There's no getting around the fact that JURASSIC PARK changed lives—the lives of those involved with the making of the film, and more importantly, the lives of millions who watched it back in 1993 or in all the years since. And it's very clear from watching the third sequel, JURASSIC WORLD, that the original film also had a major impact on co-writer Derek Connolly and director/co-writer Colin Trevorrow (both of whom spruced up a screenplay by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver). In many ways, Jurassic World plays like the ultimate fan film sprung from conversations in which every sentence began, "What would happen if...?"
For example, "What would happen if the dinosaur-driven theme park on Isla Nublar re-opened a dozen year after the first time all hell broke loose (JURASSIC WORLD seems to exist in a world where the first and second sequels don't exist or aren't acknowledged)." "What would happen if people got so used to seeing real-life dinosaurs back on the earth they park scientists had to invent more dangerous species to keep attendance numbers up?" "What would happen if the military suddenly took an interest in using dinosaurs as weapons of war and counter-terrorism?" People come up with wacky shit in this game, don't they?
For a great deal of its running time, JURASSIC WORLD is actually two movies. One—the far less interesting one—involves a pair of brothers, the older one Zach (Nick Robinson from THE KINGS OF SUMMER) and younger Gray (Ty Simpkins from the first two INISIDIOUS movies and IRON MAN 3), both of whom are being shipped off to Jurassic World while mom and dad stay behind to work out their marriage and/or divorce. I understand that these films feel they have to include children as part of their main story, but I hated these characters for being little more than plot devices and things that need saving.
The far more interesting other part of the film concerns the folks that run the park, at every level. At the top are people like Mr. Masrani (LIFE OF PI's Irrfan Khan), who seems to be filling in for a much-missed John Hammond as the wise elder who likes the money he's making but is sensitive to the greater good as well. He also is learning to fly helicopters, and I'll be damned if that doesn't come into play late in the film. In charge of the park's day-to-day operations is Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard), the over-scheduling, anal-retentive lady boss who doesn't have time for a man but still looks good in heels and a tight-ish skirt. She's also the visiting boys' aunt, so she's saddled with the task of playing mother to them on top of all of the other indignities.
Anyone claiming that sexism isn't alive and well in this film is fooling themselves; it actually made me uncomfortable at times watching how Claire is treated and regarded in this film. And maybe we're supposed to notice that the same way she does, and that this treatment is meant to be some great motivator for her to try harder, but even that attitude is antiquated. Howard finds ways to rise above the harpy she's been saddled with playing, but Laura Dern's character got treated with far more respect in the first film 22 years ago. Choosing to ignore or sideline that fact is ignorant. But what do I know?
We also meet a series of park workers who are more hands on in dealing with the hundreds of safely stored dinosaurs, including Owen (Chris Pratt), who is more of a dino whisperer and trainer than anything else. In an early scene, it's clear that he's found ways of training the previously feared raptors. Maybe trained isn't the right word, but there's enough of a mutual respect between the raptors and Owen that they don't eat him. His right-hand man is Barry (Omar Sy, last seen as Bishop in X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST), and the two are being tempted by the clearly evil Hoskins (Vincent D'Onofrio), an independent military contractor who is trying to sell the idea of turning these stealthy raptors into weapons of war.
Owen is fairly new to the park, so he's shocked and terrified when he finds out that park scientist, led by the original film's Dr. Henry Wu (BD Wong), have developed a new strain of dinosaur—named Imperious Rex—who is bigger, smarter, and more dangerous than anything else on the island. Because it is made up of classified strains of other animals, Owen and his team don't exactly know the extend of the danger when the I-Rex escapes his confines and starts heading for the park and its 22,000 visitors with killing on the brain.
And that's pretty much JURASSIC WORLD, a series of scenes in which people are either chasing the I-Rex or running away from it. With some fun, clever references to the first film as well as exponentially raising the stakes (and potential body count) and the sheer volume of dinosaurs on display, the movie is certainly a great deal of fun and never dull. The biggest problems with the film are the characters, who feel so cut from the action-movie cloth that you could wear them as a suit and still have material left over. One of the biggest missteps is casting Pratt—not that he's terrible in the film, but his greatest gifts as a charming, personality-driven actor are completely missing from his character. Muscles? Check. Evenly distributed tan? Check. But Owen is lifted out of the age-old action-hero mold without any modifications, updates or distinguishing features. Pratt puts on a serious face, rolls up his sleeves so you can see his meaty forearms, and starts punching dinosaurs. Presumably Pratt was hired to add a little flavor and life to this character, but it's largely missing in this performance.
The temptation with this misstep is to blame Trevorrow and Connolly, but the pair made a wonderful film a couple years ago called SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED, which is chock full of personality and actors who were clearly given permission to find their own ways to shine, including Jake Johnson, who just happens to appear in Jurassic World as Lowery, a control room employee who is funny, resourceful and more than defiant when Hoskins comes raging into his place of work and tries to take over. Johnson isn't in the film that much, but when he's on screen, the audience can at least be engaged with someone in this film.
Look, I realize that quite often standards for entertainment and character development drop during the warmer months. And yes, the dinosaurs are loud and scary and there are more of them this time around, which I'm all in favor of. I was particularly impressed with the park itself—the layout, the merchandising details, the many attractions and educational opportunities available to attendees; it felt like a 100 percent real place. Hell, I even laughed out loud when it was revealed that one of the rides featured a short instructional video hosted by Jimmy Fallon. But the way an action film engages me completely is by making me care about the characters, even just a little bit, just enough to give a shit whether they live or die. And except for Johnson's character, I don't think I felt that about anyone in JURASSIC WORLD.
I certainly don't mean to make it sound like viewing JURASSIC WORLD had me in agony the entire time; it didn't. I spent most of my time watching it in a free-floating state of amusement, without being especially engaged. It moves at a perfectly acceptable action pace, and the special effects and other visuals are quite impressive. But there's a heart that is simply missing; there's no real reason to care about what happens in this film, and that's a shame because Trevorrow knows how to make that happen, so I'm not sure he's the one to blame. But I do believe that if this film make the ton of money it's supposed to, he may get another chance to make the movie of his choice the way he wants to down the line. He'll be an interesting figure to watch, to be sure.
