Friday, August 15, 2008

Fake Indignation at the Olympics

Oh, for Dog’s Sake people. Get through it. So the Chinese people put on a show for the Opening Ceremonies and faked a few things.
Here’s a newsflash: It’s a show.
One the one hand it’s regrettable that the young girl who did the actual singing wasn’t considered cute enough. This may haunt her a while. Or she can see it as having the better singing voice of the two and call it a win. I would.
The girl who lip-synched can see it as a great honor or as being only a pretty face. It’s ultimately up to each of them to decide later how they’ll view it. It is not up to us to tell them how to react to being part of the Olympics.
Why is this revelation being turned into an international incident?
How many times do the singers at the Grey Cup lip-synch? A few years ago the star singer (name escapes me) was found to likely have been lip-synching during the half-time show.
It was considered a big deal.
It wasn’t.
Dubbed singing is neither a crime nor a provocation of war. It is also not now nor should it ever be front page news.
And, on a final note (The pun stands. I like it.)
Marni Nixon. She made a parallel career of singing for other actresses, including, but not restricted to, Deborah Kerr,
Natalie Wood, and Audrey Hepburn. The IMDb lists many of her vocal contributions as uncredited. I guess it’s different because North Americans did it.
**
Some of the special effects were faked by doing them on computer and adding them in. Again, it’s a show. If we did it here we’d have endless stories of how it was accomplished through the magic of Hollywood.
If we’re so self-righteous about this, then logically, someone will be coming forward any moment to reveal the Space Alien who descended at the end of the Opening Ceremonies at the LA Olympics was real.
**
There are real stories happening at the Olympics and China in general. Oppression, false arrests, rural people being paid off to shut up about ruined schools being bulldozed after the earthquake.
That’s news. That’s important.
A little Hollywood magic at the Opening Ceremonies is not.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

thank you thank you for saying what Id bee SO DISJOINTEDLY THINKING far better than I ever could.

THANK YOU.

Crabby McSlacker said...

I have mixed feelings--I definitely think there's a huge hypocrisy and over-reaction given that stuff happens all the time in North America and Europe and no one squawks.

Yet the whole "girls must be beautiful above all" grates so much that the swapping out of an actual talented person for another cute face really pissed me off. I just wish all the folks who are so irate would speak up WHENEVER that happens, not just when someone foreign does it.

Leah J. Utas said...

Mizfit, thanks and you're welcome.
I've been simmering about this for days.

Crabby, I agree with the quest for perfection. It is abominable and sets up a world of hurt and struggle for those who do not measure up.
In a good and caring world those who are skilled and talented would be rewarded for that and those who are just a pretty face wouldn't be praised and worshipped for their looks.

the Bag Lady said...

Well said, dfLeah. Methinks there is so much competition in the media world that they will make *news* out of nothing. And the competition does not seem to be a case of "who has the scoop" anymore, but rather "who has the best ratings", because they are all on the same freakin' bandwagon, reporting the same freakin' non-news! Who gives a rat's ass if they computer-enhanced the light show? It's done all the time in the US...
And, as one of those gals who could sing but wasn't pretty enough for the stage, I can so totally relate to that young girl's situation! And the bullshit PR where she said she didn't care, she was just honoured to have been chosen to do the vocals.
(Gee, do you think you touched a nerve with the ol' Bag Lady this morning?)

Leah J. Utas said...

dfBag Lady, you are so right. It's all about the ratings now. Having been a practicing journalist for nearly 20 years I am appalled. I cringe when I read and hear what passes for news these days.
(Hmm, speaking of hitting nerves, Cousin...)
Someday, she might see it as an honour for real, or she might be screwed up for life or any combination thereof. That a big deal is made of it is going to enhance her reaction to it.
Looks trump everything these days and that is wrong and stupid. So is making a big deal out of the substitution.

Missicat said...

Thanks! I do feel a little bad for the girl who was deemed "not cute enough" though.
As far as the fireworks, etc., who cares? It was a show, people want to be wowed.

Leah J. Utas said...

Thank you, Missicat. it seems like we've decided China is bad and therefore everything it does is suspect and awful.

Reb said...

Your title says it all. FAKE! They are searching and grasping for things to discredit the Olympics being held in China.

I feel sorry for both of the girls. If the media hadn't blown it out of the water, no-one would have had to know, outside of those immediately involved. The singer, could have basked in the glow of knowing it was her voice, the performer could have basked in the glow of knowing she was on stage. (yes, what they did is wrong)

People seem to forget that the Olympics have nothing to do with politics. They forget that Nazi Germany hosted them during WWII and Hitler himself opened the games.

The world is waiting for something horrible to happen. It won't! Olympic security has been so much better since the incident with the terrorists in the '70's and wasn't there some scare in Atlanta too? My memory is fading.

China has probably made their security so tight that not even a rat could get through without a security check - because the world is watching. They will be very careful to keep their atrocities to a minimum while the Olympics are going on.

All these protesters that pop out of the woodwork while there is attention on the games are lazy. Where are they the rest of the time?

Sorry for the long comment.

Leah J. Utas said...

Feel free to make your comments as long as you feel they need to be.
You're right about the discrediting, and it's sad.
BTW, speaking of Hitler et al did you know that the Olympic Torch Run was created for the Glory of the Fatherland? It was introduced at the German Olympics and has nothing to do with Ancient Greece.

Reb said...

I didn't know that, but somehow it doesn't surprise me.

Thomma Lyn said...

Didn't know that about the Olympic Torch Run!

Good post -- why people would be freaked about special effects during a show is beyond me. But grrrr, I do hate to hear about the talented young woman who wasn't allowed on stage because she wasn't "cute enough" -- bet it wouldn't have been an issue if she were a young man.

Leah J. Utas said...

TL - The Torch Run thing was most intriguing.

I, too, feel somewhat bad about the kid not being the proper face of China, but sheesh, she's the proper voice of China.