A Spirited Dirty Dozen ...

[brb1006]

Look at the Kawaii culture in Japan for cuteness

I learned more about it on the Tv Tropes page for the culture.

 

[Nemo14]

You airbrushed Mickey in it's the ONLY answer...

Busted!

*hangs head in shame*

 

[TalkingHead]

I was done with this site for the night, but just read this piece of PR from Robert Niles and all I can do is wonder if he is angling for a social media job with Disney. I can understand being excited by the opening of a new park because I am. But instead of writing about the park, he is puking forth fanboi links and adding no meaningful commentary. I do not get his deal at all.

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/shanghai-716477-disneyland-ride.html

Reminder that he published a pixie-dusting defense of Guardians of the Tower in the last couple of weeks.

Fanboi frothing isn't a very professional look, but whatever pays the bills, right?

 

[brb1006]

I have to think the full wall surround video screen effects will be used in Pandora's boat ride.. as well as the combo set+screens we've been accustomed to. The full wall sized video is done pretty impressively at Shanghi's pirates

The full wall screen effects really amazed me since it actually made me think they were actually underwater. This makes the Under The Sea scene in The Little Mermaid look even more cheaper than it already looked.

 

[brb1006]

This movie went through the same people that approved Cinderella and The Jungle Book right? I love the sets and Emma Watson sounds great from the little we hear of her. The music is both simple and elegant, as Beauty and the Beast should be. I think this movie is going to be on the good Disney Live Action Adaptation side.

I'm actually looking forward to this movie now. Still a bit worried about Tim Burton doing Dumbo.

 

[No Name]

Well here's an article that I got a good chuckle out of: http://variety.com/2016/biz/asia/wanda-boss-criticizes-shanghai-disneyland-1201780925/

The guy is the boss of a "cheaper" theme park company and is basically saying that SDL won't be successful becuase it's more expensive. Well, it's a better park. Sure, SDL costs more (to both Disney/China and paying guests) than your windy rollercoaster land. And it should. That only makes sense.

And then the real kicker is when he questions why Disney even came to China when Wanda (his company) is already there. LOL. ? It's like me saying to another storeowner "Why even bother opening a store down the road from me? I'm already here!" It's just so pathetic.

Sounds like the guy is afraid of SDL, and he's doing a horrendous job of hiding that.

 

[MuteSuperstar]

But all points say 2020 at the absolute earliest and 2021 much more likely.

Hahaha, wow that's just pathetic. Let's just hope that the end product is worth it. I have my doubts (shocker).

I suppose lots of exciting things will be on tap for the next 4 or 5 years at the Launch Bay Theater, so hey that's something. How many more attractions/restaurants/shops are going to close at the Studios during that period?

 

[truecoat]

Nope. I still expect SWL to be ready in Anaheim in late 2018 or early 2019 as scheduled. ... WDW has only an internal date that I don't have. But all points say 2020 at the absolute earliest and 2021 much more likely.

If the SWL in Anaheim is scheduled for 18/19, will construction start soon on the parking ramp? I assume they would finish the ramp first.

 

[Cesar R M]

No, some people don't agree with you. The story is a fairytale - possibly one of the greatest fairytales of all time. Absolutely fine if you feel they should have gone down the realism route, that's your opinion and you are entitled to it. However it is a story that does require a pretty heavy amount of CGI to make the story work on screen (or at least in our and the movies opinion)

Well, so far they failed badly on the castle. Lets hope they fix that and do something better than that french movie I mentioned, which had decent CGI.

Are you suggesting that some of the students have the attitude of "I paid X amount of money to go to this university, so I deserve at least....."

believe it or not.. some do.

 

[Absimilliard]

Without getting into a long debate (who knows that could lie ahead on page 75?) I'll simply state that Little Mermaid is an unambitious little dark ride that shows its cheapness around every corner. If it had been built right after the 1989 film came out, then no one would be ripping it. But when that ride opens in 2011 in Anaheim and 2012 in O-Town, it is rather embarrassing. You use new technologies and showmanship to build an attraction in today's world. It is incredibly underwhelming and embarrassingly bad in spots. And people were hyping this as an E-Ticket ... the thing is a C-Ticket based only on its ride system and length. Largely, it's a bad ride. I said as much last year, but thought I was going to make Larry Nikolai cry so I backed off ...

