Sixty-five million years ago, dinosaurs ruled the Earth. These massive beasts existed for about 180 million years before a cataclysmic event left them mere fossils. Fittingly, “Dinosaur Day” gives dino fans an ample opportunity to pay homage to these near-mythical titans.
Released: 12 June 2015
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Budget: $150 to 215 million
Stars: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins, Nick Robinson, Vincent D’Onofrio, and Irrfan Khan
The Plot:
Brothers Zach and Gray Mitchell (Robinson and Simpkins) visit Jurassic World, an island theme park populated by dinosaurs. However, their workaholic aunt, Claire Dearing (Howard), is soon relying on unruly Velociraptor trainer Owen Grady (Pratt) when a genetically engineered dinosaur runs amok.
The Background:
Legendary director Steven Spielberg and special effects wizards Stan Winston, Phil Tippett, and Dennis Muren turned Michael Crichton’s bestselling Jurassic Park (ibid, 1990) into a pioneering blockbuster back in 1993. Although Jurassic Park made over $1.030 billion and received widespread positive reviews, Crichton and Spielberg were reluctant to work on a sequel. The Lost World: Jurassic Park (Spielberg, 1997) may have broken box office records but it garnered mixed reviews and, feeling he failed to match expectations, Spielberg passed on Jurassic Park III (Johnson, 2001), the lowest-grossing and least popular of the franchise. Development of a fourth movie can be traced back to 2001 and initial ideas involved dinosaurs migrating to the mainland and, bizarrely, genetically engineered human-dinosaur mercenaries. This evolved into a character who would train dinosaurs and, eventually, Owen Grady. Following numerous failed proposals, the writers turned to both Spielberg and Crichton’s The Lost World novel for further inspiration and references to the two sequels were downplayed. Colin Trevorrow was hired to direct, Stan Winston’s Legacy Effects studio was brought in to develop the animatronic dinosaurs, and Industrial Light & Magic handled the CGI. With a worldwide box office of $1.671 billion, Jurassic World was a major hit and successfully revitalised the franchise, leading to two more sequels over the next seven years. The mould was further broken with the film’s largely positive critical reception. Reviews praised the exciting plot, the magnetic performances, and the natural evolution of the original concept. Spielberg and Jurassic Park star Sam Neill also praised the film, though it did draw some criticism for its unnecessary violence against women and its narrative similarity to Deep Blue Sea (Harlin, 1999).
The Review:
It’s been some years since John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) first dreamed up the idea of Jurassic Park. By employing the services of arrogant geneticist Doctor Henry Wu (BD Wong), Hammond created an awe-inspiring theme park populated by rides, gift shops, and, obviously, genetically recreated dinosaurs. Of course, Jurassic Park proved to be a disaster; the Isla Nubar theme park was left to rot and the remaining dinosaurs were abandoned to die from “lysine deficiency”. Although Jurassic World plays it fast and loose with references to the previous sequels, it begins with Hammond’s dream of a dinosaur theme park finally made a reality. Having been bequeathed ownership of InGen and all its assets, including the park and Hammond’s ideals, billionaire tycoon Simon Masrani (Khan) successfully brought Jurassic Park to life with Jurassic World, an expansive and fully-functional corporate sponsored theme park literally built on the bones of the original. Children of all ages flock to Isla Nubar to see the prehistoric creatures roaming the forests and wilds of the island, petting and riding baby Triceratops and other herbivores like they were lambs, watching daily performances from the titanic Mosasaurus, and freely exploring herds of dinosaurs while learning from Jimmy Fallon (of all people) in the park’s advanced gyrospheres. An eccentric businessman who prefers flying helicopters and wowing visitors with bigger, better dinosaurs, Masrani is notably hands-off regarding the park’s day-to-day functionality. He isn’t overly concerned with the bottom line since he’d rather everyone, humans and dinosaurs alike, enjoy the spectacle, and therefore mindlessly orders bigger, “cooler” attractions from Dr. Wu. Accordingly, it’s up to workaholic Claire to oversee Jurassic World and make sure everything’s running smoothly from her control room. Aided by underappreciated Lowery Cruthers (Jake Johnson) and his unrequited crush, Vivian (Lauren Lapkus), Claire treats her job very seriously but also very callously. She isn’t concerned with the welfare of the dinosaurs or whether the guests are enjoying themselves. All she cares about is increasing profits, gaining additional sponsorship, and keeping everything running like clockwork.
