foxtwin » disney

The Beatles in Disney World?

todd — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 14:37:43 +0000

You never know what you will find when you are walking around in Epcot. You find a great little shop, or a beautiful waterfall in a corner, or a big electric train set, or, more often than not, a performance of some kind. We were at the United Kingdom pavilion, turned the corner and hey Jude! There was a Beatles tribute band playing in a gazebo! Unfortunately, we only caught the end of the performance and heard the last part of “Let it Be.” They’re called, the British Invasion.

There is such a sense of discovery in Epcot. When you are there, be sure to go exploring!

The Land in Epcot

todd — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 14:31:26 +0000

“The Land” is an attraction I used to avoid at Epcot. As a kid, it was too “educational.” It is still has a bit of that teaching side to it, but now I do find it more fascinating. For nothing else, I still like it just because it is an indoor boat ride! With any Disney World ride, there are always plenty of things to see and the entire attraction fits its theme and immerses you in it.

Also, it is air-conditioned!

Mexico in Epcot

todd — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 14:14:55 +0000

The Mexico pavilion at Epcot is one of my favorite places in Disney World. The interior is all about atmosphere. There is a temple and a volcano overlooking a lagoon against a night blue sky. On the shore of the lagoon is a restaurant, the San Angel Inn, and it is excellent. As you eat, you can peacefully watch boats go by over the lagoon–those boats are going into the ride, “El Rio Del Tiempo” (The River of Time) on a calm journey through sights and sounds of ancient and modern Mexico.

The footage here is from 2006 and includes a craft exhibit which was incredible. Plus, stay for the end to see and hear a mariachi band.

Since then, the ride has been re-themed to “The Three Caballeros.” I will get to ride that soon and compare it to the River of Time, which I am sure I will miss. But, the Caballeros ride could be pretty fun, especially for the kids.

Drummers of America – Epcot

todd — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 20:18:09 +0000

Sometimes at Epcot you might catch a performance out of the blue, like this one in front of The American Adventure with a drum and fife corp. We were just walking along the Showcase, heard the beats of the snare, and went to investigate. Here is what we saw and heard.

I was hoping they would play British Grenadiers, but maybe they wouldn’t do that dressed as Revolutionary colonists.

Huge Mini Train Set at Epcot’s Germany

todd — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 02:33:40 +0000

Love model railroads? Then do not miss the huge layout of Germany’s train set at Epcot in Disney World. This is like a dream of every little kid when they get their first train set. I just wonder how this thing makes it through the rain.

Whistle Juggler at Epcot

todd — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 20:30:36 +0000

A great part of the Disney World experience is when you are just walking around between rides and then “cool!” There’s a show! It happened to me last time I was at Epcot when I spotted this juggler performer in Epcot. He juggles, does magic tricks, does pantomime, and interacts with the audience (particularly fun with kids) all while only communicating via his whistle. Little surprises like this really adds to the fun and the magic of Disney World–it’s like, “Hey, having fun? Well, here’s a little more fun on the side!” Below are two clips of his performance. Fun stuff!

Part 1

Part 2

Enchanted Tiki Rooms

todd — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 02:53:33 +0000

Here’s some more Disney World home movies. But let me add to this one in particular. The Enchanted Tiki Room is/was one of my favorite attractions. It was a very sweet show with some wonderful music. Yeah, there were lots of animatronic birds which is cool itself, but it was the music that made it great. But Disney World put the Tiki Room “under new management” with Iago and Zazu who look nothing at all like the realistic birds that populate the room. And all the music is changed to be more “hip.” Here’s a short clip:

I did not record the whole show because I did not want to waste my tape on it–and it’s just too depressing when you sit in the show just wishing the original was back. Luckily I got to go to Disneyland in California a couple years ago and here is some footage of the original show:

Original is still the best. I miss it because I like the music, I want my kids to experience it, and I’m nostalgic. Still, in Disney World, attendance at the show was so poor they decided to make the change and it did bring in more visitors. Some say that while the old show was running people would walk out before the show was over. That’s sad. So, I guess I should not hold onto hope that the original will return to WDW. And I’ll concede that I am glad they just didn’t close it altogether … I think. I don’t know. Hearing Iago/Gilbert Godfried sing “Friend Like Me” is eye-squintingly unpleasant (why couldn’t he tell the aristocrats joke or shout “You Fool!” instead?), but seeing the Tiki goddess at the end is pretty awesome. I suppose I should just go with the flow on this one.

