Was Avatarland really the best idea?

[FLchick415]

As someone who never saw Avatar, and has no intention on ever seeing it OR the sequels....I'm pretty excited for this expansion of AK. The concept art looked stunning and I really think Disney can do a wonderful job with it.

 

[rteetz]

hahaha it may be the highest grossing film of all time, but that doesn't mean the average moviegoer has good taste!! I don't give a rat's patootie how much a film makes if it's still really really bad

Just because it was a bad movie doesn't mean it can't be a bad land. It wasn't good but it wasn't the worst movie ever either. Song of the south wasn't the best movie and its got a ride at MK that draws in thousands. Pirates was a ride before it was a movie and the movies are highly successful.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I think Pandora will fit well in AK and I'm looking forward to seeing how they handle it.

I am one of the people who liked the movie.

I think that eventually there will be a Star Wars Land in DHS. It will just be a few years and years and years.........

 

[Satchmo128]

This! I mean everyone knows that Avatar's story wasn't amazing! It's an alien version of Pocahontas but while everyone keeps bashing it, the beautiful visuals that were on screen being transported to real life will draw people.

Not in the same way that Harry Potter did, but by word of mouth, YouTube videos and photos galore, people are going to want to see AK glow in a nighttime setting that's never been done before and for all those people saying they want nothing to do with Avatarland.... I'll be seeing you there soon whenever it decides to open up for the masses.

P.S. I agree tho' that Star Wars Land at DHS is a must especially with new movies coming and the success of SWW. It's a no brainer.

Agreed.

I am so excited to see Animal Kingdom after the sun goes down! And I think Pandora will be a beautiful new area to explore. Win-win!

 

[nickcirc]

I think Pandora will fit well in AK and I'm looking forward to seeing how they handle it.

I am one of the people who liked the movie.

I was thinking about this one recently, and It really came down at least to me a few factors. You have to think about the lands *outside* the context of the movies. From somebody who never even knew there maybe was a movie.

Is splash mountain great because its based on "Song of the South".. well no, intact most people who ride it never even make or know about that connection.

Thats how I see AvatarLand, Its a good premise and a good fit for an Animal kingdom. It's about Nature, being at one with the land, understanding our role in the great ecosystem of life. That in itself fits in PERFECTLY with the Disney Ethos and Animal Kingdom world.

If you take Eywa out of the context of the movie, it still makes perfect sense as a mother nature/mother earth style force.

If you take a droid out of the context of Star Wars.. it's kinda hard to stand on its own. A Lightsaber is "just a cool sword"

So to me, Yes, Aavata rLand is the right choice and a really really good one. Because in 20 years when people walk through its paths, to them, it doesn't matter a movie ever excited, Hell half of the people might even think its from FernGully

 

[JimmyV]

I agree with this....

Now Avatarland/Pandora has the possibility to be mind blowingly beautiful. Regardless of the Avatar movies, the land will be great.

and this....

I don't care about the movie at all, but the plans make it sound pretty awesome. (Pandora, water ride, glow in the dark plants)

As long as it's done right and has great technology, some new ride, and most importantly, allows for nighttime touring of Animal Kingdom, I think this will be a win.

and most of this...

Imagined, mythical creatures have long been part of Animal Kingdom's developing strategy to establish a "kingdom of balance, harmony and survival."

The presence of Star Wars has long existed in DHS. It definitely has a commanding presence but not much else has materialized from this. George Lucus would not budge and had no real incentive to work any farther with Disney on expanding the lucrative Star Wars IP in the parks.


James Cameron is a perfectionist. He is not a cheap man by any means and he does not do cheap stuff. Budget is a four letter word to this guy and he will not confined to such restrictions.

You can guarantee that anything James Cameron puts his name on will be of exceptional quality. Cameron's genius coupled with Disney Imagineers will create one of the most amazing theme park experiences known to man!

Everything in Avatarland is going to be brand new -- utilizing the latest technical innovations and applied aesthetics. It's not going to be old recycled rethemed rides slapped with an IP overlay! All new!

I cannot wait to see the fabulous World of Pandora!

Though I am a bit concerned over the clashing egos of Cameron/Iger/Rhode. There is a lot that can go wrong still.

