Product Details

• Actors: Lloyd Sherr, Harlan Saperstein, Alexander B. Rubinow, William Atwater, Vince Staten
• Writers: Bruce Nash
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: A&E Home Video
• DVD Release Date: March 28, 2006
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000CS461O
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,280 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Modern Marvels - Walt Disney World (History Channel)" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Clandestine land grabs. A maze of hidden tunnels. High-ranking Army and Navy officers. Secret technology known only to a handful of carefully chosen insiders. Cloaked in secrecy for years the project began as one of the world's biggest most ambitious and little-known undertakings. Military research installation? No Walt Disney World. Orlando's Walt Disney World is not only the most visited theme park in the world it's also the most technologically advanced. From a network of underground tunnels connecting the various regions of the park to the space-age propulsion technology called linear synchronous motors Disney has been at the leading edge of theme park technology since it invented the theme park with the opening of Disneyland in 1955. Soaring castles sleek monorails life-like animatronics Modern Marvels: Walt Disney World takes viewers on a behind-the-scenes tour of the ingenious technology and incredible engineering feats that went into building the 27000 acre complex.DVD Features: Interactive Menus; Scene SelectionSystem Requirements:Running Time 100 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. UPC: 733961745665 Manufacturer No: AAE-74566

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

72 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice, Overall Look at WDW, February 4, 2006

By 

Kelly Keltner (Tennessee) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Modern Marvels - Walt Disney World (History Channel) (DVD)

This History Channel produced documentary provides a nice, overall view behind the scenes at one of the world's most popular tourist attractions, Walt Disney World.

For those who have watched these specials before, there are going to be a number of things presented that you're already familiar with. The history on Walt Disney's purchase of the Florida land is here along with the building of Magic Kingdom, as well as construction on the other three parks: EPCOT Center, Disney-MGM Studios, and Animal Kingdom.

The documentary does go underground to show you the underground tunnel system used by cast members and park management that keeps the show running above. You see the control room that ensures the functions of many popular attractions such as The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean.

A nice attribute to this documentary is how it shows the inner workings of WDW's famous daily parades. While seemingly simple, you get a taste of how these parades are, in and of themselves, a technological wonder.

You're also treated to a limited first look at Expedition Everest and the first free walking animatronic, Lucky the Walking Dinosaur. If you were unable to see this invention at Animal Kingdom last year, you can get a taste for the amazing piece of work this animatronic is (so amazing that it was featured in Time Magazine as one of the best inventions of 2003).

All in all, this DVD is a great way to familiarize yourself with the inner workings of the resort with a lot of new (as well as some old) material for Disney fans.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Inexpensive Backstage Tour, October 10, 2006

By 

Alan D. Cranford (Salt Lake City, Utah USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Modern Marvels - Walt Disney World (History Channel) (DVD)

I rated this only four stars because the audio track on my DVD was out of sync with the video. It appears that the film to DVD transfer didn't compensate for the film audio being several frames ahead of the images.

On the other hand I now have images of the Utilidors. I managed to take two backstage tours of Walt Disney World during the 1990's. The Keys to the Kingdom tour and the three-park Backstage Magic tour were expensive and took up an entire day--but I thought them worth the trouble and expense. It took me three years to book the Backstage Magic tour, and for several good reasons I didn't get to take home photographs of the backstage areas such as the Utilidors. Modern Marvels provided me video images to keep these vital infrastructure of Walt's utopian village fresh in my mind.

I learned about the new Expedition Everest ride, and how the Tree of Life was grown by the Imagineers. I love the Monorail system and the Contemporary Resort--featured! This DVD lets me tour Walt Disney World and its secrets in the comfort of my home, without flying cross-country and putting up with crowds. It isn't "the real thing," but this DVD allows me to scratch my Walt Disney World itch until I get the time and a couple of thousand dollars to return to Orlando.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Insights, March 31, 2006

By 

Sharon Albright (Nottingham, PA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Modern Marvels - Walt Disney World (History Channel) (DVD)

With not even being a big theme park fan, I found this program to be SO interesting. I actually saw it on TV but am now buying the DVD as a gift. It is fascinating to see Disneyland and Disney World come to life and all the thought and creativity that produced it. Anyone who has that curious streak and always ponders "How'd they do that?" or "I wonder how that works??" will LOVE this show.. it is SO COOL!
Sharon A.