TCM teams up with Disney to refresh Great Movie Ride

[Monoblanco13]

I feel if The Muppets stay it should be revamped, show has grown stale on me and I do tend to skip it, maybe since they are coming back on the air this will happen. Considering everything that should happen to this park maybe they should just close it down just to focus on a whole redo or just close off the back half at least.

 

[danlb_2000]

Few quick notes:

Episode VII - WOW, a movie that has not even come out yet!!! This should be the theme for 25% of this park. It is free advertising to millions of guests a year. Even the Back Lot Tour was getting props like Lone Ranger, but only weeks after it was already out in theaters. Parks and Marketing are missing some HUGE opportunities.

Barbara - Hello Gorgeous! My most missed bit.

Tara's Theme transition to Star Wars theme - It was really cool how they could take two of the most iconic themes and wipe between them so seamlessly.

Stella makes the cut!!!

The added horror bits, including Poltergeist, were fantastic adds. Probably the best of the lot, including "You best be believing in Ghost Stories, Miss Turner...."

Tangled: BEST DAY EVER should have been the clip. I agree with most posters here, strange bit to add.

Lots of new stuff though. Honestly, one could updated this film annually with little to no effort. 20-40 man hours of editing annually is being VERY generous.

Cannot wait to see it in person next week.

I agree the Tangled clip is a bit odd, but it is in the horror section so this is probably one of the few things they could think of from a Disney movie that jumps out as horror.

 

[FigmentJedi]

I agree the Tangled clip is a bit odd, but it is in the horror section so this is probably one of the few things they could think of from a Disney movie that jumps out as horror.

As I mentioned before, there's better candidates for that: The Witch from Snow White, Dragon Maleficent and Chernabog.

 

[Communicore]

I feel if The Muppets stay it should be revamped, show has grown stale on me and I do tend to skip it, maybe since they are coming back on the air this will happen. Considering everything that should happen to this park maybe they should just close it down just to focus on a whole redo or just close off the back half at least.

Muppets need to be given the Horizons treatment. Has that area even been changed at all? It reminds me of like, 1991. Speaking of which, 1991 was the 20th anniversary. Was this attraction part of the 20th hoopla, like they did for Soarin' in 2005, or was it just a good old attraction? I know Spectro was part of the hoopla.

 

[Kman101]

Yeah, the Tangled segment sticks out like a sore thumb, IMO. There were many other choices (Maleficent, Evil Queen/Hag) they could have gone with and I'm sure Tangled could have been used elsewhere.

I'd like to see the Muppets upgraded. In an ideal world I'd prefer the ride that was never built instead but it is what it is. I don't want to lose that presence. Judging just based on the promo for their upcoming series, I think an updated show could be hilarious and well done. I'm torn because I have no problem with the film but I do think it should be updated. It's like Indy. I want a replacement but I don't want to lose that presence.

 

[Magenta Panther]

To be fair, DL plays to a different base. Look at the Country Bears- they weren't that popular over on the west coast. Now, if you tried to take them out at WDW, there very well might be riots. I'm exaggerating, but you can bet many would be quite vocal in their disappointment.



And you just assume I'm talking about you. You might not like puppets, but you certainly allow your strings to be pulled!

To be accurate, it's highly doubtful that the people in Florida would react any differently than did the folks in California to any removal of the Bears. You're basing your assumptions, as you so often do, on zip.

As for the latter, my assumption, as is so often the case, is correct. Or is there anyone else you stalk on these boards? You should know by now that if you try to pick a fight with me, I'll keep shooting you down. I do have the option of setting you on "Ignore", you know. Why do you suppose I don't do that?

 

[Monoblanco13]

I know Spectro was part of the hoopla.

Regarding Spectro they need to bring it back or replace the dated Electric Parade. I had totally forgotten that this parade existed as I only saw it maybe once or twice as a child. Wonder if there be a replacement soon.

As for the real topic of this thread what more is missing from the GMR other than the spires?

 

[FigmentJedi]

Muppets need to be given the Horizons treatment. Has that area even been changed at all? It reminds me of like, 1991. Speaking of which, 1991 was the 20th anniversary. Was this attraction part of the 20th hoopla, like they did for Soarin' in 2005, or was it just a good old attraction? I know Spectro was part of the hoopla.

I feel like the big issue of removing Muppetvision is its memorial status. It's the last project Jim did before he died and I feel like its something that should be circulated properly if it was removed. Ideally a collection featuring the Muppetvision films, the WDW special and those clips they shot for that live-show's preshow.
But this is the company that never finished releasing The Muppet Show to DVD despite producing two movies focused entirely on how great the Muppet Show was we're talking about

 

[Magenta Panther]

Universal took out Jaws for Harry Potterland 2 and I think it's safe to say that worked out pretty well for them. I don't see what the big deal is getting rid of Indy and Muppets for Star Wars Land. The whiners will come back anyway to see Star Wars.

