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Here we come to the film that made me cover the series, and damn did I have hope for the series…well, apparently we’re getting Jurassic 6 in 2020 so Yay?

So Isla Nublar, home to the ruins of the original Jurassic Park and Jurassic World, is pretty much a unstable volcano that’s going to erupt and extinct the dinosaurs again. It’s a hot topic, should we let all the dinosaurs again or try to keep them alive. Claire is adamant about keeping alive, so much so she blindly signs up for a expedition to try saving them Noah style but she needs Owen’s help with the raptors. He’s reluctant but he goes. A guy named Lockwood is sending them, a partner of Hammond from the old days ( who we’re just now hearing about 5 movies in) who is dying. A company asshole has other plans however. Instead of freeing the dinosaurs, he wants to sell them Black Market under Lockwood’s manor, while also creating a whole new super dinosaur from the tooth of the Indominous Rex- the Endo Raptor. Can Owen and Claire put a stop to them and save the dinosaurs?

Watching this started to piss me off. The movie is still meh at best, I can’t say I hated it but this is without a doubt the weakest movie in the series. First, I’m going to spoil something just because I know many went to see this because Malcolm returns…he’s in the movie for what you see in the trailers. That’s it. Roughly 5 minutes in total. Claire and Owen’s motivations this time are strange; I don’t get how Claire went from being a tight ass workaholic girly girl into a chill pro-dinosaur activist or how Owen just gave up on dinosaurs and seems kind of mopey. For the first time, the effects got me and I knew it was CGI. During the volcano scenes, I couldn’t feel much real excitement but I was sad to watch so many dinosaurs get burned to death- the Bronnchisaurus scene made me tear a bit. The second half of the movie seriously feels like something I’d see in the Resident Evil (remake) You got a freak experiment chasing people around a mansion that seriously does look like the Spencer Mansion. The subplot of Lockwood’s granddaughter and the reason why him and Hammond cut ties- I yelled bullshit at my TV. I want to spoil it but I can’t. There are some suspenseful scenes with the E Raptor but nothing astounding. The acting isn’t wonderful but not terrible. Score is meh, you don’t get the iconic stuff til the end credits. In the end, I can’t recommend this movie because most of what you probably loved about the series isn’t here or died in a fiery inferno and while the very end has interesting implications, I’m predicting we saw the death of Jurassic Park. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

 

There was a huge gap in the Jurassic saga after Jurassic Park 3 , almost 14 years between if I’m not mistaken. I can’t really say I was thrilled when I heard we were getting a fourth movie, by then I lost much of my appeal to the series, but I went and embarked on the journey to Jurassic World…

Over two decades after John Hammond’s first attempt at  bringing dinosaurs to our world, his dream is realized at long last with Jurassic World- think Disneyland with prehistoric monsters, only the clientele are getting bored with the same old dinosaurs. So what do you do when you get bored of the same old dinosaurs? Genetically create a new one, enter the Indominus Rex. Smarter, faster, and meaner, it’s meant to be the perfect predator and that means things go to shit for a raptor trainer named Owen and a big wig at the park named Claire that’s babysitting her nephews. Welcome to Jurassic World folks…

From the synopsis you may think I’m not a fan of this movie but truth be told, this is my second favorite of the series. The premise is wacky and convoluted but it’s mostly done pretty well. Strangely, much of the story feels natural and there is a LOT of nostalgia fun for the kids who grew up with the classic Jurassic Park . Chris Pratt brings his charm to the role of Owen and is a welcome leading man; Bryce Dallas Howard isn’t bad as Claire but I will say I laughed my ass off at the scene where she runs away from a T Rex in high heels. The effects are pretty great and you got a lot of the classic score, as well as some badass fan service. The Indominous Rex is cool  but watching it fight THE T Rex from the original made my inner child jump for joy. The bad guy is flat which sucks but doesn’t hurt the movie too much. In the end, it’s a really fun movie but kind of corny at the same time but definitely worth watching. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

 

Ok, here we come to what many consider the low point of the series but I’m going to do as I have quite a few times, and take the high ground. I argue this isn’t the worst of the series, but let’s get into why…

Several years have passed since the events of Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park: The Lost World and we follow up with Dr Alan Grant, ever hounded by the fame he gained from being at the notorious park. He and Ellie have remained close friends, never getting together as the first movie made it seem would happen, and of course he’s broke. Enter the Kirbys, Paul and Amanda, who proposition Grant with a lot of money if he accompanies them on a trip to a place Grant has experience with. He gives in, accompanied by his assistant Billy venture off but the Kirbys true intentions reveal themselves when there plane crashes on Isla Sorna, the island from Lost World. The truth is the Kirby’s aren’t rich and there son got lost there after a parasailing accident and they though Grant could help him. Grant is pissed as you’d imagine, trapped on a island full of flesh eating raptors that keep on there asses- they find the boy, but can they make it out with there lives?

Again as with the previous installment, this is a mixed bag. Again the effects and score are great. I was glad to have Sam Neil return as Grant and the story I though was better, but the movie at some point drops and becomes really forgettable. This is primarily a raptor movie which is cool because we learn more about them. Other than Grant and the kid, Eric, the other characters are either annoying as hell or just fodder. The pacing is better and doesn’t feel as long and there are more action scenes so it’s more entertaining but less thought provoking.  In the end, it’s a solid movie. Not great but bad. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

 

Jurassic Park , originally a novel by Michael Crichton, became a massive success after Spielberg directed the film adaptation. Actually, massive would be a massive understatement. So of course, a high grossing film needs a sequel, and Crichton had another book in him and Spielberg was up to another dinosaur adventure, so did lightning strike twice?

Years have passed since the epic events of Jurassic Park and Ian Malcolm is just trying to get on with his life. A dying Hammond urges to talk to him, revealing Isla Nublar wasn’t the only site they were breeding dinosaurs. A family vacationing on the island discovered them and Hammond dispatched a team of scientists and mercenaries to investigate- the scientists led by Malcolm’s fiance. Reluctantly Malcolm goes to get her back, unintentionally followed by his teenage daughter and of course things go bad, but it gets worse when he discovers the mercs were there to capture dinosaurs , including baby T Rexes, feeling the wrath of it’s mother on US soil…

Lost World is a mixed bag for me, but overall I don’t like it that much. First, it is a damn nice looking movie with really good effects, score, and even acting. I like the story for the most problem but a big problem I have is the pacing- you feel how long this movie is and until part way into the second act, I was bored. Another problem I had was the idea of Malcolm being the main character this time around. Malcolm was a great supporting character in the first because he raised a lot of the fundamental questions to be asked and he had a cynical kind of humor. In Lost World we go deeper into his relationships with his girlfriend and daughter, which nether really hooked me. there are some coo moments and it was badass to see a T Rex stomping around  California but in the end, I found the movie to just be flat, not to say it ain’t worth a watch if you loved the first. May the gaming gods bring you glory.