Saturday, May 25, 2013

 
WALT DISNEY WORLD MONSTROUS SUMMER ALL-NIGHTER
DISNEYPARKSBLOG SPECIAL PREMIER OF PIXAR'S MU


Through various permutations, variations, computations, of email, phone calls, stati, text messages, from midnight till 6am on the 24th of May 2013; countered by lack of sleep, an ankle in a boot, a electrically questionable ECV that barely made it out of Epcot a few hours earlier; aided by friends, fellow Disney fans; I gained, then lost, the opportunity to attend the Disney Parks Blog special invite-only kick-off of the Monstrous Summer All-Nighter Party at the Magic Kingdom at 5am; but, was able to make it to the Disney Parks Blog special exclusive screening of Pixar's soon-to-be-released "MU", (Monsters University) at the AMC 24 Theaters at Downtown Disney.

 So, at about 9:30, I headed into Walt Disney World through he Osceola Parkway gate and headed for Downtown Disney, West Side, and the AMC theater complex; headed around to the front door and was directed to Theater 12, where I spotted the people and facilities that marked the location of this special screening. I asked where I should check in and was told that BigFatPanda had told them all about me and they all had my name on their tablets and I was in! I joined the line and it turned out I was about 5th in line as the party crowds that had started the day at 4am over at the Magic Kingdom had not yet arrived in their special chartered buses.

 As other "independents" arrived, I got shots of several dressed to celebrate, anxious to get what I could beofre the required depositing of cameras and cell phones at the tables before us.

 The man in the green "OK" shirt is Chris, and as best I remember, he is with Synergy, the department that co-ordinates between various parts of the Disney Empire and brings together the various people and resources to make something like this event happen.

 We headed in and I really regretted not having my camera, for entrance to the theater was through a narrow walkway on either side of the screen, before the already seated audience, so it was like each person was making an entrance- "walking the red carpet" so to speak- and it would have made for some great photo ops.



I did grab a crowd shot from the Disney Park Blog: I am just above and to the right of center, turned sideways in this shot, and my friend who got me in, BigFatPanda, is all the way on the left in that same row.
photo by Disney Parks Blog

 Trivia games, prizes, and a request to not say anything about the movie or give anything away, and then trailers for The Lone Ranger, Planes, and Disney Earth's BEARS, all to great cheers, and then on to the feature, MU.

 Now, anyone who has read my movie reviews before knows I am not a mouthpiece for Disney or Pixar or any studio, so trust me when I say, this is going to be a monster hit! It is fantastic! Takes it all back to when  Pixar was doing exceptional cutting-edge movies in both technology and storyline: completely fresh, original, funny, touching, truly surprising at many points, not a cliche in the whole thing, can't wait to see it again! I was rapt with attention for every moment, no "breaks". Reminded me of the first time I saw Raiders of the Lost Ark: every moment counted.

 Monster hit!

 It was also a great experience seeing this with hard core Disney fans. It was like watching a movie with a lot of friends and everyone felt free to emote out loud. Crowd reaction throughout the movie was major. And there were several flat out laugh out loud moments. And cheering moments...

 Great movie in a great venue with a great crowd!

 After the show- and I couldn't believe how many of these in-the-know folks left before the credits finished and thus missed the final gag- I caught up with my friend Lucinda and her kids outside and then I scooted over to the buses taking the rest of the partiers back to the Magic Kingdom where some would continue on with this 24-hour Monstrous Summer All-Nighter.

 I headed back into Downtown Disney, my car, and home and a bed.
:)

Jud
# posted by JUD @ 12:56 PM
Comments:
Awesome and SO GLAD you were there!!!
# posted by Anonymous John BigFatPanda : 1:22 PM
 
looking forward to it. glad you got to see it, hope the scooter is fixed.

Kathy
# posted by Anonymous Anonymous : 1:35 PM
 
This looks and sounds like it was a lot of fun Jud. Your enthusiasm for the movie only makes me more excited for it! I can't wait to see it. We have watched Monsters Inc several times lately in preparation for June 21st ( mostly so my four year old is up to speed, LOL). Thanks for this great post!

suz
# posted by Anonymous Suzanne Rudge (MapleMouseMama) : 11:57 PM
 
Hey, glad you had a good time. I recently found Big Fat Panda and LOVE him.
Not really anon.You know who I am.
: )
Bwahahah,

Albert C. Barnes
# posted by Anonymous Anonymous : 7:38 PM
 
That is awesome, Jud! Very cool to be included in a Disney invitation-only event, especially for this grrrreat movie!
# posted by Blogger Unknown : 5:36 PM
 
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