Author Topic: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad  (Read 6267 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« on: July 27, 2012, 11:46:37 pm »
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4459137/THE-Queen-joins-James-Bond-for-the-most-amazing-opening-ceremony-ever.html

Her Majesty's Secret Service: Queen's surprise star role with James Bond in most amazing opening ceremony ever


By Derek Brown
Published: 27th July 2012



THE Queen made her surprise acting debut in front of billions tonight as she joined James Bond to launch the London Olympics with the most spectacular Games opening ever staged.

In a breathtaking ceremony masterminded by Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle, Daniel Craig as Secret Agent 007 was seen arriving at Buckingham Palace by black cab to meet Her Majesty.

He escorted her to a patriotically-decorated helicopter before they flew off and both appeared to parachute into the Olympic Stadium a few miles away in East London. At the exact moment the "daredevils" reached the ground, Her Majesty appeared in the stadium wearing an identical salmon-coloured dress as the parachutist, to a standing ovation.



more at link
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #1 on: July 27, 2012, 11:47:04 pm »

Paul McCartney performs Hey Jude at the Olympic Opening Ceremony.
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #2 on: July 27, 2012, 11:48:01 pm »

American athletes enter the Olympic Stadium at the Opening Ceremony
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #3 on: July 27, 2012, 11:49:07 pm »

Comedian Rowan Atkinson makes a surprise appearance with the London Symphony Orchestra - and doesn't appear to be giving it his full attention.
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #4 on: July 28, 2012, 12:30:07 am »
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/london-2012/9433039/London-2012-Opening-Ceremony-first-review.html

London 2012 Opening Ceremony, first review
Danny Boyle's London 2012 opening ceremony was a triumph of punk over pomp, says Bernadette McNulty.
5 out of 5 stars

 By Bernadette McNulty

9:56PM BST 27 Jul 2012



Artistically, Olympic ceremonies are strange beasts. Taking years to produce, they are performed only once, with an enormous cast of non-professionals. They are simultaneously theatrical productions – performed in the technically awkward, cavernous round of a sports stadium – and global TV spectaculars. They must invent a script that translates the abstract gobbledy gook of Olympic philosophies and the host nation’s idealised image into a largely wordless dramatic narrative using music, dance, mime and circus skills combined with an earth-shaking Bonfire night firework display and in the modern age, a megawatt flashing light show. They are creative and technical nightmares and by their very nature, utterly surreal.

Building on Leni Riefenstahl’s marching blueprint and getting souped up by the Americans in 1984 with the pizzazz of stadium rock, ceremonies have evolved a kind of universal language and aesthetic: bright, neon colours; tightly choreographed, synchronised bodies creating geometric shapes; futuristic set designs with tiered central stages; doves, flames, catsuits, pom poms and cute children. Their drama lies in their gloss and shine, their inhuman scale and shape and clean perfection, artistically transcending mundane reality.

After watching the final rehearsal on Wednesday night I can say this was certainly not a conventional show. Director Danny Boyle might have kept the flames and cute children and there were plenty of showpiece bangs but in every other respect his opening gambit ripped up the ceremonies rule book. This was about punk rather than pomp. His palette for ‘The Isles of Wonder’ wasn’t primary brights but mud hues and mattes, a Lowry-ish smudge of grass greens, dirty whites, industrial greys and even black. There were more cloth caps and bloomers than Lycra and sequins. In place of doves, there were cows and ducks. Instead of building a glittering space age set, Boyle filled the stadium with earth and bricks, conjuring strange centrepieces out of lopsided hillocks, belching chimney stacks, coal mines, hospitals and red-bricked houses.

Thematically too Boyle’s view of British history was quietly subversive, stripped of any iconic grandeur or royal pageantry. This was the story of migration and immigration, protest and rebellion. From the land to the cities, the working classes were shown literally rolling the grass away from under their feet. A carousel of Jarrow marchers, miners, pearly kings and carnival queens swirled around the arena, visually somewhere between Les Miserable and the people’s procession artist Jeremy Deller created for the Manchester International Festival in 2009.

Compared to the usually banal platitudes of global togetherness and national pride that goes on at an Olympics ceremony, this seemed breathtakingly politically charged. However, I don’t think Boyle was trying to make some agit-prop point, although there were echoes of his formative late Seventies years in the boundary pushing Joint Stock theatre company. The working class Irish Catholic boy from Bury who came of age during that punk decade, like many of his contemporaries in the Nineties Brit pop and art generation including Damien Hirst and Jarvis Cocker, has made a career out of depicting the working classes with sly humour and subversive surrealism rather than chippy anger. Boyle’s films have so often been about groups and communities of outsiders rather than individuals, whether that was Glasgow junkies, Thai beach bums or Indian slum kids.



But this ceremony was also about Boyle the award-winning, popular filmmaker and it was steeped in his signature moves: break-neck speed montages, widescreen angles, fast zooms. More than anything it was a love letter to British film, TV and music, from Mary Poppins to Harry Potter, Lionel Bart to Soul 2 Soul. With his musical partners Underworld it paid homage to some of the greatest British hits of the last fifty years spliced together with the anarchic energy of the rave culture Boyle was the first director to really understand. The whole audience on Wednesday was singing along and this was easily the best section for me that really brought the whole show to life, and made me proud of modern Britain.

