jurassic park movie review essay

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Jurassic Park

Essay by brian eggert june 7, 2015.

Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park uses marvelous visuals to suspend its audience and characters in awe and revelation. Early in the film, a jeep of skeptical scientists and experts in their field drive onto the rolling hills of impresario John Hammond’s island theme park. A wide shot moves inward toward the spellbound faces of Dr. Alan Grant and Dr. Ian Malcolm, though Spielberg delays cutting to what has drawn their eyes. The director holds the shot, filling his audience with anticipation for whatever might evoke their reaction. As the scene builds, we follow Grant, who removes his hat and stands up to get a better look. His mouth agape, Grant clumsily pulls his glasses off his face to reveal his bewildered eyes. The shot goes to Grant’s colleague and significant other, Dr. Ellie Sattler, who chatters on, mystified by a rare and extinct prehistoric plant she found on the island. Grant reaches back and turns her head to see what he sees, and her jaw drops mid-sentence. She too rises and removes her glasses, standing next to Grant in astonishment. The shot moves behind them, rising along with John Williams’ iconic score to greet a towering Brachiosaurus, a full-grown dinosaur whose long neck reaches to the treetops. The power of this scene resides both in the promise of something grandiose captured in the actors’ expressions and the fulfillment of that promise by way of outstanding movie magic: the convincing realization of a relic from Nature that now stands before our very eyes.

This scene in Jurassic Park marks a Spielbergian signature. Scenes like it have been employed throughout the director’s body of work countless times—where the character-spectator sees something overwhelming before the audience does, thus inviting our fascination, or where the audience sees through the spectator’s point of view. The tactic was used when Chief Brody first eyes the shark in Jaws (1975), when Roy and Jillian in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) finally see that Devils Tower is the monolith from their visions, when Elliot first sees the alien in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1981), or when the alien tripods erupt from under the city in War of the Worlds (2005) as Tom Cruise’s character can do nothing but watch. Elsewhere, Spielberg brings to life horrors that we could only imagine and perhaps never wanted to see, and yet we need to see because of their historical significance, so much so that we cannot look away, such as gas chambers in Schindler’s List (1993) or the D-Day invasion of Normandy beach in Saving Private Ryan (1998). In each case, Spielberg’s method creates a powerful desire to see whatever has ensnared his characters, and then he delivers an often breathtaking spectacle to satisfy that desire. Spielberg is the pusher of our visual gaze. Not only does he implant the longing, if not desperate need to look upon something great, but he makes the act of looking a believable and, without exception, stunning experience. What could be more cinematic?

In its broad strokes, Jurassic Park is very much a monster movie, what Spielberg called “a helluva yarn”. Recklessly enthusiastic entrepreneur John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) prepares to debut an island theme park, featuring prehistoric creatures that will “drive kids out of their minds”. His scientists have bred dinosaurs using DNA from ancient mosquitos preserved in amber, but, of course, the resulting animals have proved dangerous. Nervous investors demand Hammond receive endorsements, and so Hammond calls upon three specialists—intellectual paleontologist Alan Grant (Sam Neill), earthy paleobotanist Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), and unconventional Chaos Theory mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum)—to experience the titular park and ensure his funding continues. Hammond flies the specialists to his private island off Costa Rica, and also invites his grandchildren, his “target audience” of Lex (Ariana Richards) and Tim (Joseph Mazzello). As the scientists and grandkids tour the park, the kids represent a challenge for the child-resistant Grant, whose companion Ellie wants children, while Malcolm’s eccentricities test the entire group. Meanwhile, Hammond’s disgruntled programmer Dennis Nedry (Wayne Knight) executes a program that shuts off the park’s electricity, if only so he can escape the island with dinosaur embryos to sell to Hammond’s competitor. Nedry’s plan goes south, and dinosaurs run wild all over the island, throwing man and beast together for the first time in 65 million years.

Perhaps this is why seeing dinosaurs in the flesh remains so essential to the Jurassic Park viewing experience. The film is, after all, largely about watching the actors react to what they see. Before nearly every dinosaur’s appearance, Spielberg shows us someone seeing the dinosaur first. We see their reaction, their face light up with amazement or dread, and that expression feeds the viewer’s reaction when the film cuts to the animal. Before the group finds a sickly Triceratops, Grant’s calm inquisitiveness and Tim’s defiant curiosity prepare us not for a shock, but for an intimate encounter where we find a living, breathing, and tangible animal before us, so real that no amount of scrutiny could convince us otherwise. In another sequence, Lex and Tim are left to feast in the visitor’s center after their horrifying jungle adventure. As Lex lifts a spoonful of jello to her mouth, she freezes, and her hand trembles so much that we can hear the jello smacking on the spoon. Then we see what she sees: Behind a painted screen of a Velociraptor, the silhouette of an actual Velociraptor lines up almost perfectly, snorting and sniffing. Tim, who has followed his sister’s stare to the silhouette, gasps in shock. Perhaps the film’s most famous scenes involve hearing the dinosaurs before they appear, as when a glass of water or puddle pulsate from the tremor of the T-rex’s heavy footsteps. Dinosaurs only consume a staggeringly short 15 minutes of screentime, yet they have been burned into the collective moviegoer memory because the actors convince us that the dinosaurs are real. Had their performances and our belief in their fear of these beasts not been so convincing, our belief in the dinosaurs themselves would have been lesser so, and the film not as effective.

Bringing the dinosaurs to life was Spielberg’s greatest challenge in Jurassic Park . If the dinosaurs were unconvincing, his entire film wouldn’t have worked. “I just opened the toolbox and took out every tool there was,” said Spielberg of his approach. To create the film’s dinosaurs, he consulted every kind of special FX artist he could find. First he talked to Bob Gurr, designer of the Universal Studios theme park “King Kong Encounter” ride, but instead chose Stan Winston’s special FX company, then famous for designs in James Cameron’s The Terminator (1984) and John McTiernan’s Predator (1987). Winston and his team would create the life-size, tactile animatronics for the Tyrannosaurus rex, Velociraptors, Dilophosaurus, and sick Triceratops, all using lifelike skins and molds. Though Spielberg consulted stop-motion maestro Phil Tippett to create go-motion dinosaurs for scenes requiring faster movement, the result left the director unconvinced. He wanted his audience to believe the dinosaurs were real. Dennis Muren of Industrial Light & Magic suggested computer-generated imagery (CGI), which until this point had not been successfully executed to look photo-real. Spielberg and Tippett watched ILM’s first animated demonstration of the scene in which the T-rex chases a flock of Gallimimus, and both were amazed. “You’re out of a job,” Spielberg said to Tippet. “Don’t you mean extinct?” replied Tippet. The moment even made its way into the film, when Malcolm says the same thing to Grant about the futility of paleontology in the face of living specimens.

