Sad thing is, I didn't even get to see this movie at the cinema. My Pop did, and he said it was an awesome experience. So we invested in the DVD, and have already watched it three times in as many months. I can safely say that if it ever gets a theatrical re-release, I'm there. The visual spectacle of this movie was wondrous even on a twelve inch screen. They pull off a real, excellent modern re-run of the Jurassic series, and make it work well. Surprisingly well.
The remains of Hammond's original island has been thoroughly invested in, and become the tourist attraction of dreams. Vast glass emporiums house interactive games, holograms, artifacts and every sort of franchise and merchandise you can imagine (oh, hey Starbucks, I didn't know you were invited!), and the beautiful South American mountainous terrain is home to all kinds of dinosaurs, which are no longer only visible to tourists from behind wire fences.
Two kids, moody high-schooler Zach (Nick Thompson) and sweet, thoughtful little one Gray (the very talented Ty Simpkins from Insidious) have been sent on a VIP week-long trip to the resort, because their uptight aunt Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) works there in some senior, executive position that requires her to strut around in all-white outfits and talk on her matching cell phone constantly. Gray suspects it is to get rid of them while their parents figure out a divorce, but Zach is typically nonchalant and scorns his little brother for being so emotional.The movie makes the questionable move of painting aunt Claire as the evil career-woman who is being mean by having to actually turn up to work. The boys are upset/annoyed when she reveals she cannot spend time with them until the next day, and their mom makes her sister feel guilty for it. But Christ guys, do any of you understand the concept of work? Ya know, with contracts and shit? As in, you have a formal obligation to senior people and are not at liberty to just bugger off as and when you like? She has to work one day out of the seven the boys are staying. C'est la vie. I mean, yes, seven years is a bit of a long time to have not seen your family, but the whole idea of evil aunt Claire choosing to do boring old work and not have managers up her ass about her sudden, unauthorised leave is about the only issue I have with this entire film.
The runaway train of the movie is not Dennis Knight making bumbling attempts at stealing embryos or Jeff Goldblum making far suaver attempts at stealing baby T-Rexes, but the exact scenario you'd expect when you mix commercialism with extinct creatures: dinosaurs are old news, and people are getting bored. They need something bigger, scarier and 'cooler'. So thankfully, good ol' B.D. Wong is back on the case, cooking up some inventive new dino recipes, ready to milk that cash duct for all it's worth. But mix in a bit of Deep Blue Sea, and you've not only got a scaly antagonist that can run fast and eat faster, but it can camouflage and it can scheme. Ooh yeah, the monster is a-turnin' on its creator. And this time, it's personal.Jurassic World paid its dues in Development Hell for nigh on a decade, and I believe its time on the inside did it good. More, it waited until it was right for the world. A movie like this in 2005, as society was then, and as computer imagery was then, it could easily have come out like Scooby Doo! The ideas of the movie are so perfectly in keeping with the modern world, and the scale of the entire operation is believable. We know our Western society is doomed from the tsunami of media, vanity, consumerism and commercialism that has drowned it in recent years, and have little struggle in imagining a world where the rich man at the top says "take my money and do something dangerous and stupid". This version of Jurassic has a level of cultural reflection that the third one was lacking (along with many other things).
However, this is a harsher world we're living in. One that's stripped us of the right to see a moderately adult movie without the seat-kicking and question-asking of young children in the theatre. Hence, with a 12A certificate, it's one to judge carefully before sharing with kids. My six-year-old daughter has not seen it, and will not for some time. It's not particularly that the deaths are gorier or scarier (lawyer on a toilet, anyone?), but they're harsher. Would you rather be taken in one fell swoop by the jaws of a T-Rex, or tossed between about five different predatory creatures, while simultaneously drowning, before finally ending your life inside an animal that's inside another, bigger animal?
Now, there are a few fairly standard boxes ticked here: stuck up businesswoman, check; tough dinosaur-hunter guy who can solve all her problems with his penis, check; fat guy first to get eaten, check; Asian dude second to get eaten, check. But honestly, I'm just shortening the boring critical bits so I can get back to praising this really good movie. Visuals are really breathtaking, premise is strong, action is thrilling and imaginative, and acting is good. The gorgeous Ty Simpkins is getting a special shout out though. He gives a very tangible and emotional performance, and claws at my heartstrings even more than little Tim did in the first movie. He is an absolute gem... and his hair upside down is one of the reasons I wake up in the morning.