Besides, since it’s the music I enjoy anyway, I’ll just pop in my Disney World CDs anytime I want and hear the “birds sing words and the flowers croon.”

Winnie the Pooh – Disney World

todd — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 02:30:09 +0000

The Winnie the Pooh ride at Disney World tells the story of the Blustery Day – so blustery that it blurred my images and shook my camera.

‘Tron Legacy’ movie team to remake ‘The Black Hole’

todd — Thu, 27 May 2010 02:23:31 +0000

Maximilian from The Black Hole (image by Super Punch)

While I have been following the news of the upcoming sequel to Tron (titled Tron Legacy) there was a little bit of related news that certainly caught my attention.

The same group making Legacy have been tapped to remake Disney’s 1979 sci-fi movie, The Black Hole. With any remake, the first question people ask is, “What from the original movie will be in the remake?” In an answer to this question, only one aspect of the new movie has been revealed: in it will be the robot, Maximilian.

There are a few people who know what this means to me. See the picture of the robot itself above and you may get an idea. Just look at it. What do you think? Do you think it looks scary? Do you think it looks corny? Do you think it is just any old sci-fi robot? Well, whatever you think about it most likely is nothing compared to what I think about it. I will speak on this in a future post.

In the meantime, I’m stoked for the new Tron movie due out this December. Here’s a glimpse of the new lightcycles.

Lightcycles from Tron Legacy

Sweet! Before I get too excited I remember how excited I was last summer about Transformers 2 and the G.I. Joe movie. I have seen neither one in their entirety but what little I did see was enough to go beyond disappointment and travel into the highly populated realm of the ridiculous. Michael Bay and whoever made GI Joe (I firmly believe) never watched the original shows nor even held one of the original toys in their hands (let alone was ever one of the kids who imagined stories and admired the characters while playing with them). So, these parts of my childhood are left in my memory. I’m keeping them safe that way!

I am allowing my hopes to rise high for Tron Legacy, however, for several reasons: the original director is the new producer (Steven Lisberger), it was originally a movie to begin with, not a line of toys (although there were toys based on Tron, but they sucked bits!), it’s a sequel not a remake, the theme is about computers and CGI special effects were born from Tron and new effects (made to look like the computer world and not our world) will be at home, and most importantly it has Jeff F’N Bridges! Not only is he a great actor, and a recent winner of the Academy Award for best actor, he was also in the original movie. So, too, is Bruce Boxleitner who portrayed Tron himself.

So, here’s to hope!

Oh, and since I’m on a Disney World kick lately, here’s a look at some of Disney’s form of advertising for the new movie: Tron Monorails!

Tron Lightcycle Monorail

Oh sweet Jesus! That’s like chocolate-dipped double stuf chocolate creme oreo cookies surrounding a double-decker chocolate cake topped with chocolate morsels and icing.

Source: ‘Tron: Legacy’ team mount a ‘Black Hole’ remake

Further reading: Screenrant on the Black Hole

It’s a Small World – Disney World Home Movie

todd — Wed, 26 May 2010 19:38:48 +0000

Due to the nature of riding in a boat (a “ship” if you are a seafarer) the camerawork in this video is a bit shaky, especially when trying to capture activity from four hundred dolls singing the most infectious song ever performed (and I mean that in a positive way). With so much going on it is difficult to take it all in, whether with human eyes or a camera lens, but that is why it is such a great attraction for return rides (after taking a break from the song, and I mean that in a positive way). There are so many favorite parts to this ride, but Don Quixote at the windmills is one of mine.