D&M Exclusive report on " Inception ", most awaited movie of the summer !

As i often do on week-ends here is a non-Disney report. But don't go away as it is an exclusive report on one of the most awaited movie of this summer: Christopher Nolan's "Inception".

Chris Nolan is a brilliant film director and he's the one who did the excellent Batman's "The Dark Night" and also another one that i liked a lot "The Prestige", about a "fight" between two magicians in Victorian London. Inception, which will be released in July is for sure highly awaited but also one of the most secret movie of the year. For months, no informations came out of the shooting, and even now the only synopsis on IMDB is this one:

"Acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan directs an international cast in an original sci-fi actioner that travels around the globe and into the intimate and infinite world of dreams. Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a skilled thief, the absolute best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state, when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb's rare ability has made him a coveted player in this treacherous new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved.

Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossible: inception. Instead of the perfect heist, Cobb and his team of specialists have to pull off the reverse: their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one. If they succeed, it could be the perfect crime. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move. An enemy that only Cobb could have seen coming. This summer, your mind is the scene of the crime."



Inception and his brilliant cast - picture above - had four days of shooting in Paris last August and as i was in town i've filmed the shooting. Note that at that time i knew nothing about the storyline so, as i did the editing seven months ago, part of my comments in the video may be not totally accurate. But you'll get rare shots of the filming, a really big one as around 400 people were on the sets!

You might want to see Inception's trailer first to understand a bit more about it, so here it is:



One last note: the music that i've put at the beginning and the end of the two-part video below is not the one from Inception. But i don't doubt that you will guess where the music is coming from!







Inception trailer: copyright Warner Bros

Video: copyright Disney and more

Pictures: copyright warner Bros

Prince of Persia Review

Jerry Bruckheimer's Prince of Persia is released today in France - french poster above - and Friday in the U.S. I saw it at Paris press screening one week ago. It's a typical Bruckheimer summer movie and as usual the production is pretty good. Beautiful decors - even if most of the gorgeous oriental cities are digitally created - and those of you who like Adventureland theming should like them a lot. The movie photography and original music score are very good too.





As we know the movie is inspired by Prince of Persia's video game and should delight the fans. And what about the actors? Ben Kingsley is once again playing the bad guy and he is generally good playing villains. But for me the problem is Jake Gyllenhaal. He is generally a good actor - remember him in Oscar winner's Brokeback Mountain? - and he is obviously trying to do his best in Prince of Persia, but sorry, he didn't convinced me and I even think he's a casting mistake. Now, may be it's not totally his fault as the story line remains extremely primary. Really. The movie is well directed by Mike Newell and SFX are as good as we can expect but it's a pity that the movie didn't had a better script.





It supposed to be a "A" movie and for Jerry Bruckheimer it's may be his "Lawrence of Arabia" but not anyone can be David Lean and in fact it's a deluxe "B" movie, that's what it is. You won't have a bad time watching it but you'll probably forget it as fast as you saw it except may be the beautiful decors and costumes that will remain in your mind. I don't expect the movie box-office to be huge - not bad either but just a medium success - and i'm not even sure there will be a sequel, but who knows, I may be wrong!

Anyway, you understood that i'm not extremely enthusiastic about Prince of Persia but if you want to know more about it here is some video interviews - with french subtitles for my french readers! - beginning by actor Jake Gyllenhaal playing Dastan...





...Gemma Arterton playing the beautiful Princesse Tamina...





...Sir Ben Kingsley, playing the "traitor" Nizam...





...And director Mike Newell & producer Jerry Bruckheimer.





Picture and videos: copyright Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer

Epcot Living Seas Pavilion : The Nautilus Exhibit

Editor's Note: This article is part of my new (and great!) Tom Scherman web site. Tom was the worldwide Nautilus specialist and worked as a WDI Imagineer on many 20K attractions. His master-piece being the full size Disneyland Paris Nautilus that you can discover in a brand new video filmed by me last month at DLP's Discoveryland.

When Epcot Living Seas Pavilion opened to the public in 1986 it was the largest man-made underwater environment in the world at its completion. WDI Imagineer Tim Delaney was the show-designer and you can see lot of great artwork that Tim did in one of my previous Disney and more article HERE. The concept of the attraction was to take visitors under the ocean to "Sea Base Alpha". Guests then would ride the Caribbean Coral Reef Ride in a "seacab" along an underwater tunnel through the aquarium. From there guests would ride around 'Sea Base Alpha' getting an up-close view of the marine life. They would then disembark into the main exhibit area where they could interact with various multimedia displays.



