeth Taylor – who was also one of Jackson’s closest friends, hailed him “a modern day prophet” and urged people to go see the film so they can say to themselves, “I saw genius in my lifetime”.

Most will see it as a moving epitaph that cements their beliefs and portrays Jackson as he ought to be remembered – the greatest entertainer that ever lived.