Indiana Jones Adventure
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Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye is an attraction at Disneyland. It opened on March 3, 1995. Based on the Indiana Jones films, guests are taken on an adventure in modified troop transports through a lost temple with Indiana Jones.
A similar ride entitled Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull is located at Tokyo DisneySea theme park in Tokyo. The following text refers to the Disneyland attraction, but the Tokyo version is similar in many respects.
Ride-through
At the Disneyland attraction, guests play the role of tourists in 1936, who visit the Temple of the Forbidden Eye, which is supposedly located somewhere in India. This incredible archaelogical discovery presents life-changing opportunities—eternal youth, wealth, or future knowledge. The half-mile-long queue seems to lead guests deep underground, through caverns and dark passageways, before finally entering the temple itself. The queue contains sections that are very reminisecent of the Indiana Jones movies, including sections where it looks like booby traps will be triggered if you step on a certain tile; some small children are amazed by the apparent immortality of their parents when they step on those tiles. There is also a (closed off) office like room apparently used by Indiana Jones, complete with his hat and whip. This queue is one of the most immersive in the world, with detail and atmosphere rivaling that found in attractions like Star Tours.
After many not-so-subtle warnings to avoid the gaze of the deity Mara, guests board a Jeep-like troop transport. After leaving the station, the troop transport rumbles into a room called the Chamber of Destiny. There are three doors: 1) the Fountain of Eternal Youth, 2) the Chamber of Earthly Riches, and 3) the Observatory of the Future. The troop transport randomly enters one of the doors into the Hall of Promise, and ascends along a sloped tunnel. The stone face of the deity Mara looms ahead, promising good fortune beyond imagination. But some foolish guest in the transport forgets the warning about looking into Mara's eyes. The music turns sinister and Mara's eyes flicker with power. "No! Foolish mortals! You looked into my eyes! Your path now leads to the Gates of Doom!" he proclaims, and the transport swerves to the left to avoid his wrath.
The troop transport now careens through a large tunnel, with cobra statues on the walls. Lighting flashes along the stone walls. The Gates of Doom pulsates with violet mist ahead, but an animatronic Indiana Jones struggles to keep the huge door closed. "Tourists! You had to look, didn't you? Augh, quick! Swerve left - up to the left! It's the ONLY way out! And watch it - there's BIG steps up there!" He points to a dark passageway to the left. The triumphant musical theme from Raiders of the Lost Ark is heard. It seems as though we are safe. But the transport emerges from the passage and teeters on the edge of a vast magma pit. A larger stone Mara shoots a ray of fire from its eyes, igniting below the bridge, and another transport can be seen tottering across a flimsy wooden bridge. Our troop transport wheels left and enters another chamber, decorated with skulls and skeletons. Several mummies pop out toward the guests. Suddenly, all is dark; the music tinkles with chaotic violin pizzicatos. The transport's headlights flicker back on, illuminating walls swarming with thousands of beetles and spiders. Hissing sounds are heard. The engine rumbles to a start, and we're off again.
Now at the centerpoint and highlight of the attraction, the transport roars onto the swaying bridge across the magma pit. The music reaches a thunderous choral climax as Mara attempts to vaporize the guests with green beams of light from his eyes. The transport stalls for a frightening moment before rumbling off the bridge and into an area dubbed the "Snake Temple" for obvious reasons--within moments, a gigantic animatronic cobra appears to the right of the vehicle. Early in the ride's history, the snake would strike quite close to the vehicle, but this action has become noticibly more restrained over the years. At this point, the tourists will hear Indy yell either "Watch out for anything that slithers" or "Snakes! You guys are on your own." Swerving away from the deadly fangs, the transport plunges down a hill and into the bowels of the temple.
The jeep now passes inside the immense Mara head. Hundreds of human skulls decorate the walls, and the spirit of Mara looms from above. The Jeep continues downward, driving beside the glowing magma. Darkness falls again, and this time the headlights do not turn on. With a final blare of horns, the music goes silent. The vehicle shudders and stalls before at last continuing. Coming around the corner, a tree root appears to be hanging in the darkness. Rats swarm along the root and drop onto the hood of the transport. Another burst of speed sends the car right through the tree root, which vaporizes like mist. Contrary to popular belief, this effect is not achieved through holography, but through a simple video projection on a smoke screen.
After wheeling through the dark a bit more, the troop transport arrives in a tunnel that is properly lit. Eerie paintings of skeletal warriors adorn the walls, complete with blowdarts and spears. Suddenly, the air is filled with the whooshing and twanging of the warriors' weapons as though the car has set off a booby trap. Sensing the tourists obvious panic, the transport responds by crawling forward as deadly poisonous darts seem to whiz past the passengers' heads. This effect is very unnerving for first-timers, since the air truly seems to be filled with spears and blowdarts. In reality, all that is involved are properly timed sound effects and bursts of air.
The jeep now approaches a dark area and stops. Indy suddenly appears above the vehicle hanging on a rope in a shaft of sunlight. "Back up. Back up! Let me in," he shouts. But seconds later, the light illuminates a massive boulder barrelling toward the car. The troop transport seems to back up a bit as the boulder threatens to crush the tourists. At the last possible second, the transport dives into a hole beneath the approaching boulder. The jeep spins around to see Indy, tired and sweaty, standing in front of the crushed boulder. He wipes his forehead and says, "Not bad... for tourists." At long last, the final triumphant refrain of the music ushers us back into the station, where we disembark and follow the long tunnel back into the Adventureland area.
