Possible Attraction in France pavilion (Epcot) Update - new Attraction Greenlit

matt9112

Well-Known Member
If excited means depressed, then sure. I'm excited.
View attachment 199610
Hearing Saint-Saens' 3rd Organ Symphony blaring to the sight of this was perfect. The pulleys turning as the camera lifted ever skyward. I'm kind of done with Epcot now. Animal Kingdom seems to be the only place I can get any sense of wonder now. Ratatouille looks to be a fabulous ride, but this film was my everything at Epcot and it was pretty much impossible for me not to get choked up every time I saw it.
Even with Frozen added in(which was amazing) we could still get some sort of sense of sophistication across the lake. It's literally dead now.

It's been dead for a long time....you give them an inch and they take a mile. This is why some of us fight every little thing on the forum.
 

donsullivan

Premium Member
I just had the opportunity for my first ride on Ratatouille about 30 minutes ago (and will ride again later today). I had made a point of not watching any video of it prior but had read a number of reviews including the one mentioned above. My initial impression when I got off was that there is a lot of potential. In the large dome screened areas, the lack of any motion of any kind in the vehicles can get distracting. Even adding something like the Tigger bounce platform used in Pooh's Hunny Hunt at Tokyo Disneyland could completely change how those scenes feel. When the ride vehicles are not moving at all, you become much more aware of the fact that you are watching a screen. I think it would certainly be a great addition to WS and would have lines back to the International Gateway if it was.

So, just rode it again and found I enjoyed it more the second time around. I made the mistake on my first ride of not looking to the sides and up enough and as a result missed a lot of details

I think there are plussing opportunities for the future with smellatizers and an obvious overhead heat element added to one scene.

Im not sure I connected that this would replace Impressions de France but given the size of the show building it would make sense, if approved.

As much as I love that movie, especially the music I can see this being a very good replacement that would interest a lot more people than the current movie does. It would certainly interest the little ones more than the movie does.
 

marni1971

Park History nut
Premium Member
Im not sure I connected that this would replace Impressions de France but given the size of the show building it would make sense, if approved.
There is a risk IDF will form part of the queue. There's another proposal for the thetare too that I won't go into to. And the third is IDF remaining.

The first two proposals are part of a worrying trend by idiotic new kids on the block who don't appreciate what they're dealing with (or weren't even born when what they think they should change opened)
 

jt04

Well-Known Member
There is a risk IDF will form part of the queue. There's another proposal for the thetare too that I won't go into to. And the third is IDF remaining.

The first two proposals are part of a worrying trend by idiotic new kids on the block who don't appreciate what they're dealing with (or weren't even born when what they think they should change opened)

I'd like to suggest again that the theater could possibly serve two functions. Thereby preserving the film. Just a thought.
 

Kman101

Well-Known Member
Keep the movie and make it a queue, like the GMR ... not ideal but we keep IDF at least. I'm not a fan of using an existing attraction as queue space but it would at least serve two purposes.
 

donsullivan

Premium Member
There is a risk IDF will form part of the queue. There's another proposal for the thetare too that I won't go into to. And the third is IDF remaining.

The first two proposals are part of a worrying trend by idiotic new kids on the block who don't appreciate what they're dealing with (or weren't even born when what they think they should change opened)

I tend not to be as much of a purest as many around here when it comes to the evolution of guests and the need for the parks to evolve and change as well. I sometimes attribute that to age in that I never experienced the parks as a kid. My first visit was in 1981 as an adult. I continued visiting all these years, but always as an adult (maybe not always acting like one) so I don't have the childhood attachment to attractions many do. There are certainly parts from the early years of each park that I enjoyed but I also enjoy many of the new things that have come along as well.

I just think too much of the fan community never wants change and at the same time complains they are not investing.

As much as I enjoy Impressions de France, I also understand that in a YouTube world this sort of thing is not as unique and special as it was in 1982.
 

Daveeeeed

Well-Known Member
I hope you're right.
There is a risk IDF will form part of the queue. There's another proposal for the thetare too that I won't go into to. And the third is IDF remaining.

The first two proposals are part of a worrying trend by idiotic new kids on the block who don't appreciate what they're dealing with (or weren't even born when what they think they should change opened)
Thanks Marni for the information, and I too hope I'm right.
 

Daveeeeed

Well-Known Member
I just had the opportunity for my first ride on Ratatouille about 30 minutes ago (and will ride again later today). I had made a point of not watching any video of it prior but had read a number of reviews including the one mentioned above. My initial impression when I got off was that there is a lot of potential. In the large dome screened areas, the lack of any motion of any kind in the vehicles can get distracting. Even adding something like the Tigger bounce platform used in Pooh's Hunny Hunt at Tokyo Disneyland could completely change how those scenes feel. When the ride vehicles are not moving at all, you become much more aware of the fact that you are watching a screen. I think it would certainly be a great addition to WS and would have lines back to the International Gateway if it was.
Congrats that you got to ride it!
I never thought I would have the opportunity to ride it last year much less 6 times, so that's why you really should not look at ride videos even in other parks. Delta Sky miles is a blessing:D.

