Let’s face it: If you’re a regular visitor to this site, you’re no stranger to a lot of the stories behind Disney parks attractions. You’ve memorized the patter of the Haunted Mansion’s Ghost Host and Jungle Cruise skippers; you know every dip and turn in the Space Mountain track; you’ve probably even been the “spy” on Star Tours. And of course, you’ve almost certainly already watched The Imagineering Story on Disney+. So a series like Behind the Attraction faces an interesting challenge: introducing casual fans to Disney parks’ most beloved rides, while still offering enough unique tidbits to the hardcore devotees that it’s worth their time.
If you’ve seen Brian Volk-Weiss’s Netflix series’ The Toys That Made Us or The Movies That Made Us, you probably already have a sense for the approach he might take with this subject: fast-paced, playful, and dripping with nostalgia. It turns out that’s precisely the right approach to a project that is less about imparting trivia for Disney parks fans than it is about celebrating the attractions as part of a living history continuing through the present.
The five episodes in the first Disney+ season cover some of the most iconic attractions at Disney parks: Jungle Cruise, Haunted Mansion, Star Tours, Tower of Terror, and Space Mountain. What’s also significant about those choices is that they’re attractions that were transplanted to parks around the world, and much of the interest in Behind the Attraction comes from exploring how those attractions changed for their different settings—considerations of the local culture, differences in geography or available space, and so on. If your primary experience is with the U.S. Disney parks, there’s a lot here to learn about why the Imagineers behind Paris’s Space Mountain opted for its “cannon shot” launch, or why the Haunted Mansion concept in China had to be revised to avoid overt reference to ghosts.
And yes, there is plenty here for those who want to revel in the parks’ past glories, with rarely-seen archival footage of legends like John Hench, Rolly Crump, Marc Davis, Tony Baxter, and more developing rides that are still enjoyed to this day. The Haunted Mansion episode perhaps offers the most appeal on this level, making it clear how the stop-and-start 10-year journey to create the attraction capitalized on things that initially seemed like impediments—Walkthrough or ride? Funny or scary?—to result in a terrific hybrid of many creative sensibilities.
Volk-Weiss, however, also understands the role nostalgia plays in people’s lives, and he brings that to the forefront in a variety of ways. In part, it’s through bits like showing George Lucas recalling his own childhood visit to Disneyland—he was there on Day 2, July 18, 1955—as he considered the partnership that would become Star Tours. We also see the next generation of Imagineers pay tribute to their predecessors, like Daniel Joseph setting his mind to returning the Hatbox Ghost to Haunted Mansion after Yale Gracey’s initial design came up short in 1969. Behind the Attraction wants to give you a sense for how the experience of being on the attraction impacted people, and how those experiences continue to shape the parks.
It wouldn’t be a Disney offering if there weren’t also an element of cross-promotion involved, and it’s no surprise to see episodes talking about not just what has been around for years, but what’s new or just around the corner: the Jungle Cruise movie; the TRON coaster coming to Magic Kingdom; Galaxy’s Edge as an outgrowth of Star Tours. For those looking for more park history, the balance might feel like it’s tipped too strongly towards recent efforts like Smuggler’s Run or the Guardians of the Galaxy retrofit of California’s Tower of Terror. Behind the Attraction casts a wide net, and manages to find a little something for everyone: those who want to know the nuts-and-bolts of an attraction’s creation, those who want a smile as they recall their previous visits, and those who might be nudged towards making their first Disney parks memories.
Behind the Attraction is now streaming on Disney+.
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Let’s Hear From You
As avid Disney Park fans and readers of this site, it’s almost like this Disney+ series was created just for you. Will you be watching Behind the Attraction or have you already seen an episode? Is there a particular attraction you’re looking forward to learning more about? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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