Jaws The Ride Lives On At Universal Studios Osaka

We still miss the Jaws ride when visiting Universal Studios Orlando so when planning a trip to Japan, it was clear to me that we must, however tricky it may be, manage a trip outside of Tokyo, to Osaka. This trip, which thankfully turned out to be a few simple train rides away, was fuelled by one main thing: my absolute love of old school Universal, when I could actually ride the movies I liked and not some attraction based on one of the 800 Fast and Furious films. Ok, maybe that’s a bit harsh, but still, you get my point.

A day doesn’t seem to pass on twitter without at least one person declaring how much they miss the old ‘Amityville’ section of Universal Studios Orlando. I definitely fall into this category, and before I ever thought a trip to Japan could be a possibility, I had  resigned myself to the fact that I would never get to have another go on my beloved ‘Jaws’ ride. I still remember my last go on ‘Jaws’ in Orlando, when I was less experienced in the world of theme parks and had no idea what made an attraction good or bad. I simply knew that I loved that terrifying mechanical shark, who made me slightly afraid to sit at the edge of the boat, and that this attraction was my favourite in the park. With the removal of Back to the Future in Osaka a few years ago, I can’t help but feel that my  most beloved land and attraction are living on borrowed time. So with the opportunity of a lifetime, a trip to Japan, I wasn’t going to let anything get in between me and my Jaws.

Now, before I start let me just get one thing straight, I may be a little biased (if you haven’t already guessed) . Steven Spielberg’s ‘Jaws’ is my favourite film of all time, so when I talk about this just remember that if you don’t feel quite so strongly about the film, it’s very likely that you might not feel my teary eyed love upon seeing the ‘Brody’s Frozen Drinks’ cart. Despite this, I will remain as critical as ever in regards to what I think of ‘Amity’ when compared to the current theme park offerings. Particularly when compared to Universal Orlando and Hollywood’s current offerings…

Screens, screens, screens…blah, blah, blah.

Universal fans, you know what I’m talking about, the most common criticism of our beloved park. But come on, they’re not wrong. In Some instances, such as ‘The Mummy’, ‘Transformers’ or ‘Forbidden Journey’, Universal provide us with the perfect tool to shut down such a criticism; well-made attractions that cleverly incorporate screens to enhance the ride experience. But then there’s, in my opinion, the polar opposite- ‘Jimmy Fallon’ and ‘Fast and Furious’. Screen based boredom with the lowest re-ride ability ever. Well, unless you want Fallon’s sweet AC. Universal seems to have decided that instead of being a park where we can ride the movies, it will instead be a park where we can watch movies in various moving seats. Oh and with water effects, lots and lots of water effects. This has caused many of us to cling to the few old school attractions that remain, which at this point is really just E.T. Perhaps this explains why this attraction gets so much love from so many of us fans, when really it’s just an ok dark ride which falls flat in comparison to Disney classics like ‘The Haunted Mansion’. Despite this, I’ll still join Spielberg in outrage if Universal ever manage to get rid of this beloved attraction. Anyway, enough about E.T., we’re here to discuss whether Jaws can hold up in today’s world of theme parks.

Amityville itself, with its nautical theme and glorious music loop provide the perfect backdrop for this attraction. It is easy to imagine that it’s a glorious 70s summer on this truly American Island, that experienced recent horrific shark attacks. But, all is now well as the prized shark hangs as a trophy, defeated for all to see. The water is safe again, and the boat tours can commence. 

The queue itself helps to reinforce the feeling of being a tourist on this island, whilst also reminding us of classic moments from the iconic Spielberg film. Stepping into the boat, I felt truly overwhelmed with what was to come. I was surrounded by water and familiar architecture that the queues movie stills had just reminded me of. I was truly riding the movie, before the ride itself had even started.

The boat driver began to reel off his lines, in Japanese of course, but this didn’t matter. I could remember the lines as if I’d heard them in English yesterday, which shows the amount of old Jaws ride footage I have watched on YouTube. But even without them, the music and scenery was enough. I knew what was going on as we approached the sunken tour boat. A fin began to appear and my eyes excitedly followed it around the boat. There he was, ready to attack. As the mechanical shark burst out the water, I was truly shocked. Ten years later and the animatronic still held its own. The razor sharp teeth and dark beady eyes brought back the terror I had felt when I was younger. Jaws was back for revenge.

As we entered the boat house, I found myself partially hoping for safety, whilst also eagerly awaiting what I knew was to come. Again, he jumped out and this time I paid more attention to our driver. He shot at the plastic shark, just like I’d remembered. An interactive element to this attraction which allowed for it to always feel just a little bit different. No static screens that played the same thing each time. An attraction which interacted with our driver and a driver that interacted with us.

As the rides conclusion played out, I knew my memory hadn’t glorified this attraction. The Jaws ride was terrifying and wonderful in every way I remembered. Yes, there are better animatronics these days. But that doesn’t matter. The film is dated in that sense too, but Jaws is Jaws. Not the most realistic looking shark, but far more terrifying that any of the CGI sharknado sharks. Like attractions such as Pirates of the Caribbean, there is no need to put in modern ‘Snow White Mine Train’ like animatronics.  The classic feeling technology works perfectly. 

The Jaws ride remains my favourite attraction in any Universal Park, both in memory and in practice. I may not be an expert, but if I could provide Universal with any advice it would be this; stop speedily putting in ok screen based attractions and take your time to create some more classics. We want practical effects and fun innovative rides, like Jaws or the more modern Forbidden Journey. I hope to see this with the new Harry Potter Rollercoaster, but I’d also like to see Universal bring back some more of their classic properties. Give true film fans a reason to return to their parks, give us a Classic Monsters, Jaws or a Back to the Future attraction. But unlike with Kong, give true theme park fans something to be excited about, new technology or bring back old technology in a reimagined way. I’m sorry to say it Universal, but if you can’t at least take a leaf out of your own old school book, take a leaf out of Disney’s and give us something like Frozen. A mixture of screens and new animatronics, something I hope we will see soon. I get we can’t dig something back from the past (Jaws), but how about something new?