News Remy's Ratatouille Adventure coming to Epcot

[ToTBellHop]

So…we are angry that we may have to learn some French in World Showcase (you really don’t in order to understand the ride)?

Thank goodness O Canada isn’t showing now—half the finale song is in French! Gasp!

What are they saying on the lift hill on FEA?

Remember when El Rio Del Tiempo was almost entirely in Spanish?

We no longer deserve Epcot and clearly they should fully-abandon the cultural exchange.

 

[James Alucobond]

So…we are angry that we may have to learn some French in World Showcase (you really don’t in order to understand the ride)?

Thank goodness O Canada isn’t showing now—half the finale song is in French! Gasp!

What are they saying on the lift hill on FEA?

Remember when El Rio Del Tiempo was almost entirely in Spanish?

We no longer deserve Epcot and clearly they should fully-abandon the cultural exchange.

We eat freedom fries here, sir.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

So…we are angry that we may have to learn some French in World Showcase (you really don’t in order to understand the ride)?

Thank goodness O Canada isn’t showing now—half the finale song is in French! Gasp!

What are they saying on the lift hill on FEA?

Remember when El Rio Del Tiempo was almost entirely in Spanish?

We no longer deserve Epcot and clearly they should fully-abandon the cultural exchange.

Angry? Oh, I'm not angry about it. For a non-native speaker and someone who grew up in the US, my French is pretty decent. Received a perfect score on my AP French exam after 3 years of studying the language (most of my peers had been taking it for 5-6) and also took advanced French classes in college. To this day I still stream programs in French for fun.

However, I think it's a pretty obvious consideration that there are people without said background who'd probably be interested in understanding more. It could be as simple as some extra text on the attraction's MDE page, or an add-on to the Play Disney Parks app. Considering all the MDE notifications I get for pointless Disney trivia, it really wouldn't be so difficult.

Not necessary by any means, but neither was providing guests a way to decipher the queue hieroglyphics at Indiana Jones Adventure. 25+ years later, this is pure laziness.

Imagine if the language involved weren't a romance language–call it Mandarin or Japanese. I'd be pretty ticked off if half the dialogue of a fast-paced attraction were in Mandarin and I had to understand it all the same. In Tokyo, Hong Kong, or Shanghai? Of course. At WDW? At least give people who want to understand a reasonable way to do so.

I think I've made the point pretty clearly, but what happened with Ratatouille wasn't because it's Epcot. It happened because it was the cheapest implementation. Some useful French phrases in the app wouldn't change that.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

It’s the same dialogue repeated in French...

Actually, it's not. I understand a good amount of it, and there's some content you miss without knowing the French.

Deal-breaker? Not to me (and lately the logic around here seems to be if it's okay with me, who cares about anyone else's needs?).

But would it be so hard to teach guests some actual phrases? Isn't that what Epcot should be about? An actual opportunity to impart knowledge through entertainment?

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Well, sooner or later they’ll have mostly people from France running the ride, no? They just need to get the international program back up

It really wouldn't be that hard to teach American CMs the right way to say "bonjour."

That should be covered on day #1 of training for the attraction, especially if they're going to be operating the ride for months.

Then again, this is Epcot, so maybe they shouldn't be working there if they don't have the motivation to learn it themselves? Seems to be the working logic. They'd be better off sticking to English if they're going to butcher it.

#lazy

 

[doctornick]

Do we know there will not be some sort of translation cards or summary in English or thing on the Play app when the ride opens? I mean, it's just opened to previews and isn't officially opening for over a month.

(I kinda like that the ride is partially in French anyway, fits WS)

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Do we know there will not be some sort of translation cards or summary in English or thing on the Play app when the ride opens? I mean, it's just opened to previews and isn't officially opening for over a month.

(I kinda like that the ride is partially in French anyway, fits WS)

Personally, I like it too, but as mentioned, I have a pretty solid background in French!

It's certainly possible that the ride will get something like this. If it does, I'll eat my words. That's all I ask, and it's not even for my benefit; it's to give curious guests with no French background the opportunity to better understand what they experienced. To me, this seems like a win-win in terms of making the experience more "Epcot."

If not, laziness. Again, 25+ years ago Disney gave out decoder cards so guests could decipher obscure glyphs in the IJA queue (which they even brought back via Play Disney Parks!). It shouldn't be so hard to implement some basic phrase translations for Ratatouille.

