Tags
Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Cinema, Colin Trevorrow, Dinosaurs, Indominus Rex, Jurassic World, Jurassic World Movie Reivew, Michael Crichton, Movie Reviews, Steven Spielberg
Back in 1993 my love for filmmaking all started when my Dad took me to see Jurassic Park. I went into the movie knowing nothing about it. The only thing my Dad told me was that it had dinosaurs in it. Being a young boy I was sold on that alone. This movie had such a massive impact on my childhood. They made dinosaurs come to life. It fascinated me, I wanted to know how they did it so I could do it too. My Dad was nice enough to let me mess around with his big old clunky camera that took big cassette tapes…And boy, did I overuse that thing making movies…Till one day it randomly started smoking…Sadly it died. So by now if you haven’t guessed I love Jurassic Park. I did like the 2nd film The Lost World, but as s for the 3rd film in the franchise…I like to think it didn’t exist.
So, 22 years later and Director Colin Trevorrow and producer Steven Spielberg resurrect the franchise from extinction. At first I was cautiously optimistic about the film. But when they announced Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard were signing onto the movie, not only did it had my curiosity, but it had my attention. I was a big fan of Chris Pratt and his work on the TV show Parks & Recreation and he was excellent in Guardians of the Galaxy. I was also impressed when the first trailer dropped. The whole concept of a fully functioning park, a hybrid dinosaur, and Pratt training raptors grabbed my attention. It appeared this film was exploring a lot of the stuff the original books went into.
Despite going into this movie cautiously optimist, I also went in with massive expectations. I didn’t want this movie to be better than the first movie, but better than the others. I wanted it to be a nice addition with some new concepts amongst the predictable concept of, “Dinosaurs break out and people die.”
So does Jurassic World accomplish this? Heck yes!
To put it bluntly, Jurassic World (the park in general) is a representation of our culture. We want bigger, better, and louder. We like our big brand name products. We want that new car smell that will be considered old in six months. We want full 100% control and safety with zero conflict and sadly our desires never fully satisfy. We strip something of its heart and we make it cold and heartless by slapping meaningless numbers on it with flashy commercialization. Jurassic World shows us the irony of our culture. As Bryce Dallas Howards character, Claire says in the movie, “Nobody is impressed with dinosaurs anymore. Kids look at a stegosaurus like they do an elephant.”
John Hammond, the creator of the first park in the first movie wanted to introduce awe and wonder to children. Claire who’s in charge of Jurassic World is a greedy consumerist who doesn’t see the wonder, but the numbers. Despite all of this, no matter how hard mankind tries, “Life…Uh…Finds a way.” And the wonder and power of creation shines in full glory and terror.
Claire and a bunch of business focus groups decide they want something bigger and better since peoples attention spans are shrinking. So Dr. Wu creates the Indominus Rex, the first genetically modified dinosaur. It’s a genetic mix up of a T-Rex and cuttlefish…the rest is a mystery. Simon Masrani, the owner of the park arrives to see the Indominus. He’s the John Hammond character of the film. He wants Claire to have Owen check the Indominus’ padlock for vulnerabilities. That’s when we meet Chris Pratt’s character Owen, a tough and witty raptor whisperer who has formed a bond with the animals. Owen inspects the padlock and things go wrong. The Indominus escapes. At the same time Claire’s nephews are in town visiting, but she’s too busy to deal with them. So the kids go on an adventure of their own and explore the Island…That is till the Indominus shows up. Now it’s up to Owen and Claire to rescue her nephews and to track down the Indominus.
The Indominus is what the people want, bigger, louder, faster, and in the end it is the seed of satan devouring everything in its path for sport. This is what happens when mankind tries to make something better than what God has made. It shows us that man’s creation fails in comparison to God’s nature and creation. Life finds a way to shut down mans weak attempts to be better by bringing out its old guns to do things the old fashioned way…And when this scene plays out it is glorious, heart pounding, cinematic gold. The inner child cheered and grinned from ear to ear.
Going in I was worried that I wouldn’t be as terrified as I was when I first watched Jurassic Park because we’ve all seen dinosaurs on screen by now. But the action is intense, terrifying, and jaw dropping. I was also worried when they said they weren’t going to us as many animatronics, but again I was wrong. The CGI looked incredible. The dinosaurs breathed, blinked, and snarled like real animals. They also moved faster than in the past films. The raptors and their expressions and how they interacted with Owen was perfect. Which goes along with what Michael Crichton wrote in the Jurassic Park novel: Dr. Wu, “For one thing, they move too fast. People aren’t accustomed to seeing large animals that are quick, I’m afraid visitors will think the dinosaurs look speeded up, like film running too fast. But we could easily breed slower, more domesticated dinosaurs.”
Not only was the massive dinosaur destruction great, but also the characters were great. That is one thing the first movie and novel lacked. Apart from Dr. Malcolm…the rest were okay. Instead of just running away from dinosaurs, the main characters were active. At first I didn’t think I would like Claire’s character but that’s the point. At first she is uptight and greedy. She can care less about the animals, but as the story progresses and as she goes on this adventure with Owen she learns and grows. She becomes a real likable character that ends up having the best idea on how to take on the Indominus. Pratt’s character Owen, is awesome. Chris Pratt nails this out of the park. Pratt basically plays a hybrid of Dr. Malcolm, Dr. Grant, and Indiana Jones. The bond and relationship he forms with the raptors and the other animal’s works in a real heartwarming way. He’s got the charm and charisma, proving Pratt is the next big thing. (Cough!…Indiana Jones)
The rest of the characters are good. The dialogue is witty, with that classic campy action adventure vibe, enough to break up the intense moments. Lowery, played by Jake Johnson is a character that works the control room at Jurassic World. He is hilarious. He steals every scene he’s in. The two bickering brothers, Ty and Nick didn’t drive me crazy like most kid actors do. One brother cares more about flirting with girls than seeing dinosaurs, while the other brother is crazy about dinosaurs. They bicker throughout the movie but as their adventure progresses they grow closer together as brothers. My only real complaint with the movie was the character Hoskins played by Vincent D’Onofrio. He was the weakest link, his acting seemed off, as if he was just there reading his lines. I wanted him to die the moment I saw his smirk.
Overall, Jurassic World is a fun intense ride. It has the same sense of wonder as the original while still trying to be its own movie. The moment those park gates opened and we entered Jurassic World with that familiar theme we all love, which was beautifully done by Michael Giacchino, I felt like I was back. I had a big smile the whole time. It’s also jam packed with countless easter eggs that call back to the original movie.
In the end comparing Jurassic World to Jurassic Park and expecting it to be better would be hard and even ignorant of me. I don’t expect the new Star Wars movie to be better than the original ones. Don’t expect Jurassic World to be better than Jurassic Park because it’s not fair, and it’s not trying to be better either. Instead, Colin Trevorrow adds to it. It was a movie by a fan, created for the fans. It was a monumental task that succeeds and delivers where most sequels fail miserably. Jurassic World is the 2nd best in the franchise and is the best movie of the year so far. For that it deserves some praise.
Score: 10 out of 10.
P.S. I will post a spoiler review by the end of the week.
-JL