I’m not sure it all worked. Without pushing those traditional ceremonial buttons so cravenly Boyle traded the visceral punch of a Lady Gaga-style arena show for a more opaque experience. Kenneth Brannagh is a fine actor but lacks the feral magnetism of Mark Rylance and overall, without powerful lead characters, the show periodically lost focus combined sometimes with an almost baffling level of visual detail. The pacing veered towards either too slow or too fast – I wanted to listen to so many of those great songs for longer – and I have no idea what the rest of the world will make of shire horses or men in top hats and tails gathered around a tree spouting Shakespeare. Maybe they will think it is the strangest episode of Downton Abbey they have ever seen.

Nonetheless, this opening ceremony was original, cool, intense and utterly compelling. More importantly underneath the old punk snarl, Boyle is a generous director unafraid of sentimentality or unabashed joy, and he filled this ceremony with heart and soul. You could see it reflected in the passion of all those thousands of volunteers dancing and drumming. Rather than turning them into anonymous cogs in a ceremonial wheel he gave them characters or fantastic choreography and in doing so made them all into star performers. It was the hardest directorial job in the world but Boyle did us all proud.
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #5 on: July 28, 2012, 12:31:56 am »
Two critiques so far....Why can't NBC show this live instead of a 3.5 hour tape delay.....and why is everything announced if French first then English......grrrrrr
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #6 on: July 28, 2012, 12:33:01 am »
The skit of the Queen and James Bond was priceless....I enjoyed that along with the Queens corgies..lol
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #7 on: July 28, 2012, 12:36:09 am »
LMAO..they are doing a tribute to their NHS....National Health Service...they love it soooo :silly:
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #8 on: July 28, 2012, 12:41:35 am »
I tuned it out after the whole tribute to British-Obamacare.

The whole intro has been lame IMO.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Lipstick on a Hillary

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 6,014
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #9 on: July 28, 2012, 12:46:45 am »
The skit of the Queen and James Bond was priceless....I enjoyed that along with the Queens corgies..lol

That WAS great!

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #10 on: July 28, 2012, 12:48:04 am »
The Queen and Bond thing was funny, although I've never liked Daniel Craig as Bond.  (Sean Connery FTW!)
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline jmyrlefuller

  • J. Myrle Fuller
  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 22,326
  • Gender: Male
  • Realistic nihilist
    • Fullervision
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #11 on: July 28, 2012, 12:48:34 am »
LMAO..they are doing a tribute to their NHS....National Health Service...they love it soooo :silly:
Yes. The Tories are not particularly happy about it either, apparently. I was trying to watch it earlier on CTV (as I mentioned) and this is where I had to turn it off.

However, a rather right-leaning former classmate of mine has perhaps the most amusing comment.

"The revolutionary war suspiciously appears to be absent from the history of Great Britain."
New profile picture in honor of Public Domain Day 2024

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #12 on: July 28, 2012, 01:08:03 am »
"The revolutionary war suspiciously appears to be absent from the history of Great Britain."

They've pretty much blocked out the memory that "rather nasty rebellion."

Anyway, channeled surfed back by, and could not believe how utterly retarded this is?  Are they trying to outdo the Chicoms or something because if that is the case, this is an epic fail.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #13 on: July 28, 2012, 01:48:33 am »
NBC seems to be running Obama commercials a lot.
« Last Edit: July 28, 2012, 01:50:22 am by Atomic Cow »
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #14 on: July 28, 2012, 02:56:15 am »
Watching it off and on here and so far I give it a C-.......   one of the best ever was the LA Summer Olympics IMHO
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #15 on: July 28, 2012, 02:58:15 am »
The cameramen really love to keep the camera on the hotties.  88devil
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline mystery-ak

  • Owner
  • Administrator
  • ******
  • Posts: 381,842
  • Gender: Female
  • Let's Go Brandon!
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #16 on: July 28, 2012, 02:59:13 am »
The cameramen really love to keep the camera on the hotties.  88devil

Yeah I noticed that too....will the USA ever enter...... whistle
Proud Supporter of Tunnel to Towers
Support the USO
Democrat Party...the Party of Infanticide

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
-Matthew 6:34

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #17 on: July 28, 2012, 03:00:02 am »
US should be up next.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #18 on: July 28, 2012, 03:00:28 am »
I love the Olympic Theme by John Williams.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #19 on: July 28, 2012, 03:01:07 am »
The Turkish flag bearer was a hottie.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #20 on: July 28, 2012, 03:03:20 am »
Get the camera off the freaking Wookie.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Chieftain

  • AMF, YOYO
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9,621
  • Gender: Male
  • Your what hurts??
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #21 on: July 28, 2012, 03:30:50 am »
I can't take any more.  We had to turn the TV off.


Offline Atomic Cow

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 18,221
  • Gender: Male
  • High Yield Minion
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #22 on: July 28, 2012, 03:33:17 am »
I couldn't believe that Costas admitted that Romney saved the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City when they showed Mitt and his wife.
"...And these atomic bombs which science burst upon the world that night were strange, even to the men who used them."  H. G. Wells, The World Set Free, 1914

"The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections." -Lord Acton

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #23 on: July 28, 2012, 04:01:10 am »
I can't take any more.  We had to turn the TV off.

They are up to Gambia -- so far I have caught bits and pieces as I switched back and forth with BOR on Fox...
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Opening Ceremonies of the 33rd Olympiad
« Reply #24 on: July 28, 2012, 05:05:14 am »
Okay the USA outfits are hideous with those FRENCH beret's....... 
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776