For better or worse, Jurassic Park helped launch a new wave and style of digital filmmaking, where movie sets consist of vast blue rooms and performers interact with a visual cue that will be filled in by CGI during post-production. The actors of Jurassic Park were pioneers in this respect; their responsiveness to animals that are not there never fails to convince us of their fear or wonderment—watching Dern scream in terror as a T-rex approaches behind their speeding Jeep is enough to convince us of that. Audiences the world over believed in dinosaurs too when Spielberg’s film opened in June of 1993. Jurassic Park outperformed Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial to become the highest grossing film ever made at the time, earning $357 million in the U.S., a record held until James Cameron’s Titanic opened in 1997. Other filmmakers such as George Lucas and Peter Jackson took the hint that integrating live-action with digital animation was the future of special FX, leading Lucas to pursue his Star Wars prequels and Jackson to develop The Lord of the Rings and King Kong . Entire setpieces could be created on computers, and Hollywood saw the cost benefits of building cinematic worlds this way, often with mixed results. Jurassic Park ‘s legacy resulted in an underwhelming insurgence of CGI creations, many of which cannot compare to Spielberg’s original theme park world, including the film’s sequels . Moviegoers were reminded of the original’s power in a 2013 re-release in 3D, one of the best ever uses of the gimmicky format, which made the film’s dinosaurs even more compelling.

Bibliography:

Friedman, Lester D. Citizen Spielberg . Champaign: University of Illinois Press, 2006.

McBride, Joseph. Steven Spielberg (Third Edition). London. Faber and Faber, 2012.

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RETRO REVIEW: “Jurassic Park” (1993)

Normally my Retro Reviews are chosen by my Twitter followers who vote in a poll to determine what film I’m going to watch (you can follow me @KeithandMovies). But this week someone else inspired my choice of movie. My son just started his freshman year of college and he’s taking a film appreciation course. His first assignment was to write an essay on his favorite film. Interestingly he chose “Jurassic Park”. And guess what film was showing as part of our favorite theater’s ‘ Welcome Back ‘ promotion? It was written in the stars.

Many consider Steven Spielberg to be the father of the summer blockbuster. “Jaws”, the “Indiana Jones” films, “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” and of course “Jurassic Park” make a really strong case. “Jurassic Park” would become Spielberg’s biggest money-maker. It shattered box office records becoming the highest grossing film of all-time (until James Cameron’s “Titanic” came along in 1997). The film was a hit with critics and went on to win three Academy Awards. It’s still beloved by many including my son. After seeing it again on the big screen I was reminded of why it has such a following.

“Jurassic Park” was based on a Michael Crichton novel of the same name. Smelling a potential smash hit, Spielberg and Universal Pictures acquired the film rights to Crichton’s novel before it was even published. Crichton was then hired to write the screenplay with David Koepp. They set their story on a fictional island near Costa Rica where a wealthy entrepreneur and his team of scientists have created a theme park around the cloning of dinosaurs. It was a story ripe with potential, but only if the special effects could sell its ambition. “Jurassic Park” turned out to be an incredible visual achievement and a groundbreaking step forward for movie technology.

Photo Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Richard Attenborough plays businessman John Hammond, a gazillionaire who bought his own island to build his dinosaur park. After an accident leads to the death of one of his dino handlers, Hammond is pushed by his investors to bring in a team of experts to verify whether the park is safe for the public. Hammond invites paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neil) and paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern). The lawyer for the investors Donald Gennaro (Martin Ferrero) invites math whiz and chaos theorist Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum).

Once on the island the group are taken to meet Hammond. On the way they are astonished at the sight of a massive living, breathing brachiosaurus. They arrive at the park’s visitor center where Hammond gives them a tour of his laboratory. The group’s amazement turns to skepticism once Hammond reveals the science behind his venture. In one particularly terrific scene they all gather around a table for lunch and discuss the wisdom and ethics of Hammond’s venture. As Goldblum’s Dr. Malcolm candidly states , “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could they didn’t stop to think if they should .”

In a last ditch effort to impress his guests Hammond sends the group along with his two grandchildren Tim (Joseph Mazzello) and Lex (Ariana Richards) on an automated SUV tour around the park. Meanwhile Hammond’s disgruntled computer programmer Dennis Nedry (Wayne Night) has secretly been paid handsomely by an outside corporation to swipe dinosaur embryos from the park’s lab. Nedry shuts down the security systems enabling him to steal the vials and escape to a nearby dock where a boat awaits. But he inadvertently shuts down the SUVs leaving three doctors, a lawyer, and two kids stranded outside of a Tyrannosaurus Rex enclosure.

With the electric fences deactivated the T-Rex escapes attacking the two SUVs in what many consider to be the film’s most memorable sequence. Watching it again I was blown away by Spielberg’s masterclass on scene construction. The framing of his shots, the crisp editing, the impeccable sound design, visual effects wizard Stan Winston’s mind-blowing animatronics, and other details such as Spielberg using no score during the bulk of the sequence. It’s a scene full of nail-biting tension even for people like me who already knows what happens.

In addition to the stand-out special effects, Spielberg, his DP Dean Cundey, and production designer Rick Carter deserve loads of credit for creating a convincing setting that grounds a fantastical concept. Shot mostly in Hawaii, the Dominican Republic, and on the Universal Studios lot, Spielberg and his team manage to sell Jurassic Park as a palpable place full of awe and wonder. And it still sparks the imagination after all these years.

And while I’m doling out credit, Crichton and Koepp earn their’s by putting together a fun and engaging array of characters. Neil and Dern are the leads and they fill the shoes of their characters well. And there is terrific supporting work from Attenborough, Night, Ferrero, Samuel L. Jackson, and Bob Peck. But there is one thing I distinctly remember from my previous viewings and it still holds true today – Jeff Goldblum steals every scene he’s in. His Malcolm is smart, weirdly charming, hilarious, even heroic when he needs to be. Unfortunately he gets put on the shelf in the last act, but Goldblum still makes every scene he’s in better.

This was easily one of my favorite Retro Review revisits so far. It was nice to see how remarkably well “Jurassic Park” holds up, but I wasn’t expecting to have so much fun with it. It’s a movie that really flourishes on the big screen and puts an emphasis on the value of that experience. I can enthusiastically say that I liked “Jurassic Park” more this time than during my original 1993 theater visit. Maybe I’m just starving for a good summer tentpole movie. Or maybe this is simply Spielberg once again proving himself to not only be the father of the blockbuster but also the king.

VERDICT – 4.5 STARS

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26 thoughts on “ retro review: “jurassic park” (1993) ”.

Jurassic Park has always been my favorite movie. I’ve seen it, no joke, probably well over a hundred times in my 30 years of life. It’s still an absolute joy for me to watch today. I can quote almost every line. It’s a truly timeless film. Thank you for the nostalgia!

Nice! I had such a good time seeing it again. Obviously it was to be back in theater, but the movie itself is such a big screen treat. I had a blast.

You’re making me want to re-watch this! I did really like the first one, after that it all went a bit mad.