But before guests take an elevator ride to the ocean floor thanks to the "Hydrolator" they would enter a pre-show area and part of it was a 20000 Leagues under the Sea exhibit created with the precious help of Tom Sherman who provided a perfect replica of the Crew Diver suit.

When i was at Epcot fifteen years ago i had the good idea to shoot plenty of pictures of the crew diver suit and here they are in high-res. Click on each picture to see them in larger scale.









On this rare picture kindly provided by Richard Allsmiller, Tom is carrying outside of his apartment a diving tank he made up for the mock-up diving suit with a fiberglass helmet. This might have been the one he sold years later to Walt Disney Imagineering for the Living Seas pavilion.



On the right of the crew diver suit guests could see a great Nautilus model. The model shown there is the studio's 11-foot "hero" miniature used for filming the underwater shots of the Nautilus in the movie.





In December of 2003, Disney started re-theming The Living Seas pavilion with a new ride based on Pixar's film Finding Nemo. Most of the transformation started in exterior elements, but in January of 2004, the interior began to see change as well. On November 16, 2004, Turtle Talk with Crush opened in what was once Module 1C, or the Earth Systems exhibit. Turtle Talk with Crush was just the beginning of changes to The Living Seas. On August 21, 2005, The Living Seas closed for its transformation into a new pavilion called The Seas with Nemo & Friends. Throughout 2006, construction walls hid away the undergoing-reconstruction pre-show area. The Seas with Nemo & Friends was rededicated on January 24, 2007 and the 20K exhibit with Tom crew diver suit was gone forever. But Andrew, a kind reader of the Tom scherman's web site found back Tom's crew diver suit, now in storage in Florida and sent me these pictures shot in 2007.









While we are at Walt Disney World, let's go to the Disney MGM Studios where, in another exhibit, guests could watch a diver helmet replica as well as a replica of the underwater rifle!







Vulcania Volunteers is doing a great replica of the Captain Nemo's underwater rifle and you can find it HERE.

Discover more articles about Tom Scherman and 20000 Leagues under the Sea with lot of gorgeous pictures on my new web site HERE.

All pictures: copyright Alain Littaye, except Tom Scherman picture: copyright Tom Scherman Family Collection from Rich Allsmiller

Editor's Note: That's it, as promised three days ago i'm back on Disney and more for weekly articles and this first one is talking about - guess what? That's right: Imagineering! with a full review of the new and fantastic Imagineering book.

Walt Disney Imagineering " A Behind the Dreams Look at Making MORE Magic Real " Review !

Let's put it like this: the new Walt Disney Imagineering book "A Behind the Dreams Look at Making MORE Magic Real" is simply GORGEOUS. No kidding, folks. A totally "can't live without it" book for any Imagineering fan. And, as i've worked in publishing the last 30 years and did the Disneyland Paris "From Sketch to Reality" book you know that i know what i'm talking about when i do a book review, don't you?

No, frankly, this book is really fantastic. It's important to say that it's a totally brand NEW book, and NOT an updated edition of the first Imagineering book published ten years ago. All the artworks and pictures were not in the first one and this one is totally complementary with the first book.

Melody Mahlberg and all WDI Imagineers who designed this beautiful 192 pages Imagineering tribute did a superb job. From the size - the book is bigger than my DLP book which is already big - to the layouts, fold-out pages, and gorgeous printing the book is "technically" perfect. But of course what is the best is what is inside it! Lot - and i mean really a lot of WDI artwork, most of them never seen before (yes, even on Disney and more!), fantastic behind the scenes pictures (also released for the first time), sketches, rare blue-prints, etc... a pure treasure!



Okay, let's have a closer look at it: there is three parts in the book: Part I is called: Theory and this first part explains how Imagineers creativity requires "a few - a very few" ground rules. Here are some pages from this chapter beginning by the chapter opening...



You'll find gorgeous artwork even on double pages, whether it's this rare sketch for "Soarin' over California"...



...Or a first concept for Tokyo Disney Sea's Port Discovery.



Mind you, normal pages don't have only one picture, but a lot!.. like this one explaining how important is the "Previsualization"...



And others even have fold-out attraction storyboard like this one for the Disneyland's Submarine Nemo ride.



