Movie Review - Jurassic World

Courtesy of Universal

There are some movies out there that have you leaving the theatre scratching you head asking "What the hell did I just watch?" - I'm looking at you Mulholland Drive.  And then there are movies that have amazing twist endings like Fight Club or to a lesser extend Identity.

Jurassic World (the fourth installment of the Steven Spielberg Jurassic Park series) is neither of these kinds of movies.  It's a straight forward action movie and if you go into it assuming anything else you're setting yourself up to be disappointed.

There aren't twists (unless you somehow assumed the rugged guy and the uptight girl weren't going to kiss) though there are interesting ways that the story diverts from the norm along the way.

The premise of the movie is that on the same island as the original Jurassic Park - Isla Nublar -the park has been realized and opened as Jurassic World.  It's not 20 years since the tragedy of Hammond's original park and the world has accepted Dinosaurs in all their majesty as nothing more exotic than African White Rhinos or some other creature they'd probably never see in person.  They have a baby dinosaur petting zoo/riding park...yeah.

Courtesy of Universal

So, even though the park has run smoothly for years - even with Raptors and a T-Rex - it's about time for that all to change.

Claire (played by the stunning Bryce Dallas Howard) is an uptight control freak genius who runs the day-to-day at the park.  A lot has been made of her "lack of feminism" as a female lead character.  I saw it more as a caricature of that kind of woman than as an advertisement for that sort of person to truly exist.  She's a damsel...but not really.  She reacts the way, I imagine, anyone who isn't insane or an idiot of some kind would if confronted by a ten-ton monster dinosaur who's trying to eat you.

Courtesy of Universal

Courtesy of Universal

Owen (played by the blue-eyed dreamboat Chris Pratt) is the prototypical Han Solo rip-off, right down to the scene with him bemoaning his failed date with Clair whilst absentmindedly working on his motorcycle (which he uses to lead a pack of Raptors, by the way).  All you needed was talk of hydro-spanners and failed hyperspace jumps and it would have been Star Wars.  He doesn't react the way a person should when confronted by a ten-ton monster dinosaur...but earlier in the movie he is clearly established as INSANE when he jumps into the Raptor paddock to save a fellow crew member.

Courtesy of Universal

The story centers around a new dinosaur which was genetically engineered from a secret concoction of other dinosaur and assorted species (secret until the plot warranted it's inclusion) escaping from it's paddock and running wild across the island killing anything it comes in contact with.

Oh, did I forget that the main characters of the movie are Claire's two nephews?  Well...they kinda forgot to include a plot point in the beginning of the movie explaining anything about why the kids were coming to the island.  And throughout the movie they keep putting the boys in peril but failed to create an appropriate bond between the boys and the audience to establish why I would care that they, instead of an extra in the background, are picked up and carried away by a Pterosaur.

Courtesy of Universal

At it's core this movie is about badass dinosaurs getting into some serious showdowns and there are plenty of great action scenes.  It had me thinking about the failed Alien vs. Predator movies or Predators where the story spent way too much time on the human characters and not enough time with the Aliens and Predators kicking ass.  Jurassic World should have been 105 minutes of dinosaurs rampaging and fighting to the death.  The human element should have been merely fodder to help the audience understand the size and scope of the dinosaurs might.

That is a movie I would have enjoyed.

Jurassic World isn't bad, it's a fun and entertaining action movie.  I think the choice to bring on an art house director showed in how they tried to add a greater level of drama to the movie but unlike the original Jurassic Park they failed to do so.  When you sat in that theatre and saw the T-Rex pushing that car further into the mud you were worried about little Timmy and when Ellie was running from the Raptors in the bunker you were FREAKING OUT.  Jurassic World had no moments like that, at least not for me.  It could be that I'm older now and more jaded to films...but, nah, it's the director's fault.

This is a movie worth seeing and worth seeing on the big screen to fully appreciate he sheer size and awesomeness of the creatures.  But go to a matinee and save yourself a few bucks.

Tb

Movie Review - Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

A long time ago, in a place called 1968 there was a revolutionary movie called Planet of the Apes staring Moses (I mean: noted gun-nut Charlton Heston) wherein the world had long ago plunged into a technological darkness and apes had taken over as the dominant intelligence on planet Earth.  Heston, an astronaut returning from a mission, lands on what he thinks is some other planet where evolution went horribly wrong...and in a stunning display of terrible acting (shirtless on a beach no less) he views a partially destroyed Statue of Liberty and realizes it was Earth all along.  This "epic" scene has been mockingly used many, many times since then.

The failed 2001 relaunch of the franchise had a similarly idiotic scene at the end - this time with the Lincoln Memorial being replaced by an ape Lincoln (like they'd still have had an ape Lincoln...) statue.  This movie was much more militaristic; showing apes as ruthless aggressors bent on the destruction of all humanity. 

Luckily, a decade later, Twentieth Century Fox revitalized the story with better acting (yes, I know it's James Franco) and better CGI work.  With forethought for a franchise they built the first movie as exactly that; a first movie.  Caesar is an ape exposed to experimental drugs meant to cure Alzheimer's but in him the affects were amazing and he became hyper intelligent for an ape; capable of understanding and solving complex problems.

Jump ahead ten years (in the POTA universe) and the Apes; with guidance from the mighty Caesar have made a community in the vast forests outside San Francisco.  Caesar has sired several offspring; the oldest and strongest - Blue Eyes - he is grooming to eventually take his place.  Teaching him to use his intelligence as a guide to being a good, kind leader.

The opening sequence of the movie shows the apes in a massive pack hunt of elk - it's amazing watching the coordination and sequences rendered of the apes swinging through the tees.  If you've watched any of the previews you have probably seen the bear attack...yeah, it's awesome.

In Dawn humanity is on its last legs in San Francisco.  They've cobbled together a meager civilization at the heart of the city but have no power source and are running low on fuel. Their solution: restart a hydro-electric dam and bring power back to the city.  Thus enter the plot.

The movie is decently well written - with few plot issues.  There are a few "too convenient" situations but they are mostly believable given the characters and situations involved.  An excellent scene occurs when Koba (one of Caesar's most trusted advisers and human-hater) "plays ape" to seem non-threatening