There would be no big deal as far as most guests are concerned, especially if something better were put in their place. And with Muppets, that wouldn't be all that hard.

As for Indy, I only go to that theater to get some shade. It's kind of a fun show, but I don't think most people would seriously miss it.

To be honest, though, I'd rather more Disney-created/adapted stuff would go into DHS instead of Star Wars. But since Hollywood Studios is supposed to be about Hollywood and show business in general, it might as well go in there as anywhere else.

 

[Magenta Panther]

That was a video from its apparent grand opening in 1989. I also found a video from the ride in 1990 and the scene was already broken in it, so apparently this was a scene that literally only a very few amount of guests ever even saw at all. I doubt even I saw the scene fully functional during my early 90's visits.

Thanks for posting this. Jeez, that scene was lame even when it was new and more-or-less fully operational. With all those static mannequins, t looks like a window display for a clothing store. Gak. It really needs to go away.

 

[Darth Sidious]

@Magenta Panther you make me sad with your strong Muppets dislike. Lol

I understand why you don't like them as they aren't a Disney creation but I think from a ride perspective they could really do something neat with them and kids and adults alike could enjoy it. That being said I still firmly believe Mary Poppins would be a great IP to utilize in an expanded capacity since the music and movie are truly classic and authentic Walt Disney.

 

[tribbleorlfl]

It is one of the worst figures in terms of resembling the actual actor, but I'd hate to lose it completely.
Seems like they could give it a much more dynamic pose, have her be leaning her back into the wall, knees bent, breathing heavily, and holding the flamethrower upwards with the pilot light lit.
Making the figure better convey fear would also enhance the impact of the attacking aliens.

Curling her hair and crumpling her uniform would be a good start.

I think I mentioned it previously, but I have a hypothesis as to why the Ripley AA is such a poor resemblance compared to the other AA's.

Sigourney Weaver has a history of being...temperamental when it comes to her image being used in the franchise, particularly advertising and merchandise. Consider:

• The infamous recalled "Aliens" One-sheet, which Ms. Weaver objected to. I have heard alternating stories over the years she either had a problem with the unflattering shot from the film or the fact the film was being promoted with Ripley holding a giant gun (Weaver was, and still is, for gun control).
• The only way she agreed to Alien3 is if there were no guns.
• She did not allow a vinyl model kit that was released almost 20 years ago to feature Ripley holding the pulse rifle (hence the motion tracker). They did sell a customizing kit, though, that had an alternate arm holding the rifle.
• NECA acquired the license for, and just released, the first-ever Ripley action figure to have Ms. Weaver's likeness.

My opinion is she simply didn't license her image to be used. Why? Who knows. Maybe they didn't pay her enough, or maybe she had an issue with the movie and her portrayal being used in a theme park.

 

[dstrawn9889]

Yeah, the Tangled segment sticks out like a sore thumb, IMO. There were many other choices (Maleficent, Evil Queen/Hag) they could have gone with and I'm sure Tangled could have been used elsewhere.

I'd like to see the Muppets upgraded. In an ideal world I'd prefer the ride that was never built instead but it is what it is. I don't want to lose that presence. Judging just based on the promo for their upcoming series, I think an updated show could be hilarious and well done. I'm torn because I have no problem with the film but I do think it should be updated. It's like Indy. I want a replacement but I don't want to lose that presence.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

Thanks for posting this. Jeez, that scene was lame even when it was new and more-or-less fully operational. With all those static mannequins, t looks like a window display for a clothing store. Gak. It really needs to go away.

I somewhat disagree, the original functioning scene in that video is actually very accurate to the original scene from the movie- and it was always something that looked like a scenic "static" display (though artistically constructed out of people). While I always love me some moving animatronics, this show scene was actually pretty darn accurate to the original clip from Footlight Parade. Which I myself have watched and enjoyed, and my mom is also a huge fan of. Then again I appreciate classics like this. As you can see from this video stretching from 8:05 to 8:45, the shot that the GMR scene is replicating has all the women standing incredibly still and statuesque on the layered rotating set with water fountains surrounding them, very much like mannequins themselves.-


Their only movements (besides involuntary ones that the human body can't help) are in their faces, and even those are incredibly subtle and barely visible. Once that scene is fully assembled and with the camera panned outward to show the entire scene, there's practically no visible motion at all from the ladies for a good 40 seconds. That was the film's intention, and it was the ride's intention as well for this particular scene.