I don’t remember much about the next two JP films. Probably going to give them another look soon. This one though, such a ton of fun seeing it again. And on the big screen!

Awesome review! I really enjoyed this movie too and it’s one that still holds up well to this very day!

Thanks so much. I was stunned at how well it held up, especially on the big screen where blemishes can be a little more evident. But this movie is still loads of fun.

It is a film that remains fun to watch and definitely one of Spielberg’s finest films of his career. It is so fun to watch while it also shows proof of why you don’t fuck with mother nature. I’d like to forget about the other 2 films that followed while I have enjoyed the Jurassic World sequels.

That’s interesting. I thought the first Jurassic World was decent but really didn’t like the second one. I don’t remember a whole lot about the next two Jurassic Park movies. I’m anxious to give them another look.

I’d put this up there as one of my favorite movies of all time. My husband and I break it out every now and again, it holds up well (yes – that scene where TRex attacks the SUVs still makes me wince) and it still has some very relevant themes in it I think! A wonderful throwback review 🙂 Ian Malcolm was always my favorite character – “Remind me to thank John for the lovely weekend….”

Thanks so much. I was amazed by how much fun this movie was. But it’s also incredibly well made. And Malcolm…so, so, so good. That dinner table scene is so perfectly written and acted.

I think I like it, but I don’t like it as much as everyone else, so when I’m watching it I catch myself thinking – it’s fine, but it isn’t that great. I see it a little bit as anti-science, so that part bugs me. That would be the chaos theory and Jeff Goldblum, sort of a mystical “we can’t understand things” attitude rather than a scientific approach.

Whenever I come across in on tv somewhere, I do always stop and watch a few minutes, so I’m more pro than con on it.

PS. I would be pro-cloning dinosaurs if they could ever do it. take that jeff goldblum.

I’m really okay with its approach to science. I tend to think it lands somewhere in the middle. But I give it a lot of flexibility when it comes science. After all, how seriously can we take a story about cloning dinosaurs from a prehistoric mosquito found fossilized in tree sap? 😉

I know, I had the thought when writing that comment – it’s only a movie, lighten up man.

Ha Ha. No worries. I do it with some movies myself.

Anthony was wearing green shirt in 93

One of my all-time favourites.

Nice. Have you been able to see it on the big screen?

Nope, unfortunately.

Oh bummer. I was amazed at how incredible this was on the big screen.

I bet it is!

I hope to see Tenet next week.

One of the all time greats. It’s amazing how well this movie still holds up. CGI in the early 90’s can still be a big distracting, but this never is.

also #JusticeForLex she is such an underrated Jurassic Park character. The only way I’d watch another one of the Jurassic World additions is if she was in it.

Interesting you bring up the kids. For some reason I went into this rewatch expecting the two kids to be annoying. They really aren’t! They both do a great job moving from youthful exuberance to terrified and in shock. They added more to the film than I ever remember.

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Jurassic Park (1993) Film Review

• Jack Walters
• June 9, 2022

Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park is not only one of the best summer blockbusters of all time, but also a thoughtful examination of our fixation with the past.

There are very few movies that have become as irrevocably entrenched in pop culture as firmly as Steven Spielberg ’s instant classic Jurassic Park , which deserves every ounce of praise it’s received since its release almost thirty years ago. Although the film has spawned a series of sequels that all fail to recapture the magic that Speilberg injected into this timeless classic, the original film remains one of the most revolutionary pieces of blockbuster filmmaking there’s ever been. It represents the heights of Spielberg’s filmmaking talent, blending an insightful story with some unforgettable action set pieces and plenty of fleshed-out characters that bring this story to life on a surprisingly personal level.

For those that are somehow unfamiliar with the film, Jurassic Park tells the story of one wealthy businessman’s (Richard Attenborough) quest to bring dinosaurs back from extinction, opening a wildlife reserve off the coast of Central America where his team of scientists uses advanced technology to breed a new generation of prehistoric creatures. But when the dinosaurs begin to fight against their captivity, a select group of visitors to the island is forced to fight for their survival and find their escape. The film’s story is a fairly simple one, but Spielberg uses this to his advantage by building on his characters and their relationships rather than the intricacies of the plot – which raises the stakes tenfold and really helps get the audience involved in the uncertain fates of the film’s protagonists. It often sacrifices needless spectacle for a gradual build-up of tension , which few movies of this genre had dared to attempt before.

At the heart of Jurassic Park are Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill), Dr. Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), and Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) – three personal friends of the park’s founder John Hammond, invited to the island to help him with his research and understanding of the creatures. The three leads all bring something completely different to their respective roles, complementing each other perfectly and making the whole ordeal feel much more personal and intimate. There had been dinosaur movies before Jurassic Park – but very few that had displayed a cast of characters quite as finely-tuned and well-developed as Spielberg created with his work. It’s this attention to character and relationships that makes the film so universally admired, proving that it’s much less of just an action spectacle and much more of a high-stakes adventure with a weighted family dynamic at its core.

But of course, the dinosaurs still manage to steal the show in the end – mostly due to the outstanding craftsmanship behind the cameras that made them possible in the first place. Looking back at the film from today’s cinematic climate, it’s incredibly refreshing to see such a large-scale adventure that uses minimal CGI , with the film’s practical effects still holding up incredibly well today. The dinosaurs themselves are used expertly throughout the film, not too much and not too little. Just the perfect amount to make the audience aware of their scale and scope without exploiting them for shock value.

It’s something that Spielberg did outstandingly well throughout his career – think of Jaws or Raiders of the Lost Ark – but it’s really at its most impressive in Jurassic Park . It’s no surprise that the film has aged so flawlessly – even in a world where anything can be brought to the screen at the push of a button, Spielberg’s hand-crafted dinosaurs remain incredibly effective because of how precisely and intricately he weaves the film around them. They’re not the main focus of the film, but rather a tool that the story uses to explore its rich and surprisingly mature themes that warn about the dangers of fixating on the past. The film displays an extra layer of thoughtfulness and philosophy that you’d never have expected to find in a family blockbuster before Jurassic Park hit theatres in 1993.

Jurassic Park really is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of movie , and whilst it might not be perfect in every conceivable way, its influence on the progression of filmmaking really can’t be overstated. It’s impossible to imagine what the cinematic landscape would look like today without the influence of Jurassic Park and Spielberg’s bold, courageous direction – but there’s no doubt that many of today’s most acclaimed films owe a good chunk of their existence to this definitive family adventure.

Jurassic World Dominion will be released globally in theaters on June 10, 2022. Read our list of all Jurassic Park films, ranked from worst to best .

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Creating tension and captivating audiences: cinematic techniques in “jurassic park” anonymous 12th grade, jurassic park (1993 film).

In Steven Spielberg’s adventurous film Jurassic Park (1993), the director focuses on the journey a group of scientists experience as they endeavor through the prehistoric dinosaur park, escalating to become a frighting encounter for the characters...

