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According to netizens, the two top issues on the Chinese mind at present are the Games’ opening ceremony and concern over whether or not best-known Chinese athlete Liu Xiang will win a gold medal in the 110-meter hurdle event. Especially after spending a huge budget, many Chinese feel that the opening ceremony deserves serious evaluation.
What is interesting is that even though many critics pointed out “imperfections” in the four-hour ceremony -- which ran 40 minutes longer than scheduled -- most of them still gave it high marks.
The Beijing authorities’ slogan for the Games had promised, “The world gives us 16 days, and we’ll return 5,000 years (of culture and history) to the world.” Zhang Yimou, the internationally recognized filmmaker who directed the opening ceremony, seemed to have been given the mission of displaying China’s long history and culture to the world audience.
Although many Chinese said they were touched and proud, and some even shed tears while watching the ceremony, most of them admitted that the program petered out after a good start.
Chinese netizens’ criticisms were related to the focus on Chinese culture and its presentation, the theme song and the singers, the soldiers’ raising the flags and the wording and expressions of the anchors of China Central Television, which possessed broadcasting rights along with the contracted Beijing Olympic Broadcasting company.
Concerning the promotion of Chinese culture, one blogger suggested that English translations should have appeared along with the Chinese characters displayed in certain performances. He said the show lacked international elements, which was incompatible with the modern world. “It was like having a purely Chinese meal; this should have been a real international magnificent sports meet rather than a performance of Chinese culture and art,” he commented.
Another blogger complained that the program had nothing to do with the theme of the Olympics, except the martial arts performance.
Professor Yi Jiandong from Beijing Sports University also wrote on his blog, “At the past five Olympics, the opening ceremonies demonstrated sports culture much more than this opening ceremony in Beijing.” He said the program could have included ancient Chinese forms of football, polo, bowling and golf, all of which date back 1,000 years or more. There is also the famous Chinese board game known as “go.”
Some netizens complained that China’s modern culture was not represented in the one-hour entertainment performance, with too much focus on traditional culture.
Blogger “Zhang Li” said that the show paid too much attention to China’s four great inventions -- paper, printing, the compass and gunpowder -- and “the modern part about China was condensed to only a piano and a Space shuttle,” said she.
Besides, she felt the director’s attempt to present profound ancient Chinese culture might be too difficult for foreign audiences to digest. “Comparatively, the program lacked some simple, fundamental things.”
Another blogger took the opposite view, saying the depiction of Confucius’ disciples and his great teaching in the Analects was too simplistic. He said the fundamental thought of Confucius was not addressed, let alone its importance to Chinese culture.
Although many viewers were astonished by the director’s use of colors, lights and technological feats like having the performers fly through the air, other Chinese who were familiar with the director’s movies, such as “The Curse of the Golden Flower” and “House of Flying Daggers” were less impressed with these eye-catching features.
One blogger compared this entertainment program with Zhang Yimou’s previous commercial work, saying it had form but no content. Another blogger commented on the show, “It’s just too much flying!”
The theme song “You and Me,” sung by Liu Huan from China and Sarah Brightman from Britain, received lots of criticism, too. Most Chinese netizens were disappointed with its soft, simple melody. They wanted something more inspiring, cheerful and easy to remember.
“We love the Beijing Olympics so much that we care about the theme song,” a new singer called Guang Zi wrote on his blog. “We not only desire the Beijing Olympics to be a huge success now, but also expect it to have a lasting influence by means of a memorable theme song.” This “mediocre song” was not good enough for such a great historical event, he said.