Now as a somewhat obsessive I do think that replicating the subtle movements of their heads might be a cool idea that would add more life to the original scene. It probably wouldn't be very hard to do because it wouldn't require advanced full body AA tech. But the original scene I feel looks good even without these movements considering the scene it's based off of. The scene as-is doesn't look good however, but i'd be very pleased with it if they could get it back to the way it was originally.

Though I also wouldn't say no to something more advanced of course, perhaps if they could for instance actually replicate the "kaleidoscope" like choreography of some of the other scenes with the girls using some advanced animatronic tech. But I am still glad that the movie is represented in the ride, if only the scene worked as intended. It IS a classic and is a very good movie. It's kind of a bummer that the first scene in the ride has been inoperative for almost its whole life...

 

[Mike S]

I think I mentioned it previously, but I have a hypothesis as to why the Ripley AA is such a poor resemblance compared to the other AA's.

Sigourney Weaver has a history of being...temperamental when it comes to her image being used in the franchise, particularly advertising and merchandise. Consider:

• The infamous recalled "Aliens" One-sheet, which Ms. Weaver objected to. I have heard alternating stories over the years she either had a problem with the unflattering shot from the film or the fact the film was being promoted with Ripley holding a giant gun (Weaver was, and still is, for gun control).
• The only way she agreed to Alien3 is if there were no guns.
• She did not allow a vinyl model kit that was released almost 20 years ago to feature Ripley holding the pulse rifle (hence the motion tracker). They did sell a customizing kit, though, that had an alternate arm holding the rifle.
• NECA acquired the license for, and just released, the first-ever Ripley action figure to have Ms. Weaver's likeness.

My opinion is she simply didn't license her image to be used. Why? Who knows. Maybe they didn't pay her enough, or maybe she had an issue with the movie and her portrayal being used in a theme park.

Ok, that was cool.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I will add one thing about the Footlight Parade scene, one that I do admit was "off" in even the original scene. It's not related to the girls' movement, but it's the way in which the girls are positioned. In the GMR scene all the women are positioned the same- facing outward with their arms raised.

In the original scene from Footlight Parade though, the women take three different and individual positions on the various layers. The middle four rows have the girls holding hands with one another for each row. The bottom row has the women in a crouching position facing inwards, it kind of looks like they're holding up the rest of the stage. The topmost row has the 3-4 girls with their arms raised and behind their heads, with the fountain coming out the top middle.

The fountains in general look like they could have used some work in the GMR scene as well. Though I can see how having the mannequins exposed to water so often would be troublesome on the maintenance.

Still the lack of movement on the mannequins is an issue given the source material. With the restored rotation, give some of the rows of girls some more diverse positions more akin to the original scene and add some more fountains and the scene would look great IMO.

 

[marni1971]

Was this attraction part of the 20th hoopla, like they did for Soarin' in 2005, or was it just a good old attraction?

It was just a great attraction that opened as phase one of something that didn't progress.

The 20th celebrations started 4 months later.

 

[Wikkler]

Was this attraction part of the 20th hoopla, like they did for Soarin' in 2005, or was it just a good old attraction?

It was just a great attraction that opened as phase one of something that didn't progress.

The 20th celebrations started 4 months later.

Correct. It was to be part of a Muppet Studios miniland with the "Great Muppet Movie Ride" and a "Gonzo's Pizza Parlor" restaurant. This didn't happen because of troubles with the Jim Henson Estate after his death.

 

[marni1971]

I think I mentioned it previously, but I have a hypothesis as to why the Ripley AA is such a poor resemblance compared to the other AA's.

Sigourney Weaver has a history of being...temperamental when it comes to her image being used in the franchise, particularly advertising and merchandise. Consider..

Quite possible. John Wayne's estate had to say yes to his AA before the ride opened. Harisson Ford didn't want his likeness used. Hence his AA here and in the Disneyland EMV ride purposely don't look like him.

 

[Bairstow]

My opinion is she simply didn't license her image to be used. Why? Who knows. Maybe they didn't pay her enough, or maybe she had an issue with the movie and her portrayal being used in a theme park.

But that's patently untrue.
The character is clearly meant to be Ellen Ripley, the face is obviously Weaver's, and the ride's narration bluntly says:
"This is "Alien". You are with Sigourney Weaver aboard the spaceship Nostromo. "
It's hard to get more declarative than that.

Now, maybe she insisted that the figure have its uniform nearly pressed and its hair straightened to the point that it didn't look like her, but that would just be odd.

The simpler explanation is that little care was put into the condition of the hair/clothing by ride maintenance. Maybe the wig straightens itself in the atmosphere in there over time, ditto the uniform.