People make too much of their love or hatred of the movie. Take a look around at a lot of the themeing and rides at WDW and see how much of it is derived from movies that we only think we remember liking. Dumbo? Please. Jungle Cruise? Based on some boring "True Life Adventures" that most of us never saw. Swiss Family Tree House? Seriously? There is little correlation between the merits of a movie and the attraction that it spawns. And besides, the original SW trilogy is ancient and the more recent trilogy was unwatchable. Say what you want to about Avatar The Movie. But it kicked the crap out of the most recent SW movies. To me, SW themeing just invites more "virtual reality" 3D stuff. Kind of hard (and cold and sterile) to build a Death Star. Now, it is possible that they cheap out and do the 3D thing for Avatar. But at least there is more hope that the beautiful, tranquil environs of Pandora will manifest in a tangible way at AK.

 

[Disneyhabs]

It was a huge movie and I'm sure the sequels will do well. However, I'm not
certain that it has the draw and iconic status to pull this move. It is a huge risk by Disney, IMO. Was it a knee jerk reaction to Harry Potter over at Universal? I know at the time this decision was made Disney did not own Star Wars, but a Star Wars section at HS (not just Star Tours but an entire "land")?or even a whole stand alone Star Wars theme park seems a more viable option to compete
with Harry Potter. Thoughts?

I think a Star Wars land at AK would do well also with some EWOK tree houses etc.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

No of course it wasn't the best idea. Most guests won't give a darn about Avatar in the movie sense. It was a technological marvel, but it wasn't a very good movie. But the Disney folks are very excited about carrying out the AK conservation message with an Avatar tie in.

Star Wars has no conservation message.

I wonder if they shouldn't have thought about whether guests would value the entertainment over the message.

 

[amg35]

I think a Star Wars land at AK would do well also with some EWOK tree houses etc.

The Ewoks were the beginning of the downfall of the franchise.

 

[si-am]

Even more than the fact that I didn't like the movie and thought it was cheesy, I really just don't think it fits at AK. I would be fine with it at Hollywood Studios since the thing was such a CGI "masterpiece". I would have rather seen an Australia section at AK that would match the themes of Africa and India.

I know AK was originally supposed to include mythical creatures, which would have been interesting, but Avatar doesn't seem to fall under that, either. The movie didn't have enough of an impact to make its creatures and characters mythical or even memorable. Just my opinion.

 

[JimmyV]

I would have rather seen an Australia section at AK that would match the themes of Africa and India.

I would rather see a South American Rainforest, Amazon Jungle area at AK. We need some magnet to attract the Brazilian Tour Groups so they step out of the RnR line!

 

[rteetz]

Even more than the fact that I didn't like the movie and thought it was cheesy, I really just don't think it fits at AK. I would be fine with it at Hollywood Studios since the thing was such a CGI "masterpiece". I would have rather seen an Australia section at AK that would match the themes of Africa and India. I know AK was originally supposed to include mythical creatures, which would have been interesting, but Avatar doesn't seem to fall under that, either. The movie didn't have enough of an impact to make its creatures and characters mythical or even memorable. Just my opinion.

It's fits with AK conservation message. Star Wars is perfect at DHS thats why there is already a Star Wars ride there. Avatars CGI excellence is perfect for AK as well. AK is now going to be a nighttime park with this. AK is arguably one of disneys best theme parks it's absolutely beautiful especially at night.

 

[surferdave]

This! I mean everyone knows that Avatar's story wasn't amazing! It's an alien version of Pocahontas but while everyone keeps bashing it, the beautiful visuals that were on screen being transported to real life will draw people.

Avatar was a retelling of the Noble Savage story, like Pocahontas. And The Last of the Mohicans, Dances with Wolves, The Last Rainforest, A Man Called Horse, Dune, Lawrence of Arabia, heck, even Return of the Jedi once the Ewoks were defeating the Empire. It's an old storyline that sometimes gets called out and sometimes wins Academy Awards.

The importance of the movie and it's claim to fame was in the breathtaking breakthroughs in visual technology that it introduced; it's far from the first movie to be commended for that despite a less than stellar story. Does anybody here who's looking forward to Disney finishing up NFL really want to sell the storyline of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs?