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Review/Film; Screen Stars With Teeth To Spare

By Janet Maslin

• June 11, 1993

STEVEN SPIELBERG'S "Jurassic Park" is a true movie milestone, presenting awe- and fear-inspiring sights never before seen on the screen. The more spectacular of these involve the fierce, lifelike dinosaurs that stalk through the film with astounding ease. Much scarier, however, are those aspects of "Jurassic Park" that establish it as the overnight flagship of a brand-new entertainment empire. Even while capturing the imagination of its audience, this film lays the groundwork for the theme-park rides, sequels and souvenirs that insure the "Jurassic Park" experience will live on. And on. And on.

The timing of this cinematic marketing coup could not be better, since an entire generation of children has fallen in love with dinosaurs, transforming the fossils of yesteryear into the totems of today. On the other hand, "Jurassic Park" has its planning problems, since this PG-13-rated film is clearly too frightening for the young viewers who could have best appreciated its magic, and who will most easily be drawn in by its marketing arm. Parents and guardians, take note: children who think of Tyrannosaurus rex as a huge hunk of friendly, prehistoric exotica will not want to see a T. rex bite a lawyer in half.

Who will? Well, anyone of an age and disposition to appreciate one of Mr. Spielberg's canniest roller-coaster rides and to have read Michael Crichton's novel. "Jurassic Park" is a gripping, seductively scientific account of a top-secret theme park, named for the era during which dinosaurs reigned. Jurassic Park's main attractions are real live dinosaurs, which have been created through the reconstruction of dinosaur DNA. The DNA has been obtained through blood found in prehistoric mosquitoes preserved in amber. (The film, being much more mainstream, explains this process with the help of an animated "Mr. D.N.A.")

Mr. Crichton, who wrote the film with David Koepp, delights in such details and presents his story as a fascinating, obsessively detailed treatise on both the possibilities and the evils of modern science. "Jurassic Park" is that rare high-tech best seller punctuated by occasional computer grids to advance its story.

The savviest character in Mr. Crichton's book, a glamorous mathematician (yes) named Ian Malcolm, is among several scientists taken to Jurassic Park to inspect the place before it opens. Confronted with the apparent glitch-free nature of this computerized Eden, Malcolm is skeptical. He frequently cites chaos theory as a way of suggesting that theoretically perfect models have a way of going haywire once they run up against reality. This idea has some bearing on the film version of "Jurassic Park," too.

On paper, this story is tailor-made for Mr. Spielberg's talents, combining the scares of "Jaws" with the high-tech, otherworldly romance of "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," and of course adding the challenge of creating the dinosaurs themselves. Yet once it meets reality, "Jurassic Park" changes. It becomes less crisp on screen than it was on the page, with much of the enjoyable jargon either mumbled confusingly or otherwise thrown away. Sweetening the human characters, eradicating most of their evil motives and dispensing with a dinosaur-bombing ending (so the material is now sequel-friendly), Mr. Spielberg has taken the bite out of this story. Luckily, this film's most interesting characters have teeth to spare.

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Jurassic Park Review

01 Jan 1993

127 minutes

Jurassic Park

With Jurassic Park, the man who invented the summer event movie took Michael Crichton's tome and transformed it into an awe-inspiring blockbuster using every inch of screen.

Richard Attenborough is billionaire boffin John Hammond who plans to open a theme park on a remote Costa Rican island featuring dinosaurs genetically modelled from fossil DNA. Sneak preview visitors include palaeontologists Alan Grant and Ellie Satler (Neill and Dern), chaos theory expert Ian Malcolm (Goldblum) but the park goes off-line, the dinos escape and prehysteria breaks loose.

Spielberg treads gradually, building up an impending sense of menace over the first hour with evolutionary arguments hammering home the theory that dino-recreation is a Really Bad Thing. Then he lets rip on an unforgettable second half, with set piece after set piece. So the script and the performances aren't exactly Oscar material, but it scarcely matters given that the real stars here are the ILM-created dinosaurs, a miracle of modern moviemaking...

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Jurassic Park

Where to watch.

Rent Jurassic Park on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

What to Know

Jurassic Park is a spectacle of special effects and life-like animatronics, with some of Spielberg's best sequences of sustained awe and sheer terror since Jaws.

Critics Reviews

Audience reviews, cast & crew.

Steven Spielberg

Dr. Alan Grant

Dr. Ellie Sattler

Jeff Goldblum

Dr. Ian Malcolm

Richard Attenborough

John Hammond

Robert Muldoon

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The Ethics of Science in the Film “Jurassic Park” Essay

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In the course of history, science has been critical for the development of society and improvement in the living conditions of people. Nevertheless, it could be misapplied, and the consequences of such misapplication could be catastrophic. To a great extent, the film Jurassic Park can be tied to the discussion of historical and ethical issues related to the use of scientific results.

In particular, one can focus on the conversation between John Hammond and Jan Malcolm, who discuss the ethical responsibilities of scientists. To a great extent, this scene demonstrates that, in some cases, irresponsible attitude towards scientific achievements can lead to significant challenges for the community and endanger many innocent people. These are the main questions that should be examined more closely.

The film Jurassic Park includes several scenes that can be discussed from an ethical viewpoint. For instance, one can mention the conversation between Jan Malcolm and John Hammond. In particular, Jan Malcolm warns Hammond about the dangers of the experiments carried out by the company InGen. He compares such experiments to the behavior of a child who plays with the gun that accidentally slips into his/her hands ( Jurassic Park ).

Moreover, this scene demonstrates that people who created the so-called Jurassic park were primarily concerned about potential revenues, but they completely overlooked the potential risks of this project. Additionally, Malcolm notes that scientists should think about the ethical implications of their research ( Jurassic Park ). The main problem is that Malcolm’s warning goes completely unnoticed. Overall, this scene is important for the discussion of many historical and ethical issues related to the use of science.

One should note that in the course of history, scientific works have often been misinterpreted or misused. For instance, it is possible to mention the use of genetics and evolutionary theory. Much attention should be paid to the popularity of eugenics, which led to the forced sterilization of many people (Lynn 4). Later, it became clear that such practices had been completely immoral and unscientific; however, many biologists supported this practice and tried to provide scientific justification for it.

The use of eugenics was based on the ideas of such prominent thinkers as Francis Galton and Charles Darwin (Lynn 4). Yet, these ideas were used to serve political purposes (Lynn 4). Moreover, one should mention that the results of scientific research could be used for the production of weapons that could pose a threat to the very existence of humankind. For instance, one can speak about the invention of nuclear weapons. In turn, the arguments put forward by Ion Malcolm are aimed at showing that the absence of scientific ethics can lead to disastrous results that can endanger the lives of many people.

This discussion throws light on the importance of responsibility, which is critical for avoiding many pitfalls related to scientific research. Additionally, this scene demonstrates that it is necessary to consider the interests of various stakeholders who may be affected by their research. In turn, Jan Malcolm notes that the use of genetic engineering may transform the entire world; therefore, one should be very careful while using this tool ( Jurassic Park ). The later development of the plot indicates that Malcolm was quite right. Moreover, this scene throws light on the importance of honesty because scientists should fully disclose information about the risks of the research.

