Jurassic World (2015, First Impressions) (Movie Review)
Friday, June 12, 2015
In 1992, a little movie came out called “Jurassic Park”, it had ground braking effects, life like animatronics, memorable characters, subtle moral and ethical questions raised while still exciting us with awesome dinosaur attacks, and to this day it’s still one of my all time favorite movies. Then came two sub-par sequels titled “The Lost World: Jurassic Park” and “Jurassic Park 3”, which I didn’t hate, but they weren’t special either. Now finally, FINALLY, after so many years, we not only have a new “Jurassic Park” sequel, but also one that’s a worth follow-up to the original. The 2015 movie “Jurassic World” is something that I’ve been raring for years, and it didn’t disappoint.
Now I didn’t expect “Jurassic World” to be better than the original (which it wasn’t) but it still surpassed my expectations and turned out to be both a solid sequel and a thrilling roller coaster ride of a summer blockbuster that I can’t wait to ride again! Set several years after the events of the first film, this movie takes place in a new Dino theme park, the only difference is that this one works, visitors arrive regularly, people get along with the Dino’s and everything is just perfect. It’s John Hammond’s dream from the first movie fully realized, and as I was watching the movie I really wanted to go there, I was like “yeah, if there was such a thing as a Dino theme park it would look and feel just like this”. However, there are only so many times people can see the same thing, so the park owners create a Dinosaur that’s a hybrid of multiple creatures in an effort to bring in even more visitors. Unfortunately, this new beast isn’t all too fond of captivity, so it escapes, hunts down other Dino’s for sport and is narrowing is on some unexpected guests. When the beast attacks the park, a group of human characters get separated and need to survive in the park, while all the other dinosaurs escape from their cages. Then it becomes an adventure for our hero’s to reunite with missing family members, bring order back to the park and stop this savage Ultra-Saurus. Yeah ... the creature has a different name, but I’d like to call him the Ultra-Saurus, I think that’s catchier.
So from that synopsis, it may sound like a routine Jurassic Park adventure, which it kind of is, but with enough new ideas, twists and likable characters that make it satisfying. The movie is very self aware of what kind of film it is and has fun with itself. It carries some of the themes from the original, and it definitely submerses the audience in a world that feels livable, or at the very least, I felt like I was transported. Unlike the last two films, this movie made me feel like I was watching a classic Jurassic Park movie, as opposed to an action film that just happened to feature dinosaurs. The passing in this film was perfect, it took it’s time introducing us to the environment, while also introducing the characters and didn’t resort to action packed spectacles until much later. Some people may be turned off by that, but I really appreciated it. I thought that was a very smart move because it made the thrilling action in the finally all the more special without feeling repetitive. The action scenes themselves are a lot of fun, and the climax is downright thrilling. I will admit that there was nothing as suspenseful as say the kitchen scene from the first film, and the dinosaur effects looked kind of fake at times, but it didn’t spoil the movie at all, in fact the movie is actually quiet gorgeous to look at.
The characters were all good enough, not quiet up to par with the cast from the first due to some really corny scenes, but did enjoy this cast for the most part and cheered for them as they embarked on this adventure. It was actually a breath of fresh air to see some new faces as opposed to recycling the same cast members from the first film. Chris Pratt obviously steals the show with every scene he’s in, and Bryce Dallas Howard was actually very respectable and engaging as the films female lead. Overall, “Jurassic World” was perfect summer popcorn entertainment and the best JP sequel by a mile. I was in third grade back when “Jurassic Park 3” premiered, and ever sense I’ve been hoping against hope that I’d get a JP sequel that could live up to the original. Well, the wait was worth it because this was everything that I wanted from a good JP sequel. There were several Easter Eggs and throw backs to the original that may throw some people off, but I thought they were all nice touches that only fuelled my nostalgia for the series. Now is this a perfect movie ... obviously not, it has it’s dramatically uneven moments and some really corny scenes, but you really shouldn’t let that way down the experience. This is a monster movie after all, it’s popcorn entertainment, you’re supposed to go in and have fun with it, and I can definitely say that I had a fun time with this film.
I give “Jurassic World” 4 stars out of 5.