Best story I have about the Little Mermaid dark ride at DCA: in 2013, I took my sister and nephew to California and they went to DCA while I was attending the TEA awards. My sister has been to all 5 Disney resorts, but doesn't go online to find infos and anything like that.

So she see the name and tell my nephew: "you'll see! Its a great show!" and 10 minutes later, my nephew asked what was so "great about it"? Turns out my sister though DCA had opened a copy of the awesome "Under the Sea" musical from Tokyo DisneySea! She then asked me what was such a cheap ride doing at Disney...

 

[the.dreamfinder]

Well here's an article that I got a good chuckle out of: http://variety.com/2016/biz/asia/wanda-boss-criticizes-shanghai-disneyland-1201780925/

The guy is the boss of a "cheaper" theme park company and is basically saying that SDL won't be successful becuase it's more expensive. Well, it's a better park. Sure, SDL costs more (to both Disney/China and paying guests) than your windy rollercoaster land. And it should. That only makes sense.

And then the real kicker is when he questions why Disney even came to China when Wanda (his company) is already there. LOL. ***? It's like me saying to another storeowner "Why even bother opening a store down the road from me? I'm already here!" It's just so pathetic.

Sounds like the guy is afraid of SDL, and he's doing a horrendous job of hiding that.

Chuckle all you want, but Wang Jianlin trashing your $5.5 Billion theme park in the press is the last thing Disney needs. Wang Jianlin is the richest man in China and is revered as a Warren Buffet type figure there. It is true that Wanda is firmly the Six Flags/Cedar Faire of the Chinese theme park market, but they're an established player in the market that's looking to get bigger. To the Chinese consumer, Shanghai Disneyland looks like a more expensive version of a Wanda park with fewer rides. Disney has failed to properly communicate what sets SDL apart from their equivalent of a Six Flags style park. Let that sink in... still chuckling?

 

[Absimilliard]

Chuckle all you want, but Wang Jianlin trashing your $5.5 Billion theme park in the press is the last thing Disney needs. Wang Jianlin is the richest man in China and is revered as a Warren Buffet type figure there. It is true that Wanda is firmly the Six Flags/Cedar Faire of the Chinese theme park market, but they're an established player in the market that's looking to get bigger. To the Chinese consumer, Shanghai Disneyland looks like a more expensive version of a Wanda park with less rides. Disney has failed to properly communicate what sets SDL apart from their equivalent of a Six Flags style park. Let that sink in... still chuckling?

I completely agree. The Wanda Group, along with the OCT group from Shenzhen and Chimelong from Guangzhou have been writing the book on what parks are in China. Disney in their typical arrogance though their typical marketing and few elaborate rides would immediately put them at the top of the food chain.

If the few people who know what Disney is in China only exposure is opening day HKDL....Disney is waging a losing battle to get those people to visit Shanghai Disneyland. Shanghai Disneyland is the only case for a Disney park where I say "cut the WDI overengineered 100 million dollars rides" and talk to B&M and Vekoma for something that will get the local market attention. If they show Tron: Lightcycles in publicity, how do you think the guests will react when they show up and its the only thrill ride there? Soarin' Over the Horizons is fine, but OCT and others have been operating that kind of rides for years. Wanda even went as far as hiring Dynamic Attractions (builder of the Disney Soarin') and getting them to build a few rides at the Wanda Movie Park.

 

[Magenta Panther]

The music gave me chills.

Beauty and the Beast was trending on Twitter this morning, so I guess that teaser had an impact. But you know why? Yeah, the visuals, such as they were, of the castle were cool. But it was the MUSIC and the MEMORIES that got to folks - music and memories related to Disney. That's what will keep the company going no matter what happens with Iger's acquisitions. And that's the glue that keeps people coming back to the parks. I wish the company would someday have a CEO with an understanding of Disney's real appeal, and not see the company as a stable of home-grown and acquired "brands" and the parks as merchandising opportunities. Someone with a touch of creativity, or at least a respect for creativity. I don't have much hope of that happening, unfortunately...