On the whole, this discussion indicates that the use of ethical safeguards is critical for the successful application of scientific results. The scene, which has been analyzed, demonstrates that researchers should not disregard the potential impact of their work. Moreover, in the course of history, science could often be misapplied by people who pursued their military, political, or ideological purposes. This is why the responsible attitude of researchers is a critical value that should not be overlooked. These are the main arguments that can be put forward.

Works Cited

Jurassic Park. Ex. Prod. Kathleen Kennedy. Los Angeles: Amblin Entertainment, 1993. DVD.

Lynn, Richard. Eugenics: A Reassessment , New York: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001. Print.

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IvyPanda. (2020, July 6). The Ethics of Science in the Film "Jurassic Park". https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-ethics-of-science-in-the-film-jurassic-park/

"The Ethics of Science in the Film "Jurassic Park"." IvyPanda , 6 July 2020, ivypanda.com/essays/the-ethics-of-science-in-the-film-jurassic-park/.

IvyPanda . (2020) 'The Ethics of Science in the Film "Jurassic Park"'. 6 July.

IvyPanda . 2020. "The Ethics of Science in the Film "Jurassic Park"." July 6, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-ethics-of-science-in-the-film-jurassic-park/.

1. IvyPanda . "The Ethics of Science in the Film "Jurassic Park"." July 6, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-ethics-of-science-in-the-film-jurassic-park/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "The Ethics of Science in the Film "Jurassic Park"." July 6, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-ethics-of-science-in-the-film-jurassic-park/.

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Jurassic park.

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 91 Reviews
• Kids Say 429 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

By Randy White , based on child development research. How do we rate?

Terrifyingly realistic dinos run amok in sci-fi landmark.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Jurassic Park is a landmark sci-fi adventure film by Steven Spielberg, based on the novel by Michael Crichton, that spawned a franchise including several sequels and videogames. Kids will see people and animals being hunted and eaten by realistic-looking dinosaurs. While there's…

Why Age 12+?

People and animals are eaten and attacked by realistic dinos. Multiple deaths. N

Infrequent swearing includes "s--t" (one related to dinosaur feces), "hell," "cr

A few brands are seen -- Barbasol, Ford, Apple, Nike, Reese's. The Jurassic Park

Women in bikinis are seen on a computer screen. Flirtation between adults.

A character smokes cigarettes regularly. Adults drink in a few scenes.

Any Positive Content?

Through teamwork, determination, and intelligence you can survive the most dange

The two children, Lex and Tim, are smart and brave; the adults protect them and

Female characters Dr. Ellie and Lex are portrayed as smart, strong, and practica

Violence & Scariness

People and animals are eaten and attacked by realistic dinos. Multiple deaths. Not too much blood and gore, but the scare factor is high, and one gruesome scene involves a severed arm. Jump-scares. Scenes of the kids being hunted by dinosaurs are particularly intense. Chases, crashes, constant peril.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Infrequent swearing includes "s--t" (one related to dinosaur feces), "hell," "crap," "damn," "son of a bitch," "goddamn," "stupid," "butts," and "oh my God." Some potty humor.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

A few brands are seen -- Barbasol, Ford, Apple, Nike, Reese's. The Jurassic Park franchise includes video games, toys, and lots of other merchandise.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

Through teamwork, determination, and intelligence you can survive the most dangerous situations. It's important to learn and change.

Positive Role Models

The two children, Lex and Tim, are smart and brave; the adults protect them and one another at every turn. Flawed characters seem to learn from their mistakes.

Diverse Representations

Female characters Dr. Ellie and Lex are portrayed as smart, strong, and practical problem solvers. B.D. Wong and Samuel L. Jackson play supporting characters with few scenes, though Jackson gets to deliver one of the most iconic lines in the film ("Hold on to your butts"). The lead characters are all White. Not much body diversity; Wayne Knight's character, who is larger than the others, is used as comic relief.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Parents need to know that Jurassic Park is a landmark sci-fi adventure film by Steven Spielberg , based on the novel by Michael Crichton , that spawned a franchise including several sequels and videogames. Kids will see people and animals being hunted and eaten by realistic-looking dinosaurs. While there's little blood and gore (although one scene gruesomely involves a severed arm), there's tons of suspense, many "jump-scare" scenes, and some chases/crashes. Expect a bit of swearing (including a few instances of "s--t"). Adults smoke and drink. The film shows how teamwork, determination, and intelligence can help you survive the most dangerous situations. Female characters are shown as strong and capable problem-solvers, but all of the lead characters are White and the only one who isn't thin is used as comic relief. Younger tweens may be able to handle the fright factor with an adult at hand, but sensitive children should wait a bit longer. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (91)
• Kids say (429)

Based on 91 parent reviews

A classic film...

What's the story.

Brought to a secluded island, three scientists discover a wondrous jungle paradise called JURASSIC PARK where dinosaurs again walk the Earth. Dr. Ian Malcolm ( Jeff Goldblum ) warns the creator of the preserve that nature won't be corralled into a theme park, and things go terribly wrong when a tropical storm strikes and a corrupt computer programmer shuts down crucial security systems. During a night of terror, Dr. Grant ( Sam Neil ), Dr. Ellie ( Laura Dern ), and two children ( Joseph Mazzello and Ariana Richards) are pursued by an escaped Tyrannosaurus Rex and several other dinos (including vicious velociraptors). After many devourings and frightening chases, a showdown ensues.

Is It Any Good?

This film boasts Academy Award-winning special effects, lots of frightful moments, and some good laughs. In Jurassic Park , director Steven Spielberg and his effects team deliver stunningly realistic dinosaurs. The movie also has a superb soundscape; hear it with a top-notch sound system to get all the thrills. Of course, actually seeing the monster isn't always the best thing. In Jaws , Spielberg's early masterpiece, viewers didn't get to see the shark until well into the movie -- and the suspense was excruciating. That kind of storytelling elegance is missing here. And for all of its technical achievements, Spielberg occasionally sacrifices three-dimensional characters and real human drama for the thrill of the effects.

Jurassic Park 's terrifying realism is something to take seriously. Sensitive younger kids may want to avoid this one, and parents may want to watch ahead of time and gauge their children's likely response. It's worth noting that, amid all the thrills, the movie has some very funny moments, including a scene where a T. Rex runs toward a vehicle and you can read: "Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear" in a side mirror. It's just one of many iconic moments that ensured this film's place in cinema history.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how movies like Jurassic Park blur the line between science and science fiction, sometimes giving out misinformation in the process. Since it's not really possible to clone dinosaurs, why use cloning as a plot device?

Does the use of headline-grabbing scientific concerns make a story more believable -- and thus more thrilling? How can you find out which parts of a story are really based on science and which are made up? How can children learn about media literacy?

