With Jurassic World set to hit theaters this weekend, I thought it would be fitting to review the other films in the Jurassic Park franchise. So without further ado...
Jurassic Park
Dr. Alan Grant (played by Sam Neill) and Dr. Ellie Sattler (played by Laura Dern) are invited by eccentric millionaire John Hammond (played by Richard Attenborough) to preview his new amusement park on an island off Costa Rica. By cloning DNA harvested from pre-historic insects, Hammond has been able to create living dinosaurs for his new Jurassic Park, an immense animal preserve housing real brachiosaurs, dilophosaurs, triceratops, velociraptors, and a Tyrannosaur Rex. Accompanied by cynical scientist Ian Malcolm (played by Jeff Goldblum), who is obsessed with chaos theory, and Hammond's two grandchildren (played by Ariana Richards and Joseph Mazzello), they are sent on a tour through Hammond's new resort in computer controlled touring cars. But as a tropical storm hits the island, knocking out the power supply, and an unscrupulous employee (played by Wayne Knight) sabotages the system so that he can smuggle dinosaur embryos out of the park, the dinosaurs start to rage out of control. Grant then has to bring Hammond's grandchildren back to safety as the group is pursued by the gigantic man-eating beasts.
This film is just so amazing that it is one of the greatest films of all-time. Stephen Spielberg outdoes himself again with developing Michael Crichton's brilliant novel to perfection. I'll be honest the story isn't the strongest in the world, but the visual effects and themes carry the film to its magnificent brilliance that the story doesn't need to be good for the film to succeed. The way that Stephen Spielberg was able to use the camera to make the dinosaurs seem so real is an achievement unto itself by using CGI for wide shots of dinosaurs and an animatronic dinosaurs for close-up's and they work so well that can't even tell and they still hold up to this day. The themes of man's power and how much of it they can and should be allowed to use for profit plays a big role in the film. I love the performances and this just a perfectly well-rounded film. Overall there aren't enough adjectives to explain how amazing this movie is and if you haven't seen it then shame on you. I give Jurassic Park a 10 out of 10.
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
John Hammond (played by Richard Attenborough) summons chaos theorist and onetime colleague Ian Malcolm (played by Jeff Goldblum) to his home with some startling information -- while nearly everything at his Jurassic Park had been destroyed, engineers were also operating a second site, where other dinosaurs, resurrected through DNA cloning technology, had been kept in hiding. Hammond has learned the dinosaurs on the second island are alive and well and even breeding; Hammond wants Malcolm to observe and document the reptiles before Hammond's financiers can get to them. Malcolm declares he had enough of the dinosaurs the first time out, but decides to make the trip when he finds out that his girlfriend, paleontologist Sarah Harding (played by Julianne Moore), is already there. However, Ian and Sarah aren't the only visitors expected on the island; a camera crew led by ecological activist Nick Van Owen (played by Vince Vaughn) is on the way, as is Roland Tembo (played by Pete Postlethwaite), a world-class wild game hunter who is supposed to round up the dinosaurs and who hopes to bag a prehistoric trophy for himself in the process.
I really enjoy this film. a lot. Now granted the film has its problems (I'll get to those later), but it is still a fun ride. The film has a lot of great action, but it's just not as exciting and eventful as the first film. The visual effects are 10 times better then the first film and I honestly can't tell the difference when I see the dinosaurs other than the clearly obvious scenes. It also doesn't have a strong story either and I think that hurts the film because you can't get away with not having a story for two straight films. I really did miss the presence of Sam Neil and Laura Dern in the film, but Julianne Moore and Vince Vaughn are respectable replacements. Overall this is a really solid sequel, but the experience of seeing the film isn't as grand as the first film. I give The Lost World: Jurassic Park a 9 out of 10.
Jurassic Park III
Dr. Alan Grant (played by Sam Neil), a scientist who's tricked by wealthy couple Paul and Amanda Kirby (played by William H. Macy and Tea Leoni) into a fly-over of Isla Sorna. The object of their sightseeing tour is one of the Costa Rican islands populated by ferocious, genetically bred dinosaurs. After their plane crash-lands, it's revealed that the Kirbys are actually seeking their teenage son, lost on the island after a paragliding accident. Trapped on Isla Sorna, Grant and his companions discover some painful truths the hard way. Among their discoveries: some of the scaly monsters possess more advanced communicative abilities than previously believed, the dreaded Tyrannosaurus Rex has a larger and more lethal competitor, and flying Pteranodons pose an even graver threat than some of their land-locked brethren.
This is really hard film to get through. The film just has a lot of things going against it from the very start of production when Spielberg doesn't come back to direct and the film isn't based of a book done by Michael Crichton. Joe Johnston is an acceptable replacement, but he is no Spielberg and the film was missing his touch. The action in the film is just over the top and some of editing is choppy. It does however have a better story then the previous 2 films, but it doesn't execute on the resources it has. I did like seeing the return of Sam Neil and I think he is really comfortable in the franchise. The visual effects in the film are top-notch and there is barely any animatronics which is disappointing, but necessary. Overall the film is choppy and boring, but there are still some redeeming qualities to at least muster a viewing every so often. I give Jurassic Park III a 5 out of 10.