 

[Magenta Panther]

Without getting into a long debate (who knows that could lie ahead on page 75?) I'll simply state that Little Mermaid is an unambitious little dark ride that shows its cheapness around every corner. If it had been built right after the 1989 film came out, then no one would be ripping it. But when that ride opens in 2011 in Anaheim and 2012 in O-Town, it is rather embarrassing. You use new technologies and showmanship to build an attraction in today's world. It is incredibly underwhelming and embarrassingly bad in spots. And people were hyping this as an E-Ticket ... the thing is a C-Ticket based only on its ride system and length. Largely, it's a bad ride. I said as much last year, but thought I was going to make Larry Nikolai cry so I backed off ...

Let him cry. The Mermaid ride is LAME, except for the lovely queue and the Ursula AA. It has terrible storytelling, and the corner-cutting is obvious just about everywhere. Is the "Under the Sea" sequence supposed to be the ride's centerpiece? If so, you could have fooled me. I've seen Christmas window displays in New York that were much better done and much more magical. Pathetic.

 

[No Name]

Chuckle all you want, but Wang Jianlin trashing your $5.5 Billion theme park in the press is the last thing Disney needs. Wang Jianlin is the richest man in China and is revered as a Warren Buffet type figure there. It is true that Wanda is firmly the Six Flags/Cedar Faire of the Chinese theme park market, but they're an established player in the market that's looking to get bigger. To the Chinese consumer, Shanghai Disneyland looks like a more expensive version of a Wanda park with less rides. Disney has failed to properly communicate what sets SDL apart from their equivalent of a Six Flags style park. Let that sink in... still chuckling?

Ummm yeah, I'm kind of still chuckling. The fact that he's the richest (article says second-richest) man in China makes it all the more embarassing. He can criticize it all he wants. He's from the competition, so of course that's what he's gonna do. But when he makes such embarrasing and dumb comments, it means nothing to me. It doesn't take SDL down, it only lifts it up a notch.

I'd like to see more quotes of exactly what he rather than just a description/summary.

Perhaps it's just a cultural difference, but if Eisner in 1990, when Universal Orlando was opening, had said "Florida already has Disney -- they really ought not have come to Florida at all" he would've been laughed at. He would've been called a fool. And for good reason, because it's a foolish comment. Instead, Eisner beat Universal to the punch and opened Hollywood Studios. He showed them who's boss.

When Mr. Wang shows Disney who's boss, then I'll stop chuckling.

 

[Cesar R M]

I know.. they also projected awe and realism when it came to the castle. I never said anything about zero use of CGI.. I was speaking to the lack of scope and feel the the "video game" images shown in this teaser. Harry Potter is a great example of how the blending works... films like The Hobbit show the upper bounds of extreme CGI yet on the boundary (falls in the debatable land IMO)... but look at films like Jupiter Ascending to see how too much CGI cuts the film from having a feeling of scale and physical presence to simply being a canvas/environment people are acting in.

Id say that by the third movie of The Hobbit, everything went downhill FAST.
Way too unrealistic, a total clustercrap. Which is strange considering how well done the massive fights in the first trilogy was.
Another CGI fest that was awful, was Gods of Egypt.

 

[Cesar R M]

He's still working on it. Currently on the fourth script draft.
http://whatculture.com/film/yes-guillermo-del-toro-is-still-working-on-that-haunted-mansion-script

Additionally, it seems like other Haunted Mansion media is starting to use his ideas. That Haunted Mansion book from Marvel's Disney Kingdoms line just introduced a version of Hatbox Ghost that utilized the Endless Staircase to travel to numerous haunted locations around the globe connected to the Mansion. Essentially Del Toro's vague "Hatty's the spider at the center of a Mansion web" concept.

I have hope for Del Toro. He doesnt slowdown on trying his best to bring new stuff. Like Pacific Rim and El Laberinto del Fauno..
Cant wait for him to do the last Hellboy before Ron Pearlman and Doug Jones are too old to get the prosthetics.

 

[TalkingHead]

Disney has failed to properly communicate what sets SDL apart from their equivalent of a Six Flags style park.

You mean "Authentically Disney, Distinctly Chinese" wasn't enough?

 

[TalkingHead]

Instead, Eisner beat Universal to the punch and opened Hollywood Studios. He showed them who's boss.

Bad example? Ironic example? I can't decide.

 

[Cesar R M]

Disney controls the message, which is how it has lowered standards so much across the board, yet so many fans, visitors, CMs act like the place has never been better.

Arent they forced to act like that? I mean. I wouldn't be surprised if they get fired if they were "less than enthusiast" about blatantly lying to the customer about the new "offers" and "magical additions".