About the ride
Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye was the third joint venture between WDI and Lucasfilm, after the Disneyland attractions Captain EO and Star Tours. Based on the wildly popular film franchise, this ride is one of the most imaginatively and intricately themed attractions in Disneyland.
What makes Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye so effective is its clever combination of theming and thrills. There is always something to look at within the ride, and the ride vehicle itself uses a revolutionary method of delivering thrills. Each troop transport is basically a miniature motion simulator that travels along a track. The transport "shell" sits on top of a chassis that moves along the track at a comfortable 12 mph. But hydraulics built into the chassis cause the shell to shudder, bank, and twist, creating a much more physically intense experience. This ride system was invented expressly for the Indiana Jones Adventure, and to this day has only been implemented in two other rides—Dinosaur: Countdown to Extinction, located in the Animal Kingdom in Orlando, Florida, and the Tokyo DisneySea counterpart, Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull. The Animatronic Indiana Jones is also a very realistic figure; it is not uncommon for people to think it is a live cast member rather than an animatronic.
This attraction also represents one of WDI's most ambitious projects. The construction process began in 1993. It entailed rerouting the Jungle Cruise river, digging out a half-mile of queue areas, demolishing an area of the former Eeyore parking lot, and building a 50,000-square-foot warehouse to house the ride itself. The effects employed in the attraction itself are top-notch, as is the theming that makes the queue so enjoyable. For more than a decade of operation, the attraction has been very well maintained. If anything, the quality of the experience has improved. The attacking cobra, for instance, was recently replaced with a larger and more menacing animatronic. The rats-on-the-branch effect has also been greatly improved; originally, the projection was static, making the illusion interesting but ultimately pointless. Now, rats can be clearly seen swarming along the branch and dropping onto the hood of the troop transport.
Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye is not for the faint of heart, however. For some young children, the theming of queue alone may be enough to induce real fear. The ubiquitous skeletons and dimly lit, claustrophobic passages can be frightening for Disneyland's younger guests. Older guests with back problems, motion sickness, or heart conditions, as well as pregnant mothers, are strongly discouraged from riding. While this is one of the more physically intense attractions guests can find at the Disneyland Resort, it contains no steep drops or inversions.
Attraction facts
- Grand Opening: March 3, 1995
- Building Size: 57,400 feet² (5,332 m²)
- Track Lengh: 2,500 feet (762 m)
- Queue Lengh: 1,500 feet (457 m)
- Total Vehicles: 17 (Max 15 on track)
- * Vehicle theme: Jeep
- Height Requirement: 46 inches (1.1 m)
- Animatronic Indiana Jones: 3
- Groundbreaking: July 1993
Trivia
- The 2.5 ton (2,267 kg) Mercedes-Benz troop transport truck parked in the outside queue at Disneyland's version is the actual vehicle used in the famous desert chase scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark.
- A small mining car near the truck is a movie prop as well, used in the mine scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
- Various exotic messages in "Marabic" decorate the heavily themed queue area. These can be translated into English using a simple code. In the early months of the attraction's existence at Disneyland, guests were given decoder cards; while these cards are no longer distributed, the code is easily solvable. Each ancient symbol bears a strong resemblance to its corresponding letter in the English alphabet. The sole exception is the letter I, which, appropriately, resembles an eye.
- In addition to dialogue and sound effects, an orchestral soundtrack plays through the speakers built into the troop transports. This medley contains segments of John Williams' original scores for the first two Indiana Jones movies, rescored and re-recorded to sync up with the perils of the ride. The "Raiders's March" and "Ark theme" both feature prominently at various points.
- When the ride was built, the building took up most of the Eeyore section of the pre-existing parking lot. As a tribute, one of the Eeyore signs was hidden in the queue area.
- The Chamber of Destiny actually has only one working door, with only one corridor behind it. A set of five facades rotate, so that any three of them can be visible at a given time, with the central door leading into the actual chamber. The facades and the corridor behind the working door are lighted differently based on which particular "chamber" has been chosen. At times when the mechanism is not working, and all transports go through the same “door,” ride hosts will jokingly tell passengers NOT to go through that door.
- The rolling boulder at the end of the ride rotates in a fixed position illuminated with lighting effects to simulate movement. The troop transport slowly moves forward to create the illusion that the boulder is gaining on the riders, while the walls of the tunnel move forward, faster than the transport. This gives the impression that the transport is moving backwards, and that the boulder is rolling down the corridor towards the transport.
- In the Skull Room, there are 1,992 skulls in order to represent the year construction began in 1992.
- In the Skeleton Room, there is a skeleton wearing a pair of the famous Mickey Mouse ear hat. The name on the back is what else? Bones.
- One of the skeletons in the Skeleton Room has on one hand all but his middle finger broken off (note: this may have been removed)
- In the queue, there are at least two opportunities to have a bit of fun while waiting for the line to move on. In the room with diamond shaped tiles and spikes, there is a support that can be swung around. Push it so that it is vertical again and sounds simulating the ceiling dropping will play. Occasionally the bamboo ceiling support will not be there due to the fact that it is constant use and very often breaks, having to be removed for repair (hint: wait until the crashing sounds have stopped before touching the pole again to keep from breaking it.) Later in the queue a well with rope attached can be found. Pulling on the rope triggers verbal responses from the man below.
External links
- - Patent for the Enhanced Motion Vehicle used in this attraction.
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