Disney confirms 'Frozen' makeover coming to Epcot's Norway Pavilion

[Cesar R M]

Again, please discuss and present your POV without making personal attacks. Thank you.

That gets kinda hard, specially when the problematic members just disregards any opinion of anyone else and insists the same point again and again regardless of how wrong and uninformed it is.
At that level, It is trolling behaviour (just to rile up the nerves of the participants).

 

[Mike S]

"You're dead if you aim only for kids. Adults are just kids grown up, anyway"
-Walt Disney

I know I'm quoting myself here but there's another good quote that I think fits this situation perfectly.

"I don't believe in talking down to children. I don't believe in talking down to any certain segment. I like to kind of just talk in a general way to the audience."
-Walt Disney

Don't know about you guys, but shoving a Frozen ride into Norway in hopes to better entertain children sure sounds like talking down to them.

 

[NeXuS1000]

Again... Danish because the Danes ruled Norway. Aquavit a Scandinavian thing, but largely Norwegian.. especially linear aquavit and potato based aquavit. Americans didn't invent Whiskey - but you still associate specific types with America and you'd still probably go on a whiskey tour in Kentucky

It seems people need reminding... Norway was ruled by a union with the Danes from the end of the middle ages until almost the 20th century!

From nearly 1400 to 1905 - Norway was part of Danish rule and for a short period Swedish. More than TWICE the time America has been it's own country. Through all modern times, up until the 1960s when oil was discovered, Norway was largely an introverted country stuck in time. Much of it's heritage and culture is shared with it's Scandinavian partners of Denmark, Sweden, and to a lesser extent, finland.

All this 'well it's Danish.. not Norwegian' is like trying to argue North Jersey vs South Jersey. They're both cut from the same cloth... yes they have things that are more one than the other.. but to try to draw a sharp line and isolate the two as unrelated is just asinine.

Norway is very proud of it's own heritage - but they are also comfortable with the idea that Scandinavia is real, much of their culture is rooted in common topics and the label is not some map maker's label.

The biggest difference today probably is.. a Norwegian would want to make fun of the Dane over how they talk

As a dane, I support this post. The Scandinavian countries share a lot of both past, present and likely future as well. As we're currently independent nations, we are of course proud of our nation and don't like to be put into one bucket - e.g. quite a few danes disliked Stockholm for setting their slogan to be "The capital of Scandinavia" - and we're also semi-offended when foreigners confuse the countries, or e.g. think that Denmark is a city in Sweden. Or rather, we laugh about it.

But we don't and can't deny that we have a lot of shared cultural heritage. When I'm at Epcot, I only appreciate some of the danish "marks" already in the pavilion, and not something I see as incorrect or offensive. E.g. Norwegians also very much enjoy Aquavit. I would however raise an eyebrow if, say, the Little Mermaid statue suddenly appeared in a Norway pavilion, since it is clearly placed in Denmark. Aquavit can be found in Norway, the Little Mermaid statue cannot. So that's a core difference, I'd say. And stuff like Vikings were shared between all the Scandinavian countries, so that would also be a fine fit for a Norway pavilion.

In regards to the Frozen attraction, I once again have to say how I think it completely comes down to the execution of it. Disney can create a high-end, well-crafted and "elegant" attraction, both aimed at Frozen fans and fitting to the country it's in, enjoyed by kids and adults like. And they can completely screw it up, making a low-budget, outdated attraction that's too aimed at kids and doesn't respect the country it's in.

Why make hasty judgement and not give Disney the benefit of the doubt? Yes, their track record lately hasn't been awesome, but I'd say it's much more constructive to voice opinions urging decision to make a good job of this than simply dismiss the decision for this replacement without any other details or having even experienced the final attraction, implementation and experience.

 

[ABQ]

I know I'm quoting myself here but there's another good quote that I think fits this situation perfectly.

"I don't believe in talking down to children. I don't believe in talking down to any certain segment. I like to kind of just talk in a general way to the audience."
-Walt Disney

Don't know about you guys, but shoving a Frozen ride into Norway in hopes to better entertain children sure sounds like talking down to them.

Actually, you're quoting yourself in a couple ways.
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/frozen-ride-replacing-maelstrom.878451/page-135
I knew I heard that before, but not from Walt.

 

[Mike S]

Actually, you're quoting yourself in a couple ways.
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/frozen-ride-replacing-maelstrom.878451/page-135
I knew I heard that before, but not from Walt.

Hey, it's a good quote to bring up and perfectly relevant

 

[danlb_2000]

Looks like the permit was filed for this today. Address on the permit is 1600 ave of the stars which is what I have for Norway, but the description of work is just "project 6". Contractor is Whiting Turner, one of Disney's big contractors. The permit has NO expiration date which means it expires in the default 1 year.

 

[ABQ]

Looks like the permit was filed for this today. Address on the permit is 1600 ave of the stars which is what I have for Norway, but the description of work is just "project 6". Contractor is Whiting Turner, one of Disney's big contractors. The permit has NO expiration date which means it expires in the default 1 year.

Were their any project 1-5 permits prior?

 

[Captain Neo]

So this means there replacing those cool scary trolls with the generic uninspired baby trolls from Frozen?

 

[danlb_2000]

Were their any project 1-5 permits prior?

Not that were ever used on permits.

 

[RayTheFirefly]

Looks like the permit was filed for this today. Address on the permit is 1600 ave of the stars which is what I have for Norway, but the description of work is just "project 6". Contractor is Whiting Turner, one of Disney's big contractors. The permit has NO expiration date which means it expires in the default 1 year.

This meaning the Frozen replacement? So that means the ride will be open in a year?

