I suppose there’s not a lot to say about Jurrasic World: Lost Kingdom (the 5th Jurassic Park movie). It’s a sequel to Jurassic World in that it stars Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt as well as the remnants of the finished park from blue, Blue the semi-trained raptor, and the theme of using these dinos for nefarious, probably military purposes.
Not a lot to say otherwise because the movie is ok. It’s definitely treading in the Jurassic Park 3 playpen in that it’s not trying to be about anything other than dinos eating people in scary locations. That’s what it has in its head… but ironically, the more its about that exclusively, the less interesting it gets.
The first half of the movie – largely set on the island – is pretty good. It gets there quickly, we get some dino action and volcanoes and a lot of noise and drama. On the plus side, they blow up the island as if to say, “Yeah, next time we’re not coming here so expect something new”. On the negative side, where they end up after that is a mansion where people run from dinos in hallways full of dark shadows like this was some kind of ghost story. Good on them for changing up the location… though it does wind up feeling like other times small dinos have hunted humans in corridors. So not really that much new. It’s more a promise that the sequel will have to deliver…. more dinos, new, more varied locations.
I’m sad to say that I just got bored in the second half… the same dinosaurs hunting the same people. Well, not the SAME dinos, but you give us an Indominous Rex to compete against the T-Rex in last movie and a smaller version of it this time that now competes with the raptors instead. What’s the difference? Especially when we get at least two “the other dinosaur comes out of nowhere and saves the day, the camera focuses on it as it roars in triumph” moments. I think we’ve seen this punchline a few too many times already.
On the plus side, they didn’t bring the frightened children to the island (nor did they stow away on board the plane). So three cheers for parenting of the year, I guess. Probably shouldn’t have brought the dinos to where she was though. Sad parenting.
Anyhow, the movie is ok. It’s a monster movie where dinosaurs try to eat humans and we get some lip service about our responsibility vis-a-vis making dinosaurs in a lab. I’d have enjoyed more of that and less of the running and the screaming… but that’s mainly because the running and the screaming was only just ok.
Score: 78