What makes Jurassic Park scary? What's the difference between horror and suspense? Which has more impact on you, and why?

How do the characters in Jurassic Park demonstrate perseverance and teamwork ? Why are these important character strengths ?

Movie Details

• In theaters : June 11, 1993
• On DVD or streaming : April 23, 2013
• Cast : Jeff Goldblum , Laura Dern , Sam Neill
• Director : Steven Spielberg
• Inclusion Information : Female actors
• Studio : Universal Pictures
• Genre : Science Fiction
• Topics : STEM , Dinosaurs
• Character Strengths : Perseverance , Teamwork
• Run time : 127 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : intense science fiction terror
• Award : Kids' Choice Award
• Last updated : August 22, 2024

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Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

What to watch next.

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The Lost World: Jurassic Park

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Screen Rant

Jurassic park: biggest differences between the book & spielberg’s movie.

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Road house director addresses release criticism as new movie comes direct to streaming, stephen king-approved thriller with 96% rt score crosses strong box office milestone.

Jurassic Park is one of the most iconic and beloved films of all time, but it made some serious changes from the original Michael Crichton novel. From the landmark special effects to John Williams’s booming score, Jurassic Park stands both as one of the highest marks in Steven Spielberg’s prolific career, and as one of the most influential monster/adventure movies ever made. But how does it stack up next to the source material, and where do the two differ?

By the time Michael Crichton published Jurassic Park in 1990, he was already a huge name in the realm of contemporary science fiction. Crichton’s background as a doctor and someone with extensive knowledge of biological science helped him write hit novels like The Andromeda Strain (1969) and The Terminal Man , as well as more horror-styled books like Eaters of the Dead (1976). His fiction frequently grew from the scientific developments of the time, taking what had recently become reality and stretching a bit further back into a realm of fiction. Jurassic Park sprang from that same tried-and-true formula.

Related:  Jurassic World 3 Theory: Biosyn Returns Because of InGen's Failure

While the book was a big success and remains one of Crichton’s most popular, Spielberg’s film adaptation released in theaters three years later is arguably even more culturally impactful. While reading about dinosaurs is all well and good, seeing them on screen is still something to behold. Still, Crichton’s original version of the story is a masterwork of sci-fi, and it has some major differences from the film version. Obviously, there are numerous changes in the exact chain of events, the way the characters behave (and whether they survive), and notably  which dinosaurs appear in Jurrasic Park  - all of which create a different experience and story to the film.

The Jurassic Park Novel Has More Characters

In the book, Crichton adopts a similar narrative structure to some of his other novels, starting out by showing different people in different places reacting to different parts of some mysterious scientific anomaly. The book opens with a little girl in Costa Rica being attacked by an escaped Procompsognathus. The scene does not appear in the first film, though  The Lost World: Jurassic Park opens with a very similar scene. The girl describes the creature as a strange lizard, prompting locally based biologist Dr. Marty Guitierrez to do some research. Guitierrez is a significant -  if briefly seen - character in the book, appearing in the opening and closing sections, but not showing up in the movie at all.

Another prominent book character absent from the film is Ed Regis, Jurassic Park’s head of public relations. Regis serves mostly as a yes-man to John Hammond in the story, pitching an overly optimistic view of the park and immediately panicking once things start to go wrong. Scared by the escaped denizens of the T-Rex pen, Regis leaves the tour cars and attempts to flee, dying in a similar place and manner to the film’s version of lawyer Donald Gennaro.

Many Of The Characters Are Majorly Changed in Jurassic Park

While Crichton’s other primary characters all transfer over to the movie version, many of them a vastly different. Ellie Sattler for instance is much younger in the novel than she is in Spielberg’s film. In the book, she’s a graduate student of paleobotany, rather than a doctor in her own right, and her relationship with Dr. Alan Grant is more directly that of a mentor and mentee. Grant is similar in many ways, but his book-self is less curmudgeonly and doesn't dislike children. Lex and Tim are effectively swapped between the two versions, with Tim being the older, computer-savvy sibling in the book, and Lex being the younger child obsessed with dinosaurs. Dr. Henry Wu has a much larger role in the book.

Related:  Jurassic Park: Every Dinosaur In The Original Trilogy

The biggest changes lie in John Hammond, the billionaire founder of the whole Jurassic Park enterprise. In the movie, Hammond is portrayed as a charming, loveable, well-intentioned old man whose desire to create bold new things exceeds his ability to do so. He is largely to blame for the deaths that transpire in the story, but he also repents for his arrogance and finds a kind of redemption in acknowledging his failure. His last shot, looking out over his fallen kingdom before boarding the helicopter to escape, is a powerful and defining moment.

In the book, Hammond gets no such redemption. From beginning to end, he remains a self-interested capitalist who attributes all the park’s failings to other people and random chance. Crichton’s Hammond is despicable, especially in his plans to open the park even after all the crises have taken place. For his lack of recompense, he meets a less desirable fate than his film counterpart, but more on that later. Many of Hammond’s less likable traits were channeled into Gennaro for the movie – in the book, the lawyer is much more likable and capable.

The Characters Who Live And Die Are Almost Totally Different

In Spielberg’s film, only four main characters die – Gennaro, who gets eaten on the toilet, Muldoon, who’s killed by the velociraptors, Mr. Arnold, also killed by raptors, and Dennis Nedry, who’s killed by a Dilophosaurus . That body count changes significantly in the book, however, both in how many people die, and which characters.

For starters, Ian Malcolm dies from his injuries in the novel, before being effectively resurrected in The Lost World . Whether or not Crichton planned for Malcolm to stay dead is unclear, but when the first book ends, he seems very clearly expired. Two of the book’s deaths stay the same – Nedry and Arnold, who died in largely the same way in both versions. In the novel, Muldoon and Gennaro actually both survive the island, though Dr. Wu (who survives into Jurassic World in the films) is killed by a raptor attack. Ed Regis, the aforementioned PR chief, dies similarly to how Gennaro does in the film.

Related:  Jurassic Park 3: What Killed The Boat Crew In The Fog

Perhaps the most notable difference is that John Hammond dies in the novel . After the power has been restored and the dinos mostly contained, Hammond declares his intentions to move forward with opening the park, and goes for a walk. While out, he’s startled by a recording of a T-Rex roar that he mistakes for being real, falls down a huge hill, and is devoured by Procompsognathus. His death makes the book’s closing message quite different from the film – a story of selfish ambition being an inescapable doom, rather than one about the alluring but impossible nature of control.

The Dinosaurs Attempt To Escape In The Jurassic Park Novel

In Spielberg’s film, the core danger is singular – our heroes must survive the park and find a way to get the power back on. In the novel, there’s a second level of time pressure. The supply ship that leaves Isla Nublar during the storm is never mentioned again in the movie, but in the book, it holds stowaways – several young raptors hiding aboard. A big part of the rush to get the power back on in Crichton’s version is so that the survivors can radio the ship and get it to turn around, before unintentionally letting the dinosaurs escape to the mainland.

