TV

Beijing 2008 Olympics: Opening Ceremony
I'm still not convinced that the Chinese should have the Olympics (the IOC insist that the Olympics should not be political and are about unity or harmony or something, yet they're in a country infamous for its human rights violations? Do they have no sense of irony?), but this opening ceremony -- a vast, impressive mix of techniques and styles, directed by filmmaker Zhang Yimou -- is too startling to miss. Of course, they wasted a helluva lot of money on it, so of course it does. I expect any participant who did their bit wrong will be taken out and shot. (Watched on NBC with US commentary, which was surprisingly good.)