This means that, while she seems happy to see her nephews, Claire has no time to spare spending time with them and barely remembers their ages or what they look like when they ditch her overwhelmed assistant, Zara (Katie McGrath), in search of better, more exciting adventures. Claire’s noticeably uncomfortable in almost every social situation: she focuses on the numbers and practical matters, disregarding emotions and animal intelligence. Since Masrani ordered Dr. Wu to cook up a fantastic new attraction, Claire’s primary goal is securing sponsorship deals for the Indominus rex, a patchwork hybrid of numerous dinosaurs that Masrani hopes with “give […] parents nightmares” and reinvigorate ticket sales. Though impressed by the monster, Masrani requests that Claire ask their resident ex-Navy Velociraptor handler, Owen, to inspect the Indominus paddock and give his expert opinion. It’s through interactions with Owen that we see just how maladjusted Claire is: she brought an itinerary to their one disastrous date and is obsessed with being in control of every situation. She’s therefore as ignorant to the true threat the Indominus poses as she is to the feelings of others and the welfare of the park’s dinosaurs, which she constantly refers to as “assets” and “it” since they’re just numbers on a spreadsheet. When the Indominus escapes, Claire disregards Owen’s warnings and confidently deploys the Asset Containment Unit (ACU), only to be stunned when they’re systematically slaughtered. When Owen advises an evacuation of the park, Claire’s more concerned with their reputation than anyone’s safety and it takes a frantic call from her sister, Karen Mitchell (Judy Greer), and the suffering of the injured guests for Claire to finally realise the gravity of the situation. Her and Owen couldn’t be more different: where he’s sensitive and seasoned, she’s largely naïve and incompetent, especially regarding tracking and understanding dinosaurs. Owen frequently chastises her tight-assed demeanour and encourages her to just let loose, which eventually sees her defiantly shed her corporate outfit. She even saves Owen from a Dimorphodon attack and puts herself at risk to lure out the Tyrannosaurus rex in the finale…and all while wearing high-heels! Claire also prioritises Zach and Gray’s safety by the third act and is actively appalled by InGen’s head of security, Vic Hoskins (D’Onofrio), and his obsession with weaponizing Owens ‘raptors.
Much of Jurassic World focuses on Zach and Gray, two brothers with very different personalities. While Gray is younger and far more energetic, boasting an encyclopaedic knowledge of dinosaurs, Zach is sullen and moody and more concerned with staring at attractive girls. The two have been shipped to Jurassic World to see the awesome attractions and be with their aunt, only to be abandoned by Claire and left with a glorified babysitter, which only furthers their individual responses to their parents’ ongoing issues. While Gray is distraught at the idea of his parents getting a divorce, Zach hides behind an angsty bravado and is initially aggravated by his little brother’s exuberance, preferring to stare at his phone rather than dinosaurs. His mood lifts upon seeing the Mosasaurus and he encourages Gray to veer off when exploring in the gyrospheres, ignoring warnings to return to safety and stumbling upon the overgrown remains of the original park. Together, they get an old Jurassic Park jeep running and are stalked by the Indominus, eventually reuniting with Claire, who then makes them her top priority, and being immediately amazed by the charismatic Owen, who fends off the Pteranodon and Dimorphodon assault. While Zach doesn’t make a great first impression, being every moody teen you’ve ever seen, he soon shows a softer side and actively reassures and protects his little brother, recognising the danger and the trauma Gray’s feeling at both their personal and current situation. To be fair, Gray is irritating at times, constantly running around and babbling facts, but he embodies the excitement and wonder that Jurassic World elicits in its target audience. Unlike the kids from the first movie, who find a way to be useful by the film’s climax, Zach and Gray are mainly here to be put in peril and kept safe, but they go a long way to humanising Claire and showing the amusing dichotomy of Jurassic World. It’s amazing, yes, but there are some who are no longer impressed by genetically recreated dinosaurs and who demand “more teeth”.
Luckily for Claire, Zach, and Gray, Owen is on hand to immediately recognise the potential and current dangers posed by the dinosaurs and to take charge of every situation. An ex-Navy veteran, Owen works with Barry Sembène (Omar Sy) to tame a pack of Velociraptors (of whom “Blue” is the favourite and most intelligent) to follow simple directions and commands. Unlike Claire, Owen fully understands and respects an animal’s intellect and needs, allowing him to subdue the ‘raptors as their “Alpha”. His skill impresses Hoskins, who believes this proves the creatures could be deployed as living weapons, despite Owen very emphatically stating that his relationship with the ‘raptors is tenuous. Though attracted to Claire and eager for her to stop being so uptight, Owen constantly clashes with her since she believes she has full control over every situation, meaning she doesn’t understand how dangerous and intelligent the Indominus is. Owen’s often at a disadvantage since Claire stubbornly refuses to divulge the exact genetic makeup of the Indominus, leading to many deaths (much to his anger) andhim temporarily losing favour with his ‘raptors since the Indominus turns out to have ‘raptor DNA. Owen also vehemently objects to Hoskins’ desire to employ the ‘rapors and a scaled down Indominus as military assets, only agreeing to his insane plan to have the ‘raptors hunt down the Indominus because they have no other choice. Hoskins sees Owen’s relationship with the ‘raptors and mistakenly, arrogantly, believes the creatures are tamed to be on “the same side” as him. Thus, he vastly underestimates the aggressive creatures and it costs him dearly, whereas Owen’s bond with Blue allows him to reaffirm his status as the ‘raptors’ Alpha by the finale. Unlike Claire, who thinks only about the park’s profits and reputation, Owen is in the business of saving lives. His demands to pull the ACU out are ignored, leading to their wholesale slaughter, and he actively braves danger to rescue Zach and Gray while also trying to keep his ‘raptors alive. The only exception to this rule is the Indominus, a creature Owen sees as an abomination that needs to be taken down as quickly as possible. He’s visibly distraught when the Indominus kills for sport and horrified by the reckless mad science used to create it, which practically guaranteed that it would endanger others.
