To say I loved the opening ceremony?

[scottishheather86]

I really enjoyed the show last night! It was bold and ambitious and all
Encompassing! It was a shame about the rain, but I think overall it was really great! But shocked how many utter miserable responses to it there have been!

I'm shocked that people are still complaining that there were trans people performing and a cheeky scene that insinuated a threesome! Love, passion and style are all big French themes! Can we get past the British stiff upper lip and just enjoy it for what it is?

Remember, we had David (not holier than thou) Beckham driving a boat up the Thames and loads of weird and quirky things at our opening ceremony, that would have gone over the heads of most of the rest of the world.

I thought celebrating the execution of a middle aged woman by cutting her head off was in piss poor taste.

I liked the horse and thought Celine Dion was absolutely astounding.

The rest was just.......cheap Eurotrash

It was a mixed bag. A bit dull in places. Too long (they are always too long). But really interesting culturally and artistically. I liked the statues of women particularly. And the Seine being the focal point. Lots of thought had gone into it. London’s was much more fun. But last night was overall engaging and thought provoking.

Overall I enjoyed it. Boats do not work as well as a stadium, but it was something different. The main thing that was lacking was a crowd. They were very thinned out on the approach to the Eiffel Tower. I understand it was for safety reasons but it meant things like the mechanical horse lost the excitement factor, and we were all just watching this horse in near silence for what felt like about ten minutes. And the boat ride with Carl Lewis and Serena was nerve wracking, they all looked so unstable!

I loved the Marie Antoinette segment, also the singer, and the ballet dancer. I didn't really have a problem with the fashion segment except that it went on way too long. The person in the tippy toe heels marching up and down all that time.. Paris has such a strong fashion history that I expected more than a nightclub runway show. Mind you, I'm also glad we didn't see any ancient archived Chanel dissolving in the rain. Honestly, I didn't like that there were kids there. I can only think it tied into the "would you let a drag queen read to your kid" type discourse, like a stamp of family friendly approval. But why? It's O for some things to just be adult friendly. Throwing a kid into the middle doesn't turn it into the Tweenies. It certainly didn't make that performers free hanging bollock disappear.

From the walk towards the Louvre though it was all perfect. The balloon, the light show, and Celine Dion was just magnificent.

I enjoyed it! It was different and somehow brought French history alive with a modern twist.

But most people weren’t “offended by the whole event”?

Lots of people were unimpressed by the drag queens. But even before that there were lots of people saying the lack of crowds meant that the atmosphere was flat.

There was no roar. No atmosphere. It was a great series of performances/displays but nothing that really connected, and the athletes barely visible. It lost the sense of occasion, for the most part.

That’s what most people are objecting to. It’s nothing to do with offence.

I said "some people" not "most people".

What was papa Smurf about?

Ok, fair enough.

Change my post to “some”. Same point applies.

People were fed up already before the drag queens arrived. It’s not as if they were loving the event, the drag queens arrived, and THEN they decided they hated it and became offended by the “whole event”.

Suggesting that the criticism is because of pearl clutching by “ some “ isn’t reflected at all by the comments here.

Agreed @SpidersAreShitheads that it isn't reflected in the comments on this thread, on the whole.

I think there were amazing bits I'd like to watch again - the woman singing the Marseillais was beautiful. Quite a bit of filler (but that's true of all ceremonies. I remember some of the close ups of the dancing on the pitch in London looking really amateurish. I can't remember anything about the Tokyo ceremony). The weather was completely against them and it should have been an hour shorter/started an hour later. But, overall, there was lots that looked magnificent (I loved the Marie Antoinettes) using Paris as the stage. And, of course, Tony 😍

I don’t understand this need we in the UK always seem to have to compare though.

I preferred the Paris one last night to our London one. I found the London one so busy in the stadium, I couldn't take it all in, but last night was spot on, and I loved the river element and certain acts on the riverbank or whatever. It was just a bit bonkers and I liked it!

Just my opinion of course

Who's Tony @SwedishEdith ?

The insistence that our 2012 one was 'better' is so childish.

International press were positive on the whole, apart from the very right wing press who had conniptions over the trans people.

It’s not a need, it’s an observation. Isn’t comparison generally how people measure how much they enjoy a thing or event?

Loved every minute of it!! Cannot understand the negativity on here.

Tony Estanguet, in charge of the organization of the whole Olympics, I think.

Oh yes, he was good. As was the girl holding the umbrella! Her arm must have been aching!

Agree!

You didn’t notice all the statues of famous women then? Or the black ballet dancer? Or a whole heap of other inclusive stuff? Cos a bloke or 2 wore a dress and 2 people of the same set kissed it’s all disgusting?

Totally. Brits always have to compare to theirs and put other countries down. It was different and that's it.

Two men? And two women on that boat. And a mix in between.

How is it childish to have an opinion? It’s like saying it’s childish to prefer milk chocolate over white chocolate 😵‍💫
Some people didn’t enjoy last night. That’s fine.
Some people have said they preferred other opening ceremonies, because it’s human nature to compare like with like, otherwise no one would ever ‘rank’ anything.

I agree. OF COURSE some people will think our opening ceremony was better ... every hosting country will think theirs was better but to outsiders it may well have missed the mark. Because you're not British!

I'm not French but I preferred the French one!

Also I would say that the bbc studio presenters were polite, not particularly positive. The word ‘different’ seemed to be the dominant description in the post-ceremony interviews.