China Revealed -- On The Discovery Channel, Tonight At 9 PM
"Extravagantly gorgeous," says Susan Stewart of the New York Times.
"Should appeal to viewers of all ages," says Marilyn Moss of the Hollywood Reporter
"Puts human faces on the statistics," says Brian Lowry of Variety Magazine.
"Pulls out all the stops," says Jennifer Nycz-Conner of the Phoenix Business Journal
"Beautiful, intriguing and historic," says David Hinckley of the New York Daily News.
A new movie? No. The premiere episode of Atlas on the Discovery Channel, entitled, "China Revealed."
The series leads off today on the Discovery Channel at 9 pm Eastern and Pacific Time and will be repeated at the same time on Sunday, October 8. The Discovery Channel website describes this first episode as follows:
In one of the few times in its 5,000-year history, the oldest, most populous nation on earth has opened its doors to the rest of the world. Coupling insightful storytelling with spectacular and groundbreaking photographic techniques, Discovery Atlas: China Revealed brings to life the fascinating and complex contemporary life of this extraordinary country.
In today's China, the economics of feudalism and communism are out, while capitalism is in ... with a Chinese twist. Old walls are being torn down, and a futuristic landscape of glass and steel is shooting up in their place. Leading the construction frenzy is Vincent Lo, China's answer to Donald Trump. Exploring where tradition meets modernity, viewers will follow the dreams of a 12-year-old Olympic hopeful, then join rice farmers tilling land their ancestors have worked for 18 centuries and monks teaching a 500-year-old discipline. Discovery Atlas: China Revealed promises to be a visual delight, delving deep into the people and places of the oldest civilization on the planet.
The Discovery Channel's "meet the people section indicates it will be focusing on the following:
- A rice farming family in Longshen.
- A kung fu master at the Shaolin Monastary
- A Shanghai real estate developer
- A gymnast who trains in Beijing
- A Shanghai migrant worker
- A Beijing bow maker
It will be airing in China as well.
It will be in HDTV and within a few days of its airing, the Discovery Channel will release the episode in both Blu-ray and HD DVD, making it the first television show to be released on the two new high definition DVD formats.
I have already Tivo'ed it and will be reporting back after I have seen it.
Comments (2)
Read through and enter the discussion by using the form at the endOther Lisa - October 2, 2006 12:12 AM
Welp, I watched it, because i had a game card and I wanted to see if I would win the prize � shoulda known because I never win anything!
Anyway, my thoughts as I was watching this is that it's pretty basic and simplistic. If you know recent Chinese history at all, you'll be talking to the TV, saying, "but what about...?!"
The music was really annoying � this sort of minor-key movie soundtrack stuff that to me didn't really go with the story.
However, as the show went on, I found that I got pretty emotionally involved with it, particuarly the storyline about the Shanghai window-washer and the 12 year old gymnast. I wish they'd done more with the Beijing bow-maker � his experiences during the Cultural Revolution were a welcome dose of reality to what had been up to that point a very sunny portrayal of China.
So, I wasn't crazy about the spiffy production values, and if you are looking for some genuine insight into Chinese history and are already familiar with the subject, you won't find it here. However I'm glad that I watched it, and you'll probably find some moments that are worthwhile.
Oh, I laughed a lot when they brought in Xintiandi in Shanghai. Particularly because the narrator has no idea how to pronounce Chinese. But I have to give them points for understanding the significance of the place.
China Law Blog - October 2, 2006 8:53 AM
Other Lisa --
I agree, but I actually like the music. I just did a post on the show that goes along with much of what you say.