Part II of the book is: Tools and explain how Imagineers make use of a variety of resources to create the magic of Disney Resorts and attractions whether it's tools to visualize or analyze, explain and build.





If you look well you will also learn WDI secrets from rare theme park plans like this double-page with a early DLP plan (on the right) revealing that a "flying saucers" attraction was envisioned where DLP guests now ride Autopia...



Another example with this double pages talking about attraction gags imagined by Imagineers...



...or how important the WDI sculpting section is.



Part 3 is called: Portfolio and you'll have an inside look at the mosaic of people, talents, ideas, and projects from Imagineering.



Just like in the Part 1 and 2 you'll find great pictures and artwork.





You'll find also pages about the Disney Cruise Line - including a giant fold-out of the ship design - and several pages on the awaited Little Mermaid attraction, including a Mermaid ride concept i've never seen before! (no, it's not on the picture below, i've kept the surprise for you)



Except if you're blind you probably have already understood why this new Imagineering book is an absolute must-have for a Disney super-fan like you (or me!). And, good news, although the book is now released and ready for immediate shipping the Amazon $37.80 (instead of $60) special price is always available. And frankly, considering how great this book is it's truly the deal of the month!

You'll find below - or in the Disney & More Amazon Store - the direct link to order the book on Amazon, and if you could use these links for your order i will be thankful to you as i really need your support! Thanks by advance!






Also, talking about books, find back all the "spirit" of Disney and more in the gorgeous Disneyland Paris book! With 750 pictures including 250 WDI renderings this 320 pages book was acclaimed as "the best book ever done on a Disney theme park". See my special offer below to don't miss the last copies!


All pictures: copyright Disney Editions, Walt Disney Imagineering, Disney Enterprises Inc

Disney and more will be back soon !

It's almost one month since i decided to stop posting new articles on Disney and more. Since then i don't count the extremely kind reactions from many of you thanking me for "three years of amazing articles", not to mention your wish that i'll be back soon, even if it was not with daily articles.

Obviously, those of you who consider that Disney and more was "the best Disney theme parks website in the world" are missing it. So, i have a great news for you: I will be back with new articles on Disney and more soon. Very soon. Not on a daily basis like before as it was too much work, but, let's say, on a weekly basis and may be more if there are interesting news happening during the week. And each Sunday you will find me too on Miceage with great articles from the D&M archives.

I hope this decision will make all of you happy, and come back soon for the first new article of the second D&M era!

Looking for a great Disney book ? Then, the Disneyland Paris book is the perfect gift for any Disney fan !

If you're looking for a great gift to offer to anyone you love - including you! - my "Disneyland Paris, From Sketch to Reality" book with its 320 pages and 750 pictures - including 250 renderings from Walt Disney Imagineering - would be a GREAT gift for any Disney fan!

I still have copies of the book, and, as i am one of the two authors of the book, each copy will be sign specially for you or anyone you wish. Of course, don't forget to tell me the name to whom you wish i dedicate the book.

An important note before i go further: If you're not in a rush to get the book, choose the flat shipping option (also indicated below) which usually takes between 3 to 6 weeks delivery (depending if you're living in Europe or in the U.S) and is also much less expensive.

And now, here is a description of the book and everything you need to know to order one of the last signed copy of this beautiful book. Please note that NO re-printing of the book is scheduled, and these last available copies may be the REAL last one!


IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR THE ENGLISH EDITION OF THE BOOK WITH THE TEXT IN ENGLISH:

Price for one copy of the english updated edition is 87 Euros and Shipping: is 15 euros.

If you have a Paypal account you can proceed to the payment by paypal - paypal payment including your choice of shipping must be sent to the email adress: lawrence55@wanadoo.fr

Important: Note that the price is in Euros, not in U.S $, so you have to choose the "euro" currency when you do the paypal payment.

If you don't have a Paypal account, a bank wire transfert is possible, just let me know.

And, of course, thanks to confirm me your order and payment AND the shipping adress by email at the email adress: lawrence55@wanadoo.fr


PLEASE NOTE THAT FOR NOW I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE COPIES OF THE FRENCH EDITION, SORRY. IF YOU STILL WISH A FRENCH COPY? PLEASE LET ME KNOW? I'LL TRY TO FIND A COPY FOR YOU.