 

[Redcon1]

Think back to 1968 - no one was going to be drawn in by 'Pirates of the Caribbean', as it was not an existing franchise. It had to create its own interest by being really well done.

And Pandora may need to do the same thing. While there are millions who are familiar with the name, if Pandora is really well done, it will generate its own interest. The ride on the back of the flying "personal dragon" creatures will be the main draw, but multiple attractions adds more opportunities to do something that will grab folks' attention.

This is what Disney needs to start doing again- developing their own ideas and concepts instead of constantly borrowing ideas from outside individuals for new attractions and lands. I think they rely too much on existing franchises for future development in their parks.

In the early days of the theme parks, Disney provided a good balance between original concepts like Pirates and HM and the utilization of their fairy tales/book adaptations that were turned into wonderful themed attractions connecting both the story themes and the Imagineers' magic in bringing the story to life.

Nowadays, it seems Disney is reluctant to originate their own ideas and more willing to let someone else develop a concept, followed by the optioning, if not buying out-right the "products" from their creators. Maybe it's because Disney management is playing it safe with exisiting franchises or there's a lack of inspiration on the imagineers' part (perhaps both).

I do think the imagineers' track record of execution on the theming and building of amazing attractions will result in Avatarland being a welcomed addition to AK. Still, I'm a bit sad that the area set aside for Avatarland couldn't have been developed with a new and original idea from Disney itself.

 

[bittersweet]

I personally didn't like Avatar at all, but I'm still interested in seeing how Avatarland will turn out. I agree that if there was no movie attached to it, there'd be more hype, because judging on what I thought of the movie, there isn't really a whole lot to be excited about.

 

[si-am]

It's fits with AK conservation message. Star Wars is perfect at DHS thats why there is already a Star Wars ride there. Avatars CGI excellence is perfect for AK as well. AK is now going to be a nighttime park with this. AK is arguably one of disneys best theme parks it's absolutely beautiful especially at night.

True. But I'd rather learn about conservation in a real-life context rather than a sci-fi one.

 

[cteddiesgirl]

It was a huge movie and I'm sure the sequels will do well. However, I'm not
certain that it has the draw and iconic status to pull this move. It is a huge risk by Disney, IMO. Was it a knee jerk reaction to Harry Potter over at Universal? I know at the time this decision was made Disney did not own Star Wars, but a Star Wars section at HS (not just Star Tours but an entire "land")?or even a whole stand alone Star Wars theme park seems a more viable option to compete
with Harry Potter. Thoughts?

They're making sequels? I haven't even seen the first!

I have seen, purchased and been a fan of all the SW films. Even read some of the books years ago. I think that there is more people that are SW fans and the longevity has already proven its self.

 

[AndreaA]

I've never seen the movie in its entirety. That's how much I care about it, and I can't believe I'm the only one.

Now if Disney wants a land with fantastical creatures, then they could easily do that without some dumb movie tie-in. None of the rest of AK has any movie tie-in except the shows.

Seems like a big waste of money to have to pay extra to create movie-tie in stuff, but hey, Disney seems to be good at wasting money.

 

[rteetz]

I've never seen the movie in its entirety. That's how much I care about it, and I can't believe I'm the only one. Now if Disney wants a land with fantastical creatures, then they could easily do that without some dumb movie tie-in. None of the rest of AK has any movie tie-in except the shows. Seems like a big waste of money to have to pay extra to create movie-tie in stuff, but hey, Disney seems to be good at wasting money.

How is disney good at wasting money? They are only the top theme park company, top animation studio, own ESPN, Star Wars, Marvel, and ABC. Disney racks in millions everyday where are they wasting money? James Cameron is an innovator, disney imagineers are innovators, put them together and you have some of the best people working together. The potential is endless.

 

[carrie1626]

I have no desire to see Avatarland.

But you're not saying you won't go there if at AK. And you're not saying that you couldn't enjoy it if you were to go there- it's only a land afterall.

Think of the hundreds of people on WDW property every single day who haven't seen all the movies. Take my husband for example: he can identify the core group MICKEY/MINNIE/DONALD/GOOFY/PLUTO but when it comes to other characters he's clueless. I would hope he recognizes the INCREDIBLES.