[Movie Review] Jurassic World (2015)

Posted on June 12, 2015 by thegrandshuckett in Movie Reviews // 0 Comments

Director: Colin Trevororow

Writers: Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Colin Trevorrow, Derek Connolly

Runtime: 124 min

Main Cast:

Chris Pratt as Owen Grady
Vincent D'Onofrio as Vic Hoskins
Bryce Dallas Howard as Claire Dearing
Judy Greer as Karen Mitchell
Jake Johnson as Lowery

Guest Review: by Erika T

Last year was a pretty good year to be Chris Pratt. He really shot to the Hollywood A-list fast and into America’s hearts thanks to the successes of The Lego Movie and Guardians of the Galaxy. He’s become so beloved that adding him to the revered Jurassic Park franchise has been generally welcome. I still remember the original film when I was a kid. It’s one of my favorite movies to this day. Sure, it looks a little dated, but it’s hard to beat first impressions and as a then 8 year old it was nothing short of amazing. It left big shoes to fill, so its sequels with Jeff Goldblum in 1997 and Sam Niel in 2001 could not recapture the magic for me at the same level. Because of that, I was a little skeptical going into this one, but that wasn’t going to stop me from giving it a shot.

Jurassic World is a luxury island resort that houses several genetically engineered dinosaurs. The latest and greatest creation, the Indominus Rex manages to escape its enclosure and wreaks havoc all over the island. The fate of all lives on the island fall on a former military soldier turned animal trainer.

What I Liked:

The dinosaurs look better than ever thanks to the advancements in technology. The velociraptors especially were among my faves. You can always expect excitement with them and this film did something a little different so it didn’t disappoint.

The effects in general were cool and I think it accomplished what it meant to do distinguishing itself as a “world” as opposed to a “park”. Even still, there were throwbacks to the first film that I really appreciated.

I liked Chris Pratt as the lead. He wasn’t quite as exciting as Star Lord, but he held his own well and I liked his authority. The action/adventure genre is really becoming a niche for him.

The final battle, I saw it coming a mile away but I still anticipated it and found it exciting. Two mega alphas square off. Will the torch be passed on? I had no doubt about that answer, though it did make me think of 2014’s Godzilla sequel in that respect.

What I Didn’t Like:

I think I would have liked even more dinosaur vs. dinosaur action. While the scenes between dinosaur and man were decent, I think they could have gotten away with more brutality between the reptiles.

I did find myself wondering how much better this film could be if it were Rated-R. The franchise has made billions over time, so I actually think it could afford to risk it and the film would have felt like it was treading new ground.

I didn’t like Bryce Dallas Howard for most of the film. I found her character very annoying and unrelatable. I didn’t really care for the brothers either. I didn’t dislike them, but in general they lacked the charisma and chemistry of the Murphy siblings in the original.

The 3D was completely unnecessary and almost gave me a headache, but it did not overtake Insurgent for the worst of the year, so there’s that at least.

Summary

Jurassic World is definitely the best sequel yet and worth seeing on the big screen. It doesn’t top the original for me, but I can see younger kids today preferring this one thanks to the improved special effects. And thanks to the few loose ends left, I can definitely see a sequel or more in the foreseeable future.

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