 

[J4546]

I think what theyre saying in frend on Rat is what they are saying in english, just repeated in french

 

[Tha Realest]

The ride should start completely in French and then transition very quickly to English like the iconic dissolve in THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER.

 

[ImperfectPixie]

I think what theyre saying in frend on Rat is what they are saying in english, just repeated in french

It isn't. @DonaldDoleWhip just confirmed that there is some content you miss if you don't understand French.

 

[Little Green Men]

Actually, it's not. I understand a good amount of it, and there's some content you miss without knowing the French.

Deal-breaker? Not to me (and lately the logic around here seems to be if it's okay with me, who cares about anyone else's needs?).

But would it be so hard to teach guests some actual phrases? Isn't that what Epcot should be about? An actual opportunity to impart knowledge through entertainment?

Wow, really? Can you explain what dialogue we miss??

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I think what theyre saying in frend on Rat is what they are saying in english, just repeated in french

There are some nuances in French that aren't necessarily repeated in English.

e.g. Linguini telling us « dépêchez-vous, va ici » (hurry up, go here!), which in English becomes "go, go!"

(I actually can't tell if he's saying va ici or voici, but the latter makes more sense grammatically; would change the meaning to "hurry up, here!")

Or Remy telling everyone at the end, "Hey, thanks for coming everyone!" Followed by « vous êtes toujours les bienvenus, chéris » (you're always welcome, darlings). Those are just two easier examples that jump out from skimming the video.

It's not much, but wouldn't it be cool for people with no French background to be able to learn some of these phrases following the ride? I don't think that's a major ask.

 

[Tha Realest]

I thought the new Genie/Genie+/LL stuff was confusing and complex, now the newest WS attraction is going to be a Montessori French immersion experience.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I thought the new Genie/Genie+/LL stuff was confusing and complex, now the newest WS attraction is going to be a Montessori French immersion experience.

Don’t worry, the intention isn’t to learn anything—but look, it’s the characters from that movie you saw!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

That’s what would really round out Epcot: an Alliance Française!

I’m sure there’s room somewhere in the France Pavilion, or could just use the rest of the Ratatouille pad. France doesn’t have enough content!

Would also help make up for the travesty that is the Beauty and the Beast sing-a-long.

 

[Little Green Men]

France has the most content of any pavilion now. A ride, a show, 2 table service restaurants, 2 counter service restaurants, 1 signature restaurants, multiple shops

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

France has the most content of any pavilion now. A ride, a show, 2 table service restaurants, 2 counter service restaurants, 1 signature restaurants, multiple shops

Maybe not clear enough, but I was being sarcastic; France was stacked even before gaining Ratatouille and the crêperie. Gotta cross-sell those DLP visits!

Of course, two steps forward, one step back - the loss of Impressions de France for all but an hour or two is an embarrassment.

(At least it still has that hour or two, but the replacement is trash.)

 

[MisterPenguin]

I'm absolutely livid that I can't order ice cream in World Showcase in English. Glaces? Gelato? What is that in the language of the free??!!!!!

I'll just settle for something purely American like some pizza or a taco.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I'm absolutely livid that I can't order ice cream in World Showcase in English. Glaces? Gelato? What is that in the language of the free??!!!!!

I'll just settle for something purely American like some pizza or a taco.

I don’t understand this reaction to my sentiment at all.

If it’s not clear enough, I also like that the ride communicates to the guest in French and English. I’d enjoy it even if it were a language I don’t know as well, like Spanish.

However, it’s pretty clear that the intent here was to implement as quickly and cheaply as possible. While it might still qualify as a cultural experience, one simple app tweak could make it an optional learning experience for those inclined.

Also, a word on a sign or menu is one thing (it’s the same approach Luca used to great success), but when an attraction is communicating half of its dialogue in another language, I think it’s a logical enough courtesy to provide some context on key phrases.

If Indiana Jones Adventure could do it in 1995 with obscure glyphs (that aren’t even essential to the ride), Ratatouille can do it now, with a simple addition to one of WDW’s extensively-used apps.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Honestly, the reactions here are so weird sometimes.

Talking to someone in a language they don’t know won’t teach them anything.

Talking to someone in a language they don’t know with context and something to reference actually can.

I never suggested the ride shouldn’t be in French, so those of you making dismissive jokes along those lines are missing the point entirely. Why not make this an optional teaching moment for those who’d appreciate it?