Disappointed in people's critics of Paris OG ceremonies

[Letti9]

I have been reading the disgusting comments about the opening and closing ceremony in Paris games and I am shocked but not surprised about the pathetic and ridiculous criticisms!!! British are so arrogant and always think they can do better...very disappointed with members of Mumsnet who I thought where a bit more open minded. I think it was amazing whether you agree or not!!!

Way too much Tom Cruise IMO (now there is a guy that really loves himself!) but then I suppose it did get the crowd going.

So much just seemed random and without context. The guy from Vampire Weekend just nipping on stage to do a song- I love him but why? Why was he there?

The sound kept fading in and out.

The interpretive dancing segment went on for so long that the crowd had visibly thinned by the time it ended.

The pre recorded exclusive LA beach party bit was fun to watch but then you’ve got Billie Eilish doing her normal breathy low effort singing (obviously people love her so what do I know)

All in all I thought it was rubbish, and that has nothing to do with the fact that I’m British.

I hated the opening ceremony - boat after boat of poor athletes getting soaked - it's a wonder they were actually fit to compete. Then there was all the arty farty stuff on the Seine telling some sort of history. I hadn't a clue what most of it was about.

I didn't bother watching the closing one as I thought it would probably be more of the same,

If we're talking about crap opening ceremonies, London's crazy NHS nurses bed dancing must rank the top of the crap pile. Weird, really weird!

I liked the opening ceremony but you're wrong to think everyone on mumsnet is British. There's lots of nationalities.

British are so arrogant and always think they can do better...very disappointed with members of Mumsnet who I thought where a bit more open minded. I think it was amazing whether you agree or not!!!

Some irony in your post OP

Can you summarise? I missed that.

The closing ceremony was insufficiently interesting to stay with it. I turned it on, watched for a while, then wandered off.

It really should be spectacular enough to grip you, imo.

I liked the beds in the UK one. I think it’s a reference to a classic book- but can’t remember which. Gave me Peter Pan vibes, or Bedknobs and broomsticks.

Oh but women on mumsnet should be sweet and kind and not express opinions like international news articles do don't you know.

Our opening in 2012 was directed by Danny Boyle so it was always going to be a bit out there. I think the part where we moved from being agricultural into the Industrial Revolution was done brilliantly. Was just a slick operation. I sort of see the vision of incorporating the Seine in to the Paris opening ceremony, and I wonder if we’d have looked at it differently had it not been pissing down with rain, but I still think it lacked any kind of impact.

I liked that the opening ceremony tried something different, even if it fell a bit flat. It'll certainly be remembered.

When your city is Paris, why wouldn't you showcase it.

As I said on a similar discussion a few weeks ago, anyone who thinks this forum is very pro-British must not spend much time here. If anything, the opposite is true.

The Paris ceremonies were crap however. That's nothing to do with being British or not. Slow, disjointed, obsessed with 'celebrities', many of them not even French,

By contrast, the London ceremonies were both amazing and still remembered fondly over a decade later. Beijing too.

Are you not allowed to criticise anything 'foreign' if you're assumed to be British?

Yes! Tarring an entire nationality with the same brush and then saying we are not open minded unless we agree with her/him!

Perhaps the OP is French?
😁

I switched off when I saw Tom Cruise.
He really thinks that he is the dog’s bollocks

I've noticed some people on mumsnet who aren't British think they're the only one. It's very strange.

Yes, way too much Tom Cruise and his jacked up face. Way too many non French 'celebrities' in general I thought.

It also lacked the surprise element of Daniel Craig and HM The Queen at the London ceremony. Same with Celine. It would have been a major 'wow' moment if it had been kept secret. Maybe it was easier to keep things on the down low a decade ago?

It was amazing to see Celine Dion, but she isn’t French either.

Indeed. Francophone and, I believe, of French descent, but she is Canadian.

And last night's grand finale was a song of French origin but made famous by an American singer, sung in English.

As someone said on the discussion last night, Non, je ne regrette rien would have been perfect. France and Paris have such an amazing culture, but these ceremonies did little to showcase it. People are critical of it because they admire French culture, not the opposite.

I have French friends. They weren't too impressed with the opening ceremony or the Seine swim as part of the triathlon. Good, you enjoyed it, though.

And the advertising for Louis Vuitton shouldn't have been allowed.

No it wasn't amazing and you're sounding rather arrogant yourself to declare that the criticism is pathetic and ridiculous. Fact is the British did do better in 2012. But its not just London, other cities have done much better jobs of it when they have hosted.

I got bored of the opening ceremony, it was long periods if watching boats. But when I watched it on player and fast forwarded through it, it looked pretty great!

Hmm, given they don't know the difference between critics and critiques je ne suis pas sûr...

Beijing was amazing, i loved their opening and closing ceremonies, i was worried that London wouldnt be able to compete but London held its own!

Neither ceremony was very good, they both had good parts but they were much too long, drawn out and boring.

Leon Marchand looked like he was on his way to a funeral! The bit with the rings really dragged. Sorry, but it was dull, we switched off.

I don't think the Brits can do better, I think the French can do better! I've been to some spectacular son et lumière shows and fireworks displays in France and really been wowed by them. I thought they would do something really amazing for the opening and it was unbelievably disappointing.

The best bit last night, and it was really short, was when the stadium audience's lights showed paintings from ancient Greek pottery.