Overall franchise rating: 8 out of 10
SO ladies and gentlemen what do you think of the Jurassic Park franchise, what would you rate the various films, are you excited for Jurassic World and what did you think of my review of the franchise? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
Jurassic Park
Dr. Alan Grant (played by Sam Neill) and Dr. Ellie Sattler (played by Laura Dern) are invited by eccentric millionaire John Hammond (played by Richard Attenborough) to preview his new amusement park on an island off Costa Rica. By cloning DNA harvested from pre-historic insects, Hammond has been able to create living dinosaurs for his new Jurassic Park, an immense animal preserve housing real brachiosaurs, dilophosaurs, triceratops, velociraptors, and a Tyrannosaur Rex. Accompanied by cynical scientist Ian Malcolm (played by Jeff Goldblum), who is obsessed with chaos theory, and Hammond's two grandchildren (played by Ariana Richards and Joseph Mazzello), they are sent on a tour through Hammond's new resort in computer controlled touring cars. But as a tropical storm hits the island, knocking out the power supply, and an unscrupulous employee (played by Wayne Knight) sabotages the system so that he can smuggle dinosaur embryos out of the park, the dinosaurs start to rage out of control. Grant then has to bring Hammond's grandchildren back to safety as the group is pursued by the gigantic man-eating beasts.
This film is just so amazing that it is one of the greatest films of all-time. Stephen Spielberg outdoes himself again with developing Michael Crichton's brilliant novel to perfection. I'll be honest the story isn't the strongest in the world, but the visual effects and themes carry the film to its magnificent brilliance that the story doesn't need to be good for the film to succeed. The way that Stephen Spielberg was able to use the camera to make the dinosaurs seem so real is an achievement unto itself by using CGI for wide shots of dinosaurs and an animatronic dinosaurs for close-up's and they work so well that can't even tell and they still hold up to this day. The themes of man's power and how much of it they can and should be allowed to use for profit plays a big role in the film. I love the performances and this just a perfectly well-rounded film. Overall there aren't enough adjectives to explain how amazing this movie is and if you haven't seen it then shame on you. I give Jurassic Park a 10 out of 10.
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
John Hammond (played by Richard Attenborough) summons chaos theorist and onetime colleague Ian Malcolm (played by Jeff Goldblum) to his home with some startling information -- while nearly everything at his Jurassic Park had been destroyed, engineers were also operating a second site, where other dinosaurs, resurrected through DNA cloning technology, had been kept in hiding. Hammond has learned the dinosaurs on the second island are alive and well and even breeding; Hammond wants Malcolm to observe and document the reptiles before Hammond's financiers can get to them. Malcolm declares he had enough of the dinosaurs the first time out, but decides to make the trip when he finds out that his girlfriend, paleontologist Sarah Harding (played by Julianne Moore), is already there. However, Ian and Sarah aren't the only visitors expected on the island; a camera crew led by ecological activist Nick Van Owen (played by Vince Vaughn) is on the way, as is Roland Tembo (played by Pete Postlethwaite), a world-class wild game hunter who is supposed to round up the dinosaurs and who hopes to bag a prehistoric trophy for himself in the process.
I really enjoy this film. a lot. Now granted the film has its problems (I'll get to those later), but it is still a fun ride. The film has a lot of great action, but it's just not as exciting and eventful as the first film. The visual effects are 10 times better then the first film and I honestly can't tell the difference when I see the dinosaurs other than the clearly obvious scenes. It also doesn't have a strong story either and I think that hurts the film because you can't get away with not having a story for two straight films. I really did miss the presence of Sam Neil and Laura Dern in the film, but Julianne Moore and Vince Vaughn are respectable replacements. Overall this is a really solid sequel, but the experience of seeing the film isn't as grand as the first film. I give The Lost World: Jurassic Park a 9 out of 10.
Jurassic Park III
Dr. Alan Grant (played by Sam Neil), a scientist who's tricked by wealthy couple Paul and Amanda Kirby (played by William H. Macy and Tea Leoni) into a fly-over of Isla Sorna. The object of their sightseeing tour is one of the Costa Rican islands populated by ferocious, genetically bred dinosaurs. After their plane crash-lands, it's revealed that the Kirbys are actually seeking their teenage son, lost on the island after a paragliding accident. Trapped on Isla Sorna, Grant and his companions discover some painful truths the hard way. Among their discoveries: some of the scaly monsters possess more advanced communicative abilities than previously believed, the dreaded Tyrannosaurus Rex has a larger and more lethal competitor, and flying Pteranodons pose an even graver threat than some of their land-locked brethren.
This is really hard film to get through. The film just has a lot of things going against it from the very start of production when Spielberg doesn't come back to direct and the film isn't based of a book done by Michael Crichton. Joe Johnston is an acceptable replacement, but he is no Spielberg and the film was missing his touch. The action in the film is just over the top and some of editing is choppy. It does however have a better story then the previous 2 films, but it doesn't execute on the resources it has. I did like seeing the return of Sam Neil and I think he is really comfortable in the franchise. The visual effects in the film are top-notch and there is barely any animatronics which is disappointing, but necessary. Overall the film is choppy and boring, but there are still some redeeming qualities to at least muster a viewing every so often. I give Jurassic Park III a 5 out of 10.
Overall franchise rating: 8 out of 10
SO ladies and gentlemen what do you think of the Jurassic Park franchise, what would you rate the various films, are you excited for Jurassic World and what did you think of my review of the franchise? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
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