 

[Disney Analyst]

Again, is there room for Disney to expand the attraction? I can't imagine them being closed for over a year and not expanding in some way.

As well, could Disney not set it up so it's as if you are experiencing some old Norwegian folk lore, thus putting a Disney movie, set in Norway, somewhat in theme??

 

[aladdin2007]

As a dane, I support this post. The Scandinavian countries share a lot of both past, present and likely future as well. As we're currently independent nations, we are of course proud of our nation and don't like to be put into one bucket - e.g. quite a few danes disliked Stockholm for setting their slogan to be "The capital of Scandinavia" - and we're also semi-offended when foreigners confuse the countries, or e.g. think that Denmark is a city in Sweden. Or rather, we laugh about it.

But we don't and can't deny that we have a lot of shared cultural heritage. When I'm at Epcot, I only appreciate some of the danish "marks" already in the pavilion, and not something I see as incorrect or offensive. E.g. Norwegians also very much enjoy Aquavit. I would however raise an eyebrow if, say, the Little Mermaid statue suddenly appeared in a Norway pavilion, since it is clearly placed in Denmark. Aquavit can be found in Norway, the Little Mermaid statue cannot. So that's a core difference, I'd say. And stuff like Vikings were shared between all the Scandinavian countries, so that would also be a fine fit for a Norway pavilion.

In regards to the Frozen attraction, I once again have to say how I think it completely comes down to the execution of it. Disney can create a high-end, well-crafted and "elegant" attraction, both aimed at Frozen fans and fitting to the country it's in, enjoyed by kids and adults like. And they can completely screw it up, making a low-budget, outdated attraction that's too aimed at kids and doesn't respect the country it's in.

Why make hasty judgement and not give Disney the benefit of the doubt? Yes, their track record lately hasn't been awesome, but I'd say it's much more constructive to voice opinions urging decision to make a good job of this than simply dismiss the decision for this replacement without any other details or having even experienced the final attraction, implementation and experience.

I think the bolded is a very important paragraph, one that should be shared with Imagineering now before its too late.

 

[Mike S]

I think the bolded is a very important paragraph, one that should be shared with Imagineering now before its too late.

It became too late when it was officially announced this was happening in the first place. Now we just wait to see how bad it is.

 

[aladdin2007]

It became too late when it was officially announced this was happening in the first place. Now we just wait to see how bad it is.

Doesnt mean they cant hear the thoughts as they move along with the design.

 

[Mike S]

Doesnt mean they cant hear the thoughts as they move along with the design.

The design being Frozen is the whole problem. Doesn't matter what they do.

 

[aladdin2007]

The design being Frozen is the whole problem. Doesn't matter what they do.

I think it does still matter. Like it or not frozen is happening, theres nothing that can be done about that now. But if they would at least integrate it with Norwegian contexts and not just a movie storyline, then it would be better. And nexus summed it up perfectly: Its about the execution of it at this point.
In regards to the Frozen attraction, I once again have to say how I think it completely comes down to the execution of it. Disney can create a high-end, well-crafted and "elegant" attraction, both aimed at Frozen fans and fitting to the country it's in, enjoyed by kids and adults like. And they can completely screw it up, making a low-budget, outdated attraction that's too aimed at kids and doesn't respect the country it's in

 

[Mike S]

I think it does still matter. Like it or not frozen is happening, theres nothing that can be done about that now. But if they would at least integrate it with Norwegian contexts and not just a movie storyline, then it would be better. And nexus summed it up perfectly: Its about the execution of it at this point.
In regards to the Frozen attraction, I once again have to say how I think it completely comes down to the execution of it. Disney can create a high-end, well-crafted and "elegant" attraction, both aimed at Frozen fans and fitting to the country it's in, enjoyed by kids and adults like. And they can completely screw it up, making a low-budget, outdated attraction that's too aimed at kids and doesn't respect the country it's in

From what the trusted insiders here have said I'm more inclined to believe it's the latter rather than the former, sadly. Also from the official statement on the parks blog it sounds like the ride will just focus on the movie.

 

[MichWolv]

I think it does still matter. Like it or not frozen is happening, theres nothing that can be done about that now. But if they would at least integrate it with Norwegian contexts and not just a movie storyline, then it would be better. And nexus summed it up perfectly: Its about the execution of it at this point.
In regards to the Frozen attraction, I once again have to say how I think it completely comes down to the execution of it. Disney can create a high-end, well-crafted and "elegant" attraction, both aimed at Frozen fans and fitting to the country it's in, enjoyed by kids and adults like. And they can completely screw it up, making a low-budget, outdated attraction that's too aimed at kids and doesn't respect the country it's in

The announcement, though, said it would highlight our favorite moments from the film, so it sounds like it'll be a "ride through the story of the movie" attraction. Thus, even if they do it well (I'm expecting SDMT animatronics for Olaf, at least), I doubt it'll do much justice to Norway.

 

[FutureCEO]

The announcement, though, said it would highlight our favorite moments from the film, so it sounds like it'll be a "ride through the story of the movie" attraction. Thus, even if they do it well (I'm expecting SDMT animatronics for Olaf, at least), I doubt it'll do much justice to Norway.

Sounds like the Little Mermaid at the MK

 

[Lucky]

The announcement, though, said it would highlight our favorite moments from the film, so it sounds like it'll be a "ride through the story of the movie" attraction. Thus, even if they do it well (I'm expecting SDMT animatronics for Olaf, at least), I doubt it'll do much justice to Norway.

"The new attraction, which replaces Maelstrom, will take our guests to Arendelle and immerse them in many of their favorite moments and music from the film."

Nothing like a few 21st century American pop songs to give guests a good feel for Norwegian history and culture.