The Nitty-Gritty:
It was amazing to see a fully functioning Jurassic Park onscreen, which added something new to the Jurassic formula. While Jurassic World touches upon many of the same themes as its predecessors (the moral debate of genetically recreating dinosaurs, discussions and depictions of nature vs. science, and dinosaurs going on a rampage), this had never been tackled in a fully populated theme park before. I loved how everyone accepted Jurassic World and flocked to see its attractions like it’s Disney World. While Owen and Masrani agree that dinosaurs are attractive enough, Claire and the Board disagree and constantly push for newer assets to draw in more visitors, even if it means building their own dinosaur. It’s an interesting position to take since Jurassic World is seen to be thriving; everyone there is having a great time and there’s no sense that they need anything more. This truly is John Hammond’s dream come to life, with dinosaurs performing shows and rides that take visitors into the dinosaur’s territory, though fully protected by seemingly impenetrable gyrospheres. Of course, just wowing the crowd isn’t enough, not for Claire and her bottom line and certainly not for Hoskins. I’ve always hated the idea of weaponizing dinosaurs; it seems like such a stupid thing to do, one guaranteed to backfire, and Owen echoes these sentiments. It’s outrageous to someone as seasoned as Hoskins would think dropping Velociraptors behind enemy lines would end well for anyone and it’s very satisfying seeing him get his comeuppance. It’s sad that so many lives are lost due to people disregarding Owen’s warnings, but it’s a harsh lesson about the reality of dealing with highly intelligent and aggressive predators. The Indominus goes on a slaughter, devouring humans and massacring an Apatosaurus herd simply to prove its dominance, and only Owen recognised its threat (sight unseen, I might add) since Masrani and Claire only cared about scaring and profiting from visitors, respectively. Jurassic World also reiterates the pseudo-science of its dinosaurs by bringing back Dr. Wu, an arrogant and selfish scientist who explicitly states that his dinosaurs have always been genetic monsters rather than 1:1 recreations. Dr. Wu also impassively reacts to the Indomonis’ rampage and various abilities since he was simply following Massani’s foolish demand for more awesome theme park attractions.
While Jurassic World stays close to the look and depiction of dinosaurs from the previous films, eschewing feathers and other scientific considerations, it does showcase a few new dinosaurs. The baby Triceratops were cute (though somewhat horrific as they’re resigned to a life of being manhandled by children) and I liked the Pteranodon and Dimorphodon attack. This is precipitated by the Indominus breaching their glass aviary and Masrani fatally crashing his helicopter into the structure, leading the flock of the ravenous, bat-like dinosaurs to cause mass panic. It was also cool to finally see an aquatic dinosaur; the Mosasaurus is initially introduced much like an orca whale, performing tricks and taking a subtle jab at Jaws (Spielberg, 1975) by devouring a Great White Shark. Naturally, the Velociraptors continue to be depicted as the most intelligent dinosaurs, though now somewhat tamed thanks to Owen. Mischievous and aggressive pack hunters, the ‘raptors obey Owen out of mutual respect but even he can’t turn his back on them and must be constantly on guard to admonish and reward them, as required. Hoskins sees unlimited potential in the creatures and relishes deploying them to hunt the Indominus, fitting them with night vision headsets and seeing them run alongside Owen’s motorcycle. Of course, the ‘raptors become a very real and horrifying threat when they’re swayed by the Indominus, leading Owen to put his knowledge to safeguarding others until he reasserts himself as the Alpha. Unsurprisingly, the Indominus rex is the star of the show here. Purposely portrayed as an exaggerated and ridiculous monster of a creature, the Indominus is like what you’d get if you asked a child to design their own dinosaur. It’s massive and aggressive like the T. rex, can camouflage and even mask its heat signature, and is as intelligent and swift as a ‘raptor, clawing out its tracking device, setting traps, and hunting for sport. It boasts massive, talon-like hands to grab and squeeze prey, easily devours humans whole, can breach the gyrosphere’s hull, and is largely immune to gunfire and even heavy explosives thanks to its super-tough hide.