I did the same am I am so glad I did not watch videos. They do not do the ride justice. I rode it 6 times back in May of last year, and the more I rode it the more I noticed something new every time. I think a spoiler review is fine as you just picture it in your mind then. For instance the oven overhead in one scene has lights that looks like flame, and on the side of a screen in another a massive wheel spins under what is a waiter's food cart like seen in the films. Those touches really add up and give it pretty darn good re-rideability.

Though, I wonder if they've changed anything in about a year. The ride vehicles do tilt, vibrate, etc. It's the only LPS Disney ride that the vehicle itself can make small movements, though Tigger's platform might work in sequence or two. I feel like the ending while it does work for the story needs to be grander, and use sets... to me that's the part that needs the most fixing.

I wonder how the ride will feel being completely in English; I loved that it went back and forth from using French and English. The charm was neat. Something minor, but I did think it added to the experience.
So, just rode it again and found I enjoyed it more the second time around. I made the mistake on my first ride of not looking to the sides and up enough and as a result missed a lot of details

I think there are plussing opportunities for the future with smellatizers and an obvious overhead heat element added to one scene.

Im not sure I connected that this would replace Impressions de France but given the size of the show building it would make sense, if approved.

As much as I love that movie, especially the music I can see this being a very good replacement that would interest a lot more people than the current movie does. It would certainly interest the little ones more than the movie does.
It's interesting how in some scenes you need to look everywhere and others your expected to just look at the screen. I think this is what @WDWFigment was getting at as the ride needs stuff to look at surrounding nearly all of the screens, and just over half of them are that way.


I 100% agree on the smellitzers and things like that. The ride should receive minor improvements that will go a long way at France. Honestly my biggest shock was them not using people's sense of smell at all. My favorite part of Philharmagic is always the "Be Our Guest" scene as it truly takes it to another level, and since Ratatouille deals with food... imagine a minor sequence where we can almost taste the food. Also The Amazing Spiderman uses water and real fire so well (Spidey is better as a whole as it absolutely nails the motion aspect).

But the music is absolutely perfect for the ride and is ever present and actually works in a way to set the tone very nicely.

I think losing Impressions de France would be very disappointing, although I'll admit that I would prefer to have Ratatouille, it's only because EPCOT's ride-lineup is a travesty.

Again it's not the best ride in the world, but it is definitely a strong E-ticket, but like any ride it could use improvements. To me it feels like a beautiful classic dark ride take on one of Universal's rides which surprisingly works well.
 
Last edited:

Slowjack

Well-Known Member
As much as I enjoy Impressions de France, I also understand that in a YouTube world this sort of thing is not as unique and special as it was in 1982.
I understand your general point, that we shouldn't be locked into the past for the past's sake. And hey, I'm a die-hard Horizons fan, but I'm on record as saying I don't blame Disney for getting rid of it, given its low attendance at the time. So I get that.

But...Impressions de France is rarer and more special than it was in 1982, not less. YouTube videos are hardly the same thing at all (and I really like YouTube, I'm always finding hidden gems there). IDF remains a unique experience, a fantastic example of the combined power of cinematography, editing, and music. You could make a film school class about its production. And as EPCOT Center becomes Epcot, it becomes more valuable. I mean, one could argue that, say, Space Mountain is not as special as it was when it opened, indoor coasters now being a general category, and many of them with much more theming along the ride. But once IDF dies, it's not like panoramic travelogues are proliferating and we can just move on to other, similar attractions, especially when we consider what makes IDF so good: its almost meditative style, its joy in life, the way it makes viewers feels like they are really there, not just physically, which is easy enough with a giant screen, but emotionally as well. This is also why I think concerns over the dated clothing and hair styles are misguided. I would no sooner presume to "update" IDF than I would to airbrush slim jeans on a photograph of my grandfather. That wedding party in IDF should stay the same because that wedding party has never ended. They are waiting for us to return, and they will always have more cake and wine to serve us.
 
Last edited:

Daveeeeed

Well-Known Member
I tend not to be as much of a purest as many around here when it comes to the evolution of guests and the need for the parks to evolve and change as well. I sometimes attribute that to age in that I never experienced the parks as a kid. My first visit was in 1981 as an adult. I continued visiting all these years, but always as an adult (maybe not always acting like one) so I don't have the childhood attachment to attractions many do. There are certainly parts from the early years of each park that I enjoyed but I also enjoy many of the new things that have come along as well.

I just think too much of the fan community never wants change and at the same time complains they are not investing.

As much as I enjoy Impressions de France, I also understand that in a YouTube world this sort of thing is not as unique and special as it was in 1982.
I think it's more about the direction Disney is taking the parks.
Why for instance couldn't they have given Maelstrom an epic redo instead of replacing it?
Why do they constantly replace rides instead of updating them and adding new rides throughout the park?
Do they really have to place an IP in every corner without thinking of its placement?
The capacity problems in all the parks show as this mentality of rip and replace is used. Thankfully Animal Kingdom has not suffered from this at all.

I'm okay with Rat coming to France as in my opininion it is quite frankly the best Disney IP for France and the ride is now a proven concept that's great. But it's only because I am on the side that I want EPCOT to not be kept dying, and at least get improvements even though they should be different.
 
Last edited:

clemmo

Well-Known Member
So why not add Rat AND keep IDF? It's more than possible. I really hope it's the route the take.

It's also pains when "investments" fall short and are inferior than what they replace.
Do you think this will fall short of IDF? Has its budget been slashed a lot that could really bring it down
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom