Jurassic World
Director: Colin Trevorrow
(In theaters)
B+
No matter who you are, the onslaught of summer blockbusters can feel tiresome. We are in the heat of the season: With huge movies like Mad Max: Fury Road, The Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Furious 7, we’ve already experienced an endless barrage of nonstop, immediate action, but Jurassic World is the first true adventure film of the season. Those who remember Spielberg’s classic Jurassic Park were anxious to see how a dead (extinct?) franchise could yet again attempt to resurrect dinosaurs. Numerous films have tried, and not just in the Jurassic family — like Gareth Edwards’ less-than-exciting Godzilla and Peter Jackson’s critical snoozer King Kong. But unlike these cinematic letdowns, Jurassic World does a wondrous job bringing these dinosaurs back for another outing.
Granted, the plot follows a tried and true formula. But it’s hard to fault the movie for having a paint-by-the-numbers plot when the whole concept revolves around an amusement park where dinosaurs break loose. So what saves it from becoming another brainless don’t-get-eaten flick? The colorful cast, who never take themselves too seriously and keep the overall tone of the film snuggly scrunched between adventure and camp. Owen (Chris Pratt) is a man’s man who trains velociraptors at the Jurassic World theme park. Selected by the park’s operations manager, Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard), Owen is tasked with inspecting and understanding Jurassic World’s newest creation: the hybridized Indominus Rex, a name superficially created so tourists can sound cool when they say it. While Claire is prepping this chimera for the park, her two nephews, Zach (Nick Robinson) and Gray (Ty Simpkins), are visiting Jurassic World for the first time. Two kids who, of course, have to then survive a bunch of overzealous, grown-up mistakes.
One of Jurassic World’s best sequences comes when Zach and Gray are introduced to what is essentially a Sea World on steroids. For those who have seen the original – and if you haven’t, who are you? — it’s a joy to see what Jurassic Park became. It’s like going from a Nokia 3310 to an iPhone 6; this one is crisper, cleaner, and more vibrant than any of its predecessors, and we are again immersed into the famous island as John Williams’ iconic theme plays.
Jurassic World could have been bloated, and the same could be said for its three predecessors. What made the original so special was a combination of masterful suspense and groundbreaking animatronics. These dinos are computer-generated, but they’re highly believable and never overwrought, as director Colin Trevorrow strikes a balance between tension and digital monstrosities. The reveals are purposeful and planned, which is surprising given that the only other feature-length picture helmed by Trevorrow is the clever indie comedy Safety Not Guaranteed. That movie worked because of its cast, and you can tell the same passion was put into Jurassic World‘s figures. Trevorrow even brought Jake Johnson back to play the role of Lowery, a nerdy fanboy of the original park who monitors Jurassic World’s security feed. He’s even sporting a vintage Jurassic Park t-shirt boasting the iconic logo while surrounded by toy dinosaurs, justifying his love for the original attraction in as meta a manner as he can. Not so subtly, Lowery represents all of the grown-up kids who used to sport the lunch box, the backpack, and the underwear that was littered with velociraptors and T. rexes.
The movie is humorous, but just enough to keep the dialog from taking itself too seriously, and Chris Pratt pulls off another role that requires him to distinctly not reprise his likeness from Parks and Recreation. Honestly, let’s just go ahead and tear down the rumor mill and make this guy the new Indiana Jones already.
The main event is, of course, the action, which is plentiful, smart, and intense. In one scene, pterodactyls break loose and wreak havoc on the unsuspecting parkgoers. One woman is carried off, and the madness that follows is breathtaking. Owen’s trained raptors, as far-fetched as they seem, play well into the story, especially the final minutes of the film which, for any fan of the Triassic age, were nothing short of magic.
Don’t be mistaken: Jurassic World is a popcorn flick. But it’s one of the better of its kind and second only to the original. It respects its great grandfather plenty without jumping the shark, at least not too much. It’s a movie about bringing dinosaurs back to life, so any question of whether or not the plot is too outlandish is forgetting that simple fact. Treat the movie like an amusement park and you will leave satisfied.