Although Jurassic World is in complete disarray due to many of the dinosaurs being loose, the primary concern of everyone (including Hoskins) is the Indominus rex, whose rampage easily made Jurassic World the goriest of the films at the time. People are swallowed, bit in two, trampled, and crushed by its sheer, savage power, to say nothing of the dinosaurs it mauls simply for fun and Zara’s unnecessarily horrific death. After getting Zach and Gray to safety, Owen reluctantly leads the ‘raptors against the Indominus but is forced to flee when they switch their allegiance. Although Hoskins is killed by “Delta”, Dr. Wu safely escapes reprisals (and the island) with his research intact so that he can continue working on refining the Indominus rex concept. With the park’s visitors either safely evacuated or awaiting rescue, Owen and the others find their path to the docks blocked by the raging Indominus. Luckily, Owen restores his bond with Blue and the remaining ‘raptors leap to their defence; however, Gray calculates that the dinosaurs won’t stand a chance against the monstrous abomination. Thus, Claire steps up and has Lowrey release the aged T. rex (the same one from Jurassic Park, judging by its scars) and lures it to the Indominus for a quasi-Kaiju finale! Unlike the disappointing fight between the T. rex and the Spinosaurus, this is a brutal and violent clash that sees the two chomp on each other’s necks, slash great gashes in each other’s hides, and crash through the park’s buildings. It’s a fantastic visual metaphor for nature literally tearing down corporate greed and the two don’t hold back, being evenly matched at times in terms of power and ferocity. That is until Blue enters the fray and leaps to the T. rex’s aid, clambering onto the Indominus and causing it to stagger towards the edge of the Mosasaurus tank. Wounded and exhausted and with its two rivals closing in, the Indominus prepares to continue the fight (and, honestly, probably would’ve won) when it is suddenly set upon by the Mosasaurus, which drags it underwater and ends its threat. In the aftermath, the T. rex and Blue part as mutual allies and they (alongside the other dinosaurs) reclaim Isla Nubar. Though shaken by their experiences, Zach and Gray’s bond is strengthened and they’re tearfully reunited with their parents. Claire realises the error of her ways and apologises to her sister, before seemingly being ready to rekindle her relationship with Owen, who reluctantly allowed Blue to return to the wild where she belongs.
The Summary:
I was sceptical when Jurassic World was first announced. While I can understand the idea of doing at least one Jurassic Park sequel, The Lost World and Jurassic Park III failed to capture the magic of the original movie and I figured it was better to leave it lie. However, Jurassic World was just the shot in the arm the franchise needed. As a legacy sequel and part re-quel, the film does a great job of hitting upon the familiar story beats of the franchise while delivering something fresh and new: namely, a fully operational dinosaur theme park. This alone was an inspired idea and I loved the parallels to Disney World, the juxtaposition of wanting to maximise profits while also aweing visitors, and the idea that the world has accepted that dinosaurs are a thing now. Jurassic World certainly impresses with its many visual effects, which still hold up today and are largely on par with Jurassic Park’s. It’s helped that animatronics and practical effects are also employed wherever possible, but the scale of the chaos is beautifully brought to life here and more than makes up for the previous two sequels. While Claire and the kids could be annoying at times, that was the point: Claire’s character arc was learning that she can’t control nature and atoning for being such a workaholic and neglecting the things that matter, and the entire experience was designed to bring Zach and Gray closer together. Chris Pratt is such a magnetic presence here; Owen oozes cool, being both sensitive and bad-ass and stealing the limelight as the pro-active voice of reason. I really enjoyed his relationship with the Velociraptors and how they were recast as good girls (or, at least, anti-heroes), giving us familiar ‘raptor action but with a twist since they’re largely on “our side”. The Indominus rex was a ludicrous monster in all the right ways; its bevy of abilities and sheer ferocity make it the stuff of nightmares and I loved how this one abomination was enough to threaten the entire island. The last-minute return of the T. rex for an awesome dinosaur fight was spectacular as well and set a new standard for the franchise. I liked this film more than I expected when I first saw it and it’s stood the test of time since then, easily being the second-best film in the franchise after the first, the best of the sequels, and the best of the second trilogy.
My Rating:
Great Stuff
Were you impressed with Jurassic World? Were you also sceptical of revisiting the franchise at the time? What did you think to Owen’s characterisation, his relationship with Claire, and his taming of Velociraptors? Were you glad to see a fully functioning dinosaur theme park at last? What did you think to the Indominus rex and its many abilities? Which of Jurassic Park’s sequels is your favourite and how are you celebrating Dinosaur Day this year? Whatever your thoughts on Jurassic World, and dinosaurs in general, leave them below and go check out my other dinosaur content on the site.
Dr. K's Waiting Room 