Posts
The Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics was a great spectacle that represented British culture and got the world excited for the next few weeks. However, it was not without some mistakes.
There were many impressive moments from the performance entitled the "Isle of Wonder." Director Danny Boyle needed $42 million, but with it he created an impressive set filled with great dancing and acting to help tell a story throughout the event.
Highlights include the lighting of the torch, a great fireworks display, "Hey Jude" performed by Paul McCartney and some sweet mutton chops.
Unfortunately, there were also some lowlights.
"Skydiving Queen"
Of course the Queen has to have a grand entrance, but is there one person watching who thought, "I wonder if she is actually skydiving into the stadium right now?"
The idea of James Bond taking the Queen into the stadium was a good start (although I am not sure why they kept focusing on the dogs), but maybe just showing up in an Aston Martin could have done the trick.
There is nothing graceful about a woman in her 80s jumping out of a helicopter.
Relationship formed via texting
There was a portion of the show that featured a young man and woman meeting each other thanks to technology. It started off with the guy texting the girl that he has her phone, although it is unclear where he sent that message.
It unraveled from there, as the two sent back-and-forth meaningless thoughts until they eventually met on the center stage and shared a kiss.
The opening ceremony is meant to show the world everything you are proud of from your country. Instead, this scene featured the youth showing that they cannot form full sentences. The kids might have found love, but we do not need to recreate a bad romantic comedy on the world stage.
Rowan Atkinson
I have been told that people find him funny, but I cannot understand why.
His "Chariots of Fire" sketch took way too long and reminded Americans that they do not like British humor. There is a reason the UK version of "The Office" only lasted two seasons.
Come Together by the Arctic Monkeys
There are few songs that encompass the Olympic spirit better than the Beatles classic "Come Together." The organizers made a great decision to play a live version of this song during the ceremony.
Unfortunately, it was played by the indie rock band Arctic Monkeys. The group did a solid job, but there was someone in the building who knows the song quite well: Sir Paul McCartney.
He was obviously being saved for the big finale of "Hey Jude," which got everyone to sing along, but it is still difficult to find the merit of covering a song while the original singer is ready to play.
There were a few interesting decisions that took place throughout the event, but overall it did not fail to impress.
Great Britain should be proud of the show as it is a good sign that we will see a very successful and entertaining Summer Olympics.
No comments:
Post a Comment