Jungle Cruise Re-Imagining

[larryz]

JC is about the scenes and campy humor and skippers, not the AA animals.

It is now. It didn't start that way.

 

[rd805]

I'm for it -- I love POTC w/ the Pirate's adds, but I'm also an IP slave.
Hopefully the movie does well, because JC is so.... tired to me.

 

[rle4lunch]

So, on Jim Hill and Len Testa's latest podcast, Jim said that there are plans in place to add new scenes to the Jungle Cruise featuring characters, etc. from the upcoming movie. This all depends, of course, on whether or not the film is a success, but he says that they have already done a lot of prep work, including using designs created for an abandoned update from the 1990's that would have tied in with George of the Jungle. This being from Hill, it's definitely in the "rumor" category, so take that for what it's worth.

Personally, I still hate the Pirates film characters being retrofitted into the ride as it never really fit and, in my opinion, took away from the original attraction's charm. I know that lots of folks here are of the opinion that JC needs something done to it, so this may be it. With Iger and Chapek's mandate that any new additions be IP-based, it would certainly fit with their modus operandi of late.

I'm going to go out on my porch and yell at kids for a while.

I would saw the movie tie-in in the MK version of POTC feels more shoehorned in than the ones at DL. I don't mind it nearly as bad out there. It actually makes the ride have a bit more of a cohesive flow. The MK version, Depp is just scattershot throughout the ride and kinda dumb.

 

[Glasgow]

Man, tough crowd. As with most refurbs, if done tastefully and skillfully, it can work. Seems kind of short-sighted to pre-judge on this one, no?

 

[DisneyOutsider]

With all due respect, any "rumor" from Mr. Hill is taken by yours truly with a massive grain of SALT.

There really should be a dedicated thread for all of the garbage that Jim Hill tosses up against the wall.

 

[Spash007]

My issue with the IP invasion of POTC, is the dominance of Jack Sparrow on the ride. Here and there I'd be on board. But Jack just seems to be everywhere, and having the repetitive character there seems to ruin the timeline for me of the somewhat loose story. Since Jungle Cruise has an ever looser story to it, I could see how this would be done really poorly. At the same time, I think it could be done well, if characters and scenes are interspersed, and we are just seeing them (rather than adding some sort of storyline to what we're seeing)

 

[geekza]

There is a difference between additions that seamlessly blend with what came before to additions that, by their presence, impose their ideas upon the attraction and substantially change its tone. It would have been possible to have Captain Jack as one of the pirates and toss in a few nods to the films so that they would be visible, but not intrusive. That didn't happen. I also don't expect any kind of subtlety in any film-related changes to the JC. My problem isn't with additions, it's with additions that alter the tone of the original attraction.

 

[DznyRktekt]

There is a difference between additions that seamlessly blend with what came before to additions that, by their presence, impose their ideas upon the attraction and substantially change its tone. It would have been possible to have Captain Jack as one of the pirates and toss in a few nods to the films so that they would be visible, but not intrusive. That didn't happen. I also don't expect any kind of subtlety in any film-related changes to the JC. My problem isn't with additions, it's with additions that alter the tone of the original attraction.

You must have wifi on your porch.

 

[HMF]

Anyone else boycotting the movie for precisely this reason?

 

[britain]

This is one of those topics that didn’t need a Jim Hill rumor to make it discussion-worthy. As soon as it was confirmed that there would be a Jungle Cruise movie, there’s a strong possibility that the attraction would be refreshed to capitalize on it.

 

[MouseMelly]

My issue with the IP invasion of POTC, is the dominance of Jack Sparrow on the ride. Here and there I'd be on board. But Jack just seems to be everywhere, and having the repetitive character there seems to ruin the timeline for me of the somewhat loose story. Since Jungle Cruise has an ever looser story to it, I could see how this would be done really poorly. At the same time, I think it could be done well, if characters and scenes are interspersed, and we are just seeing them (rather than adding some sort of storyline to what we're seeing)

I think DL’s iasw did this well. The characters are random and don’t really take anything away from the ride. My kids enjoyed hunting for them.

 

[FigmentJedi]

Anyone else boycotting the movie for precisely this reason?

That just means they'll turn Jungle Cruise into a tie-in for the live-action Lion King or something instead.

 

[zeebs758]

I wouldn't mind it. I would personally love to hear new jokes from the skippers based on those scenes.

 

[999th Happy Haunt]

I literally have no idea how to feel about this

 

[geekza]

I wouldn't mind it. I would personally love to hear new jokes from the skippers based on those scenes.

My only problem with that is the jokes really need to pertain to something that the guest can see in the attraction, since not everyone will have seen the film. If they do end up adding in movie details, I'm sure they'll change the spiel. I would absolutely love to see JC get some TLC and have some of the AA figures updated. I'd even be okay with them making some additions to it. I just hope that, if they do add things from the film, that they don't completely take over.

 

[The Pho]

Well the last few times I went on it they had already started with adding in jokes about The Rock and taking him for granite.

 

[mitchk]

Well the last few times I went on it they had already started with adding in jokes about The Rock and taking him for granite.

Lol ...that was a good one, you had me laughing. When it comes to this actually happening, 17 years ago, no way, but nowadays . Let’s just say if the movie does well enough to get a sequel...... we may have a problem..

 

[Hakunamatata]

I cant wait for the movie version of Hall of Presidents so they can add IP characters to it. That would rock to have lifelike presidential personas on a big stage orating.

 

[britain]

Let’s see...

I’ll assume that the tone of the new film will be similar to the Pirates series: Melodramatic adventure with heavy dose of comedy.

That’s not really the tone of the Jungle Cruise attraction since the mid-sixties. The ride is more of a meta-attraction where everyone is in on the joke that the ‘dangers’ are anything but. The only movie I know of that really takes the dangers seriously and yet is able to really make jokes as if it’s not real at the same time is Ghostbusters. It’s possible but unlikely that they’ll be going for that tone with the new movie.

I probably should note that for very young riders, they take the ride seriously. And frequently look around with bewilderment at everyone else on the boat who is laughing.

So what are our options?

1) Add individual scenes of greater danger with special effects meant to truly trick the eye. Let the skippers be silent during these additions (like during WDW’s / Tokyo’s indoor temple scene).

2) Add realistic danger scenes that require the skippers to interact, validating its realism. This would probably mean hiring a different kind of cast member - and judging by the Great Movie Ride, a hard one to come by.

3) Add scenes & locations that tie into the movie events, but are executed with Jungle Cruise’s trademark hokeiness. “Look! There’s the same... thing... that Dwayne Johnson used! Only now it’s being played with by limited movement AA monkeys. Haha!”

This is going to be a challenge. The pirate ride always winked at you, but still acted as if you should take it seriously. Like a grandpa telling you a scary story. Adding Jack Sparrow had downsides, but not really in the tone department. It will be interesting to see what happens to Jungle Cruise.

Wishing WDI good luck!

 

[Phil12]

Here's a sneak peek of the new additions to the attraction: