A.Z.B.C. tops off fine Games effort

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33451, 5 February 1974, Page 4

A.Z.B.C. tops off fine Games effort

“Now that the’ Games are all over, it ; will be so dull in Christchurch and there will not be anything: interesting to watch on . television.” This comment, overstatement though it may be, comes from a house-bound mother of young children, and it is typical of the appreciation of thousands of: viewers throughout the country of a memorable 10 days’ coverage by the N.Z.B.C. It was fittingly! topped off by Sunday even-: i n g ’ s review, “Com- • monwealth in Action”. Once again we watched! the memorable highlights! and the heroes, the incidents! ■and the personalities. Particularly enjoyable! were the human reactions toj intense competition and su-l preme endeavour — the filming of the weightlifters, for example, described as the showmen of the Games, was first-class. And everyone will remember the delightful picture of] the young Canadian swim-1 mer,' Patti Stenhouse. ] clutching her teddy bear and: weeping in relief and elation! as she stood on the victory] stand to receive her gold: medal. Track and field events,, swimming, weightlifting and! iboxing turned out to be the’ glamour sports of the Games ] — and it was only natural: i that they sould receive the i Ilion’s share of film coverage. ] It might sound like nit-i picking, but the coverage of; the 114-mile road cycling: ] race and the personalities I • involved, particularly the ] ! New Zealanders, was not of] the same high standard asj

'efforts involving other 'sports. There was plenty of film lof the how and what hap- i pened during the Games, but] !there could have been much more coverage of the people behind the events — officials and competitors. These, however, are minor points, and do not detract! from the major success tele-1 •vision coverage undoubtedly! I was. As some one commented, in many ways these ■ were the N.Z.B.C. Games. Part of the appeal of Sun-; day evening’s new crime se-1 'rial, “The Man from Haven”,] lis the way in which it ex- • plores the effect the black-1 I mailer has on the lives of] the people he is attempting j jto blackmail. Highlight of the second] iepisode was the discovery] iby the wife of the former! I black marketeer that, among: other things, he sold; chocolate to the parents of’ children in war-ravaged Germany, when soldiers were giving their rations away. There is an incisive edge jto the action in this series (based on a blackmailer, (played ably by lan Holm, I who ruthlessly seeks to i press home the advantage of •knowing details of a number •of secret numbered accounts! !in a Swiss bank. The abrasive relationship he has with his girl friend' ' makes an interesting back-' iground, and there is plenty! ;of opportunity for the mes-( isage of the dehumanising in-i ifluence of big business to! iget through. Best scene from Sunday ;levening’s episode was that • 'in the church with black-j and blackmailer] : negotiating to “O God Our) uHelp in Ages Past.”

Felix Greene’s China series this time was disappointing. The success the Chinese seem to be having j using acupuncture in the treatment of deafness was, of course, well worthy of television treatment. The trouble was that the programme did not explore lin depth what is being done, I but was padded out with ' well rehearsed* items from the children. Mr Greene obviously has great sympathy and admiration for the Chinese people — it would help our understanding of them if he could ■present lhem more in human terms without constant win- • dow-dressing. * £< The hour-long programme on Leonardo Da Vinci was comprehensive and perceptive. It was the best ; documentary on this extraordinary man yet to be iscreened — in this country at least. —K. C.