My Review of Walt Disney: A Magical Life
Well, the day has finally arrived.
After months of speculation, Disneyland guests have finally watched Disney’s latest show.
Photo: Disney
This one certainly qualifies as more important than most, even the Disney Villains attraction.
After all, nothing else at Disney co-stars Walt Disney himself…or at least a robotic version of him.
Photo: Playbuzz.com
So, how is it? Here’s my review of Walt Disney – A Magical Life.
Not What I Expected
Photo:seoclerk.com
First of all, I want to emphasize that dozens of people contribute to MickeyBlog each month.
We’ve got at least ten primary contributors and any number of occasional posters, many of whom work in the business of The Walt Disney Company.
Walt Disney Company
So, I’m not speaking for anybody else here. This is just one individual’s opinion about a hot-button topic.
Why has Walt Disney – A Magical Life proven so controversial? Well, I think you probably know.
Image: The Healthy Mouse
Disney has made the unusual decision to turn its founder, Walt Disney, into an Audio-Animatronic.
I’ll debate the ethics of that in a different article. It’s a conversation for another time.
Photo: Disney Store
Today’s focus will remain squarely on the attraction itself…which is not at all what I’d anticipated.
Honestly, when you hear the words “Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic show,” that’s what you expect.
Marc Davis and Walt Disney talk Pirates of the Caribbean. Photo: Disney
However, that’s not really what Disney has created here. This is more of a Walt Disney biography.
I’ll prove this mathematically. The show lasts roughly 17 minutes. Robo Walt doesn’t appear until the 14-minute mark.
Walt Disney Company
Therefore, you should recalibrate your expectations about what Disney has actually made here.
By any reasonable evaluation, this show doubles as a love letter to the company’s founder.
Photo: Disney
As such, I can understand why the Disney family, save for the one outspoken critic, sounds so pleased with the project.
Disney has created something sincere here, a show utterly lacking in cynicism.
Photo: Walt Disney Archives
As a society, we simply aren’t used to that sort of thing lately, which makes the effect that much more impactful.
Still, let’s discuss the thing that I know probably interests you the most.
About the Walt Disney Animatronic
Let’s just get right to it. The Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic is the pink elephant dancing in the living room.
There’s no ignoring this part of the conversation, as it’s what people will use to judge the entire show.
Photo: Disney
And the Audio-Animatronic…is fine. It’s not great and certainly not an unequivocal triumph.
People have already savaged the appearance of Walt Disney in robot form. I totally get why.
This artificial construct shares a likeness to Uncle Walt, but it’s not perfect.
And imperfect is a huuuuge problem with partially accurate robotic representations of people.
Photo: Disney
The term ‘uncanny valley’ exists for a reason, as did the television series Westworld.
People get creeped out when robots kinda look human but kinda don’t. And that’s Walt Disney.
Photo: Disney
There are a couple of things that just aren’t right about the robotic recreation of the company founder.
So, those are the things that people are noticing the most and commenting about with great frequency.
Photo: Disney
I’ve done it myself, as I’m not a fan of Uncle Walt’s jowls. The robot version has a fat face.
I presume there are technical reasons for that, as Disney must hide plenty of electronics within that body.
Still, the effect is jarring…at first. After a moment, I stopped thinking about it as I immersed myself in the story.
That’s been Disney’s plan here all along. It wants to celebrate the life and legacy of Walt Disney.
If people had just announced that same show-based attraction without the animatronic, nobody would have cared.
The hook here, the thing that makes people want to watch the show, is Robo Walt.
Photo: Disney
When you’re watching the story, you’ll quickly forget that, though. It’s not what matters about Walt Disney – A Magical Life.
About the Story
Photo: Disney
I’ll confess to a bias here. I’m probably the precise target audience for this show.
In fact, it may be narcissistic for me to praise the story because I wrote this in 2023.
Photo: Disney
The first five minutes of Walt Disney – A Magical Life mirror elements of what I said.
That’s because they’re two versions of the same thing: A quick Walt Disney biopic.
Photo: Disney Parks
The show is little more than a loving tribute to the person who invented The Happiest Place on Earth.
Since everyone loves him, Disney is preaching to the choir here, and it really works.
Photo: Disney
The story is tightly paced, with well-considered dialogue that emphasizes all aspects of Walt Disney’s life.
This isn’t a sugarcoating, either. Disney himself tells his own story at times, and he pulls no punches.
At one point, he mentions the infamous moment when he was mortgaged to the hilt while building Disneyland.
His reciting of the production of Snow White is similarly fraught with peril.
No, the show doesn’t get dark or anything. These are merely casual mentions of Uncle Walt’s frequent financial struggles.
The Imagineers who created this show hope that viewers will try to fill in the dots themselves.
Photo: Disney
That’s an unstated but obvious goal here. The company wants a new generation of fans to learn more about its founder.
A Magical Life hits all the highlights and fills in most of the blanks, but the goal is for you to want to learn more.
My Review of A Magical Life
Simply stated, I love this show. And I’ll level with you that I hadn’t expected to say that.
When I saw the Robo Walt for the first time, I felt the same way as many of you.
Photo: Disney
This thing just isn’t quite right, which makes it a touch unsettling. So, there’s the uncanny valley part.
However, I totally forgot about that aspect while watching the show. The story totally engrossed me.
Photo: Disney
After ten minutes, I’d forgotten that I was watching the show mainly for the animatronic.
This is probably the closest Disney will ever come to creating a Walt Disney biopic.
Photo: Getty
So, I relished every second of it, although I do have one lingering complaint beyond Robo Walt.
CEO Bob Iger narrates the story, which annoys me. It feels like Iger is trying to cement his legacy by tying it to Disney’s.
I would have much preferred Disney to hire a living legend like Dick Van Dyke to narrate instead.
Disney executives shouldn’t insert themselves into attractions. That’s my one trifling complaint.
Walt Disney — A Magical Life
Other than that, I’d give the show a nine out of ten, and that’s just from docking it a point over Robo Walt.
The story is a ten out of ten for any Disney lovers who want to learn how their favorite company came to be.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!
Feature Photo: DIsney
