Review: JUSTIN BIEBER: NEVER SAY NEVER

I was preparing for a headache and silliness going into JUSTIN BIEBER: NEVER SAY NEVER… I was not prepared to like the film as much as I did!

NEVER SAY NEVER is the story of Justin Bieber’s journey from Stratford, Ontario to his first sold out show at Madison Square Garden, the biggest venue in the US that a musician can ever play. The film skips between his daily routine as he prepares for his big show and home movies that show just how talented this kid truly is! It also jumps between songs performed in 3-D for all you crazy Bieber fans out there.

I was absolutely blown away by the home movies of Justin performing. There are clips of him beating on a chair, or playing the drums that had my head spinning! How is this kid, at an age that has to be 5 or younger, keeping such amazing time with the music? As his hands hit a kitchen chair this amazing rhythm comes pouring out. This is far beyond simple music lessons, and disproves any theory that this kid is a manufactured product. Don’t let the pop and r&b songs fool you… he is extremely talented! In a way, Justin is a genius when it comes to music. Something inside of him just clicked at an early age, and he just understood it. You can see this in a clip where he is playing an acoustic guitar that is bigger than he is, and not only is he keeping the time, but it sounds amazing!

After putting up some videos on YOUTUBE.COM, Justin’s mother (Pattie Mallette) was contacted by Scooter Braun, a talent manager who was interested in signing Justin. He convinced them to come down to Atlanta, eventually moving them there. When record labels kept saying no, Scooter had Justin sing for Usher, and that’s when things really took off! With his first album being released in 2009, he shot to the top fast! Of course, this didn’t happen without hard work.

The heartfelt part of this film is hearing the tales of his mother and family trying to raise money so that Justin could get his first big drum set, and just how much they support him. The film definitely has a family angle that any parent would appreciate. The film showcases the relationship that he has with his mother, and just how close they really are. It’s quite heartwarming. His father is only seen for about five minutes in the film. It might not have been intentional, but it gave the impression that his father isn’t around too much. It’s also crazy to see just how little downtime he actually has. When Justin does get some time off he spends it with family and friends. Of course, he also makes it a priority to stay in touch with his fans, even if it is just by twitter. And yes, that is him twittering the whole time, not just someone on his team. He, as well as his team, understand just how important the fans are, and they go out of their way to show their appreciation.

Justin Bieber is so dedicated to his fans, that he was visibly devastated when he had to cancel a show due to an infection in his throat. They ended up putting him on vocal rest, and trying everything they could to rest his voice for his big show. The crazy thing, and it’s not necessarily negative, is that they show his vocal coach lecturing him, and others around him about him screaming with his friends when he has down time, and on how he needs to take better care of his voice. At one point, he wanted McDonald’s and the scene turned from him joking and batting is eyes for chicken nuggets to her lecturing him about his commitment to his career… all over his playful desire for fast food. It was sad in a way. We take for granted the little things in life. I hope his fans realize everything that this kid has and continues to give up so that he can be at the top of his game.

The 3-D concert in itself rides backseat the the actual story for me. Having said this, I am sure that this is the part that all of the little girls are really stoked to see. Never fear! There are plenty of winks, hair flips… and he even reaches out to the audience on multiple occasions to make it feel like he is actually singing to you, and not the group of girls sitting behind you. Don’t worry, you’re special! It also showcases a ton of special guests, such as Usher, Miley Cyrus, Boyz II Men, Sean Kingston, Ludacris and Jaden Smith. It must have been quite the event to see live.

I really thought that I would be sitting through a cheesy, lame teeny-bopper movie. I ended up sitting through a fantastic documentary that was both entertaining and eye-opening. Whether you like the kid or not, I highly recommend this film!

OVERALL RATING: 4.75 out of 5 stars … and a picture of me and Bieber!