Jurassic Park Is Destroyed In The Novel

Jurassic Park the movie ends with the band of survivors escaping in a helicopter, presumably leaving the island to tear itself apart or create whatever strange natural order is seen in the later films. The book ends more dramatically, with the Costa Rican Air Force sending a bombing run to essentially destroy Isla Nublar . It’s a powerful moment and a nice effort to stop the spread of dangerous dinos, but it ultimately falls short as Jurassic Park’s last pages reveal some of the creatures managed to escape.

Next:  Can A Spinosaurus Really Beat A T-rex? Jurassic Park 3's Dinosaur Explained

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• Jurassic Park

Jurassic World: Dominion

Twenty-nine years ago, when “ Jurassic Park ” was released, computer-generated and digitally composited effects were still relatively new, but director Steven Spielberg’s team raised them to a new level of credibility by deploying them sparingly, often in nighttime and rainy scenes, and mixing them with old-fashioned practical FX work (mainly puppets and large-scale models). The result conjured primal wonder and terror in the minds of viewers. The T-Rex attack in particular was so brilliantly constructed that it put this writer sideways in his seat, one arm raised in front of his face as if to defend against a dinosaur attack. When there was a break in the mayhem, Spielberg cut to a very quiet scene, letting everyone hear how many people in the audience had been screaming in fright, which of course led to raucous laughter and a release of tension (a showman’s trick). A small girl sitting near this writer regarded his still-terror-contorted body and asked, “Mister, are you all right?”

There’s nothing in “Jurassic World: Dominion” that comes close to that first “Jurassic Park” T-Rex attack, or any other scene in it. Or for that matter, any of the scenes in the Spielberg-directed sequel “The Lost World,” which made the best of an inevitable cash-grab scenario by treating the film as an excuse to stage a series of dazzling large-scale action sequences, and giving Jeff Goldblum’s chaos theorist Dr. Ian Malcolm the action hero job. Goldblum, who reprises his role in “Dominion” alongside fellow original cast members Sam Neill and Laura Dern , turned his “Lost World” performance into a wry-yet-cranky meta-commentary on corporate capitalism.

For that matter, there’s nothing in this new film as good as the best parts of “Jurassic Park III,” “ Jurassic World ,” and “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.” The latter had the most surprising pivots since the original, conjuring Spielbergian magic (think of that shot of the brachiosaur left behind on the dock) and mixing gothic horror and haunted house-movie elements into its second half. “Jurassic Park” creator Michael Crichton’s original inspiration, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein , was referenced through the character of Maisie Lockwood ( Isabella Sermon ), a clone created by John Hammond’s business partner to replace the daughter that he lost. 

Maisie is one of many major characters featured in “Dominion,” and her tragic predicament has disturbing new details added to it. But returning franchise director/co-writer Colin Trevorrow (writer/director of “Jurassic World”) and his collaborators are unable to focus on their deeper implications long enough to develop Maisie with the sophistication required for a great or even good science fiction/horror film. 

The mishandling of Maisie is but one bit of scrap in this dumpster of a sequel. The film opens with Claire Dearing ( Bryce Dallas Howard ), onetime park operations manager of Jurassic World turned head of the activist Dinosaur Protection Group, breaking into a ranch where baby plant-eaters are being kept and impulsively deciding to rescue one of them. Then she goes to a cabin in the snowy Sierra Nevada mountains, where Maisie is living with the park’s former raptor-whisperer Owen Grady ( Chris Pratt ). The three form a makeshift nuclear family focused on protecting Maisie against parties who want to exploit her for genetic and financial gain. The semi-domesticated raptor Blue lives with them as well, and has asexually produced a child (mirroring Maisie’s relationship to her mother’s genetic material—though so haphazardly that it’s as if the filmmakers barely even thought of the two creatures as being thematically linked). 

There’s also a corporate spy plot (as in most of the other films) involving a thoughtless and/or sinister corporation that talks of magic-and-wonder but is mainly interested in exploiting the dinos and the technology that created them. From “The Lost World” onward, the successors to park founder John Hammond ( Richard Attenborough )—a nice old man who meant well but failed to think through the  implications of his actions—have been actively treacherous Bad Guy types. The heavy in this one is Dr. Lewis Dodgson, a character from the original film who’s been recast and promoted to CEO of BioSyn (‘bio sin,’ get it?). Dodgson hired another recurring “Jurassic” character, B.D. Wong’s Dr. Wu (arguably the true villain of most of these films, though in an oblivious, John Hammond sort of way) to breed prehistoric locusts that are genetically coded to devour every food crop, save for engineered plants sold exclusively by the company. 

Dodgson is the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Maisie and Blue’s child. Actor Campbell Scott uses inventive body language and unpredictable phrasings and pauses to invest the under-written Dodgson with a distinct personality. He turns him into a sendup of two generations of Baby Boomer and Generation X tech-bro capitalist gurus. Dodgson is a man who carries himself like a peace-loving hippie but is really a voracious yuppie who keeps black marketeers and hired killers on retainer. The warm-voiced but dead-eyed way that Dodgson conveys “caring” is especially chilling—like a zombie Steve Jobs . It’s the film’s second most imaginative performance after that of Goldblum, who never moves or speaks quite as you expect him to, and blurts out things that sound improvised. (Chastising colleagues who are moving too slowly for his taste, he snaps, “Why are you skulking?”)

All narrative roads converge at BioSyn headquarters, where Neill and Dern’s Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler have gone to ask Ian Malcolm’s help in obtaining top-secret information that can end the prehistoric locust plague, and where Maisie and Blue’s baby have been brought so that their genetic secrets can be mined as well. Two new characters—Han Solo-ish mercenary pilot Kayla Watts ( DeWanda Wise ) who says she doesn’t want to get involved in the heroes’ problems and then does, and Dodgson’s disillusioned acolyte Ramsay Cole ( Mamoudou Athie )—join the intrigue, and presumably are being introduced as new-generation figureheads who can take over the franchise. Even if the entire film had focused on BioSyn headquarters, the film still might have seemed overstuffed and under-imagined. But Trevorrow turns the movie into a global travelogue, every sequence feeling narratively cut-off from the others in the manner of a substandard spy flick. (There’s even a rooftop chase modeled on one in “ The Bourne Supremacy ,” but with a raptor.)

A long sequence in Malta, where Claire and Owen have gone to rescue Maisie from kidnappers, encapsulates the film’s failures. There are a lot of promising notions in it, including a dinosaur-focused black market (like something out of a “ Star Wars ” or Indiana Jones film) where criminals go to buy, sell, and eat forbidden and endangered species. But it’s undone by a lazy undercurrent of comic-book Orientalism and a seeming inability to even see, much less capitalize on, potentially rich material. Michael Giacchino’s score pours on sinister Arabic-African “exotic” cliches, as if setting up an R-rated prison thriller in which Owen does a “ Midnight Express ” stint in a Turkish prison for hashish possession. 

An action scene that throws Owen and the lead kidnapper into a fighting pit where onlookers wager on dinosaur fights is as indifferently composed and poorly edited as nearly every other action scene in the film—and it becomes depressing once you think about what Spielberg, or his favorite second-unit director Joe Johnston (“Jurassic Park III”), might have done with it. It could’ve been a tiny masterpiece of action, slapstick, and social commentary, with the pit audience initially reacting with outrage when their regularly scheduled dino-fights are disrupted, then gleefully shifting gears by betting on the two humans who are going at each other, making fresh odds and handing off fistfuls of cash while baying for blood. Trevorrow looks at this setup and sees nothing but a hero fighting a henchman in a pit. 

There’s no scene in the film that’s entirely worthless. There’s no question that at this point, the “Jurassic” factory knows how to design and animate prehistoric creatures and integrate them with live-action scenes of actors running, screaming, shooting, setting fires, and the like. And yet the totality feels indifferently assembled, and the stalkings and chases and dino-battles are for the most part bereft of the life-and-death tension that every other franchise entry has managed to summon. And the plotting is abysmal, relying too heavily on coincidence and flukes of timing, retro-engineering personal connections between new and pre-existing characters, and handing the heroes major victories as casually as a hotel desk clerk giving a guest a room key, instead of letting them earn them through ingenuity.  

Trevorrow even manages to recycle, not once but three times, one of the only clever gags in his “Jurassic World”—a comment on the 40-year budgetary and spectacle escalation of the summer blockbuster, in which a great white shark, the creature at the center of Spielberg’s groundbreaking 1975 film “ Jaws ,” gets eaten by a mosasaurus the size of a skyscraper. Every time Trevorrow does something like this, it feels like an even-more-desperate attempt to remind us of how much fun we might’ve had during “Jurassic World,” which wasn’t that great of a film to start with, and that was dining out on reheated cultural leftovers even during its best moments. 

There are also scenes where characters (mainly but not always Malcolm) tie the capitalist rapaciousness of BioSyn to the film you’re sitting there watching. But these don’t have the wit and playfulness that powered similar material in “The Lost World.” They just seem curdled with self-loathing and awareness of how hollow the whole production is. At one point Malcolm chastises himself for taking the company’s money to work as their in-house philosopher/guru even though he knows they’re cynical corporate exploiters, and there’s a self-lacerating edge to Goldblum’s voice that makes it seem as if it’s the actor rather than the character who’s confessing to low personal standards. And there are times where Sam Neill, like Goldblum, seems embarrassed to be onscreen, or at least confused as to what he’s doing in the story—although to be fair, the script never convincingly justifies why Allan, a reluctant action hero in his other two “Jurassic” appearances, would leave the dinosaur dig site where Ellie finds him, other than that he’s from the earlier movies and needed to be here for nostalgia-marketing reasons.

Worst of all, the series again fails to properly explore its most tantalizing question: how would our world change if dinosaurs were added to it? The opening section packs any halfway intriguing or funny thing that “Dominion” might have to say about this topic into a TV news montage—showing, for instance, a little girl being chased on a beach by baby dinos (an homage to “The Lost World”), a couple releasing doves at their wedding only to have one of them get snatched out of the air by a pterodactyl, and pteranodons nesting in the World Trade Center (possibly a reference to Larry Cohen’s “ Q: The Winged Serpent ,” in which an ancient Aztec god nests in the Chrysler Building). Ninety minutes of footage like this, minus any characters or plot at all, probably would’ve resulted in an artistically better use of a couple hundred million dollars than “Jurassic World: Dominion,” which will doubtless be a smash on the order of all the other entries in the franchise, even though it doesn’t do much more than the bare minimum you’d expect for one of these films, and not all that well.

Now playing in theaters.

Matt Zoller Seitz

Matt Zoller Seitz is the Editor-at-Large of RogerEbert.com, TV critic for New York Magazine and Vulture.com, and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in criticism.

• Sam Neill as Dr. Alan Grant
• Laura Dern as Dr. Ellie Sattler
• Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm
• Chris Pratt as Owen Grady
• Bryce Dallas Howard as Claire Dearing
• Mamoudou Athie as Ramsay Cole
• Scott Haze as Rainn Delacourt
• Dichen Lachman as Soyona Santos
• Daniella Pineda as Zia Rodriguez
• Isabella Sermon as Maisie Lockwood
• Justice Smith as Franklin Webb
• Omar Sy as Barry Sembène
• DeWanda Wise as Kayla Watts
• Campbell Scott as Lewis Dodgson
• B.D. Wong as Dr. Henry Wu
• Joel Elferink as Jeffrey
• Jake Johnson as Lowery Cruthers
• Kristoffer Polaha as Wyatt Huntley
• Elva Trill as Charlotte Lockwood
• Colin Trevorrow

Writer (story by)

• Derek Connolly
• Emily Carmichael

Cinematographer

• John Schwartzman
• Mark Sanger

Writer (based on characters created by)

• Michael Crichton
• Michael Giacchino

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Here's Our First Look At The New Jurassic Park Movie

We finally have a title, plot, and official screenshots from the next Jurassic Park sequel. Hold on to your butts, because Jurassic World: Rebirth arrives in July 2025.

On August 29, Universal officially unveiled the previously announced Jurassic World Dominion sequel. The film is titled Rebirth and is set five years after the events of Dominion. In that film, dinosaurs have spread across the globe, causing chaos as they settle in alongside horses, cows, and ducks. This new film continues that narrative, showing how the dinosaurs are handling the modern-day world.

Here’s a very tiny teaser that shows nothing:

Rebirth stars Scarlett Johansson as covert ops expert Zora Bennett, a person on a mission to get some dino DNA to save the world. The movie also stars Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Ali.

Here’s the official synopsis.

Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. Johansson plays skilled covert operations expert Zora Bennett, contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.

Jurassic World Rebirth is being directed by Gareth Edwards, who previously directed Star Wars: Rogue One. The film’s script was done by original Jurassic Park scriptwriter David Koepp. Steven Spielberg, who directed the first two films in the franchise, returns once again to produce.

A new era is born. #JurassicWorldRebirth pic.twitter.com/WgsHjvRKTS — Jurassic World (@JurassicWorld) August 29, 2024

Over on Twitter, the official Jurassic World account shared two screenshots of the movie. Look, someone is holding a flare. I wonder if there’s a nasty dinosaur nearby...

Personally, as a big, dumb Jurassic Park fan, I wasn’t super hot on 2022's Dominion and I was hoping for a full reboot of the franchise. Instead, it seems we are going to keep telling stories about dinosaurs existing in the modern world which could be cool, but so far hasn’t really worked for me. I guess I’ll find out if Edwards, Koepp, and Johansson can nail it when Jurassic World Rebirth arrives in theaters on July 2, 2025.

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