Monsters Inc. - Lots of Familar Scenes but a Little Disappointing Overall!
Written: Apr 21 '06 (Updated Jul 15 '06)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Everyone can ride, little kids will love seeing familiar scenes
Cons: Long lines - crummy waiting area
The Bottom Line: A fun ride with familiar characters the whole family can enjoy together!
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| modernmarvel's Full Review: Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue |
I remember when I first saw the movie Monsters, Inc. I knew when I saw the scene with the characters racing through the moving doors that it would eventually be a Disney Ride. Last year, when we visited Disneyland, we first saw the ride taking shape. We couldn't wait to try it and we finally got our chance in April 2005.
THE LINE AREA
The outside of the ride looks great. It is tall and long and covered with the doors from the beginning of the movie of Monsters, Inc. It seemed very exciting just to enter and definitely got my six year old excited for the ride.
Of course, like most Disney rides, the front of the ride conceals a long queue area and this ride was no exception. The outside waiting area was miserable and the wait was long. We waited about 45 minutes outside which is probably longer than the line will eventually be. Disney has hyped this new ride with lots of billboards and advertising so it is probably drawing more crowds than it will in a few months.
The outside line is on pavement with little shade. Initially, the line was separated by blue metal bars, however those eventually gave way to poles separated by chains. I had my one year old and six year old with me and my one year old really hated the wait. There was nothing to look at. She kept wanting to run under the chains or crawl through the bars. My six year old was similarly bored and, with the heat and nothing to look at, he got to whining about 30 minutes into the wait.
After about 45 minutes, we entered into the side of the building. The first thing I noticed was the cheapy linoleum floor that reminded me of my childhood elementary school. There were a few posters from the movie on the wall but little in the way of decoration. Once inside, we got relief from the sun but the line only inched forward. A little further in, we were treated to a window in which we could see people loading the ride vehicles but we couldn't tell how far away we were from that point or which way the line would snake.
Eventually, we reached an area that had some phone booths and some videos from the movie above them. The clips came directly from the movie - nothing new was created for the ride. Once we entered the building, the wait was about ten minutes. Overall, I was extremely disappointed in the waiting area. This is usually something Disney does well and it seems that they had absolutely no inspiration when creating this area of the attraction.
THE RIDE VEHICLES
The ride vehicles are shaped like yellow taxis. They don't look monster-ish. In fact, they look like ones you would see in New York City. Unlike many Disney vehicles, these cars have three rows. The rows can seat two adults comfortably. I sat in the back row with two small children. On the left side of each row is a small television screen. As you board your cab, it plays a small clip from the movie where Boo escapes. I would like to say this sets up the premise for the ride but that wasn't the case. About ten seconds into the ride, the tv turned off and we didn't hear from it again.
THE RIDE
To sum it up quickly, the ride is a series of scenes from the movie is no particular order. Kids will love seeing all the familiar characters directly in scenes from the movie. Adults will love all the detail in the scenes. However, I never got the feeling that I was viewing a story that made logical sense. If I hadn't seen the movie, I wouldn't have understood the ride.
There was a great scene of the sushi restaurant near the beginning of the ride. In that scene, there was a place where a bottle of sake had tipped over and the sake was spilling on the floor. The effect was very realistic. There are multiple scenes where you see Mike and Sully and Boo. Each character is fully life-size. I liked the very realistic bathroom scene where Boo is hiding in the bathroom. In this scene, Randal appears and disappears although you go by so quickly it is easy to miss.
There is also a great scene where Boo is hitting Randal over the head and he is changing into various patterns. The effects were great. Of course, you see the doors moving through several of the scenes. This effect mostly reminded me of the old-fashioned dry cleaners as the doors appeared to be moving on one of those automated racks.
Overall, the scenes are all very detailed with full-size characters and moving parts. A lot of them had special effects or neat-looking 3-D scenes. There are some black light effects but they are limited to the beginning of the ride. If I had any gripe at all, it would be that we moved far too fast through the scenes to really enjoy all the detail. For example, there is a cartoon image of the Abominable Snowman insisting the ice cones are lemon-flavored. The movie clip appeared and disappeared so fast I barely caught it and I am sure it went right over my kid's heads. I would have much more enjoyed the ride if the vehicle went more slowly. My six year old seemed to enjoy the ride but his head was turning so fast to try to catch everything, I don't know if he entirely "got it." I would have loved to take him on another time but the line was just too long. It definitely was not one of his favorite rides and he didn't ask to go again even though he loved the movie and has seen it over 20 times.
The other thing I found surprising about this ride is that the vehicle itself really didn't have any special effects. I love the effect in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride where the vehicle moves differently in certain scenes and you can feel the wind blow or the effect on Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train where you can smell certain scenes you pass. I expected this much-hyped ride to provide more for the senses than just scenes to look at. There was one scene where, I think, we were supposed to feel some wind but we didn't actually feel it. It seems that Disney put all of its creativity into the detail of the scenes themselves.
AGE APPROPRIATENESS
Anyone will enjoy this ride. There were no age or height limitations. The vehicles move pretty quickly but the ride was very smooth. I didn't see anything scary in this ride.
FINAL RECOMMENDATION
I liked this ride but didn't love it. Of course, anyone who has seen the movie will want to try the ride. The scenes were great and I liked the vehicles. I also liked the fact that the entire family could go together. However, I wish the cars went much more slowly so we could have enjoyed the detailed scenes a lot more. I know that, if it were slower, my kids would have enjoyed it more. All in all, I would only give this ride an average rating.
MY REVIEWS OF THE DISNEY THEME PARKS IN CALIFORNIA
Disneyland
Disney's California Adventure
MY REVIEW OF THEME PARK HOTELS IN CALIFORNIA
Disney’s Grand Californian
Marriott Suites Anaheim
Residence Inn Anaheim
MY REVIEW OF THEME PARK RESTAURANTS
Storyteller’s Cafe
Blue Bayou
Wine Country Trattoria
Goofy’s Kitchen
MY REVIEWS OF INDIVIDUAL RIDES AND ATTRACTIONS IN DISNEY’S CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE
Soarin’ Over California
Grizzly River Run
The Sun Wheel
Orange Stinger
Mulholland Madness
Jumpin’ Jellyfish
Playhouse Disney Live on Stage
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Jim Henson’s Muppet Vision 3D
It’s Tough to be a Bug 3D
Princess Dot Puddle Park
Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train
Tuck and Roll’s Drive ‘Em Buggies
Flik’s Flyers
Francis’ Ladybug Boogie
Misson Tortilla Factory Tour
Boudin Bakery Factory Tour
MY REVIEWS OF INDIVIDUAL RIDES AND ATTRACTIONS IN DISNEYLAND
Pirates of the Caribbean
Indiana Jones Adventure
Storybook Land Canal Boats
Snow White’s Scary Adventures
Pinocchio’s Daring Journey
Peter Pan’s Flight
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
Alice in Wonderland
Matterhorn Bobsleds
It’s a Small World
Tarzan’s Tree House
Aladdin’s Oasis
Splash Mountain
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Autotopia
Honey, I Shrunk the Audience 3D
Astro Orbitor
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
MY REVIEWS OF OTHER THINGS TO SEE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Legoland
SeaWorld San Diego
Birch Aquarium at Scripps
The San Diego Zoo
The San Diego Wild Animal Park
Balboa Park
Cabrillo National Monument
San Diego’s Old Town
The Museum of Making Music
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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modernmarvel
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