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Going to the movies at Walt Disney World
Preface: Those looking for the usual Friday review can click here to check out my review of Jumper, which opened Thursday. And then I would advise you to skip the movie itself.
Today, however, I am going to review movies of a different kind: theme park movies.
I just got back from my sixth trip to Walt Disney World, and one of my favorite things to do there is to see the movies. Big surprise, I know. But since the movies are usually in 3D, Circlevision, or some other fancy format, watching them just once is enough to burn them in your memory forever. Here’s the rundown of the ones I’ve seen.
MAGIC KINGDOM
Mickey’s Philharmagic: Never mind Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, Rock n’ Roller Coaster and all those other thrill rides. This, hands down, is my favorite attraction in the entire resort. The 3D CGI movie takes Donald Duck on an hilarious swing through several Disney animated classics, including Beauty and the Beast, Peter Pan and The Little Mermaid, among others. My only quibble is the sometimes dodgy CG imagery (Ariel’s hair looks like a big red glob of Play-Doh), but the overall impact is so marvelous, I’m hard-pressed to complain too much. Do NOT miss this one on your trip.
EPCOT
Honey, I Shrunk the Audience: This quasi-sequel to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids looks a little dated these days, but it still boasts some excellent effects, the best of which is one that makes you feel like you’re being carried around by a child 90 times your size. Be advised some of the effects may frighten the little ones. The film was directed by Randal Kleiser, who made Grease and the not-as-well remembered Honey, I Blew Up the Kid.
Soarin’: It’s not a “movie” in the strictest sense. There’s no narrative, just a montage of various scenes of California - but this is one of the resort’s most transporting experiences. You watch the show while sitting in a hang glider-like vehicle, which lifts you up in front of an IMAX movie screen to simulate the feel of flight. It takes a while to get there, though. Lines are so long at this attraction that some say it ought to be renamed Waitin’.
Ellen’s Energy Adventure: Again, the attraction isn’t strictly a movie, but it is fun to see Ellen Degeneres in filmed segments that pit her in a Jeopardy game against Jamie Lee Curtis and Albert Einstein. The movie gives this formerly stodgy attraction a badly needed shot in the arm.
The World Showcase Movies
Wonders of China: This film, in the Chinese pavilion at the World Showcase, uses the Circle-Vision technology that was around in Walt’s day. I wish there were more of these movies; to be literally surrounded by lush visuals is quite exhilarating - usually, anyway (see below).
Impressions of France: It’s not a cirlce-vision film, but it’s projected on a deeply curved, spectacularly wide screen that gives the visuals extra kick - although, honestly, it’s rather hard to take a bad picture of the French countryside.
O Canada: The Circle-Vision film was only recently changed to include Canadian Martin Short, and in my opinion, the change is not for the better. The comedy is lame, and the film overall comes across like something that was boring by third grade. I really learned only one thing about Canada from this film: Their power ballads can be just as gloppy as ours. Blecch. The only film-based attraction at Disney that’s eminently skippable.
DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS (Formerly Disney-MGM)
Muppet*Vision 3D: You won’t find bigger laughs anywhere in the Orlando area than you will at this uproarious film. Honestly, though, seeing the film always makes me misty-eyed, because this film was Jim Henson’s final performance for a Muppet product as Kermit, before his untimely death in 1990. Be sure to get there early enough to catch the very funny pre-show, and to take time to look around at the very funny props. My favorite sign is outside the exit door: “Do not stand here. You will be trampled.”
Star Tours: This Star Wars-based simulator ride is still fun, but since it hasn’t changed since 1989, it’s very badly in need of updating. Other simulator-like rides such as Soarin’ have since eclipsed it.
DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM
It’s Tough To Be a Bug: This film is a bit of an anomaly in the Disney canon, as it came out in the summer of 1998, before the film it sprang from: Pixar’s a bug’s life. In fact, because Pixar was so busy finishing that movie at the time, they did not make this 3D film. Pixar gave their character models to the effects company Rhythm and Hues, which completed work on this attraction, filled with powerful and wild effects. In fact, they may be a little too powerful. The intense movie has been known to give many children - and more than a few bug-phobic adults - nightmares for months.
Have you had the chance to see any of these Disney attractions? What did you think?
Permalink | Comments (1) | Categories: Moviegoing
Comments
By SRCputt
February 15, 2008 12:49 PM | Link to this
The Muppets rule, and their film is Muppets at their best.