Universal now and then: thoughts and feelings

[scooby-the-doo]

I recently returned from my first visit to Universal since 1999. I was excited at the prospect of riding The Mummy, but came out feeling like the movie-making soul of the park is slowly being lost.

-- Since opening the park has lost many of its unique film lore, sets and flavour: the Bates Motel (used in IV) ripped down; the bone yard with its assortment of wonderful props replaced with, er, nothing; the Hitchcock show, that showcased the Master and his art in such loving detail, gone.

-- Fival's playground. It may have made sense to the bean-counters back in '93, but now with the advent of Islands this stands out as unnecessary and clashes with the rest of the park.

-- Kong. Mummy is a good addition - although I was disapointing in seeing only one real animatronic figure and the scenes during the coaster portion smacked of cheese and fun house - but this is sorely missed. The removal of rides should be avoided unless completely and utterly necessary, and the absence of Kong will stick out like a sore thumb with the release of Jackson's latest odyssey.

-- Major refurbishment. Do not remove rides! Take Jaws for an example: enclose the ride, set it at night, put out the thick fog, the boat's light piercing the night air, the feeling of being on the high seas....the current high-light of the existing ride is the portion enclosed in the boathouse.

In short, and from the eyes of this movie-fan, the park - while still easily the best in Florida - is slowly loosing that certain something that it had in spades come that day in 1990, and I for one would like it back.

 

[Prince Eric1]

While I also loved Kong, I think the parks have to evolve to keep up and not alienate the younger guests. People crave faster rides and technological advancements, and sometimes the attractions just become dated. Many of the younger people do not know what the Bates Motel was, or what Murder she Wrote was even about. I can picture someday in the distant future rides like ET being revamped because none of the younger guests will know what ET was. As Disney revamped Alien Encounter to bring in a younger group with Stitch, Universal has to do this from time to time to keep the younger guests entertained. Also, if the park was the exact same with no new attractions or rides, it would get boring after a while as everything would be been there, done that, what now. The buzz over rides like Spiderman, the Mummy, Shrek, keep people coming back for something new. Unfortunately, you can't have all the great new attractions without losing some of the old. I still do miss Kong though, even if it did break down every day.

 

[scooby-the-doo]

When the park opened Psycho was a 30-year-old film and I wasn't aware of it (a la most twelve year olds, natch). The park introduced both it and Hitchcock to me and opened my eyes wide (and proved something else: you can be entertaining and informative). You dummy down the park and the experience and you may continue to push them through the turnstiles but that doesn't mean you're not loosing the magic.

 

[h20jag]

Evolution is good. Can't be too nostalgic when we're getting more bang for the buck today.
Keeps us re-newing.

I think I know where you're coming from tho. There is a "miss" factor for some of the old stuff, we're just pretty happy right now with the status quo.

 

[BarbaraMB]

I miss the Hitchcock attraction. It was my first 3D experience. No comparison to Shrek but it was a great show. I think there should be some tribute to Hitchcock and Psycho. They are classics. I don't miss Kong. I have to agree with Scooby about Jaws. I love Scooby's idea! Let's make Jaws scarier!!!

 

[SpideyHulk24]

I have to say that I think it has changed for the better. In order to stay the best, than you have to keep changing and bettering yourself. I think the more they change, the more competitive they become with all surrounding competition.

 

[kellymonaghan]

Interesting post. I, too, have been musing about how things have changed.

What's slipping away is the "edutainment" and USF's links to the movie industry, which sorta go hand in hand.

Hitchcock sought (among other things) to teach how emotion is created by simple editing tricks. It sought to make the park visitor a more "educated" consumer of film. Then there was Murder She Wrote/Herc & Zena about post-production.

And does anyone remember the backlot tour? That, of course, was in the days when there was hope to make USF a player in film production. That never really happened.

If the parks get sold, I'd expect the trend away from the movies to continue. Oh, sure, there will be movie-themed rides but that's because you need some theme. But my guess is that the folks here who keep calling for more thrill rides will win the day.

 

[h20jag]

Sad.... but joyfully true Kelly.
There'll never be a mistakin' that these parks aren't movie studio driven tho.
Universal throws the best party right now, & likely will for some time (I hope).
Keep those Monsters alive!!