As i am the one who designed the book, i'm not really at the good place to send compliments about it, but if you are a reader who already own the book, please leave a comment at the end of the article to let other readers know what you think about it.
Previous comments can be read at the bottom of this page where the article below was previously posted.

So, here is a little description of the book, now - See below some pictures of the book pages - click on each of them to see the photo-montage pictures in big size.



The book is a gorgeous "coffee table book" with 320 pages and 750 pictures - of which 500 are park and attractions photos and 250 are Walt Disney Imagineering renderings!

The size is 9 x 12 inches, all pages are in color and it's hardbound with a glossy dust jacket. The text (by Disney historian Didier Ghez), was written after more than 75 interviews he conducted with all the Imagineers who created the park. He goes into just about everything you wanted to know about this unique place that many describe as the best "Magic Kingdom" ever created by WDI.

It took five years to create the book, but it was worth all the time we spent on it, and the book looks just as good as we had hoped for at the beginning - in fact Imagineer Bruce Gordon told us that it was "probably the best book ever done on a Disney theme park". Coming from Bruce who did with David Mumford the great "Disneyland, The Nickel Tour" book, it was more than a compliment.

The first chapter about Main Street has 52 pages and introduces the reader to the "legend" of Main Street, USA. You'll learn all about the Disneyland Paris Railroad, the unique "Discovery" and "Liberty" Arcades; find out about the architecture, the restaurants (like "Walt's," a tribute to Walt Disney, but also inspired by Club 33 in Anaheim) and the shops; with dozens of photos, renderings, models, and reproduced for the first time here, all the "cities of the future" posters located in "Discovery Arcade."



The second chapter on Frontierland discusses the park's western side with extensive sections about its major attractions, "Big Thunder Mountain" and "Phantom Manor." In fact the book has the longest sections ever put together in a book on all the major attractions. The Pirates of Caribbean section in the Adventureland chapter is 26 pages, Phantom Manor has 16 pages devoted to it, as does Space Mountain, it's a small world, etc. The photo material was so great that we kept adding more pages to the book, which was supposed to have only 240 pages when we started... we ended up with 320 upon completion!



The Frontierland chapter also covers the Mark Twain, the River Rogue Keelboats, Fort Comstock, all the restaurants, the shops and Cottonwood Creek Ranch.and featuring stunning photos of Disneyland Paris from the air by Yann Arthus Bertrand, author of The Earth from Above that make spectacular "double-pages," and allow the reader to discover the park from a whole different angle.



The Adventureland chapter is even more interesting, as many elements of the land exist only in Paris - such as the Bazaar and Aladdin to Africa and the ex-"Explorer's Club." Plus there's a long section about "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril," "Adventure Isle" and "The Swiss Robinson Treehouse" and, of course, "Pirates of Caribbean" the land's major attraction and featuring its amazing Audio-Animatronics! All in all there are 56 full pages about Adventureland, and as in the previous chapters, there are dozens of photos, lots of concept art, and many shots of Imagineers at work. There's even a great bonus here, with the Marc Davis artwork for "Pirates" also included.



56 full pages are also dedicated to Fantasyland. There's an extensive look at Sleeping Beauty Castle, sections on all the dark rides (Snow White, Peter Pan and Pinocchio), as well as a look at "Alice's Curious Labyrinth," the "Mad Hatter's Tea Cups," "Storybookland," and "Casey Jr." There are even 14 pages about "it's a small world" with stunning photos of nearly all the scenes in it. Here the reader can discover a new attraction that exists only at Disneyland Paris, with a great view from above of Alice's Labyrinth.

Discoveryland also gets 52 pages of special treatment, with sections on the Visionarium, the Nautilus, Star Tours, Space Mountain, and everything you wanted to know about the other attractions in this land – Autopia and Orbitron. In fact the Nautilus chapter takes you on a visit with photos of every room of this detailed walk-through and two double page photo spreads, one which makes you feel you're inside Captain Nemo's grand salon, and the other showing you a unique view of Discoveyland featuring the Nautilus and Space Mountain in a kind of "CinemaScope" view.



When the book was released in early 2002, the Walt Disney Studios didn't exist, so you won't see them in the book. But there's still one last chapter about the hotels of the park, and Disney Village too, with the great Buffalo Bill Wild West show that entertains hundreds each evening.

And because every day in a Magic Kingdom should end with a parade and fireworks, we have the Main Street Electrical Parade that close the book, with an Herb Ryman gorgeous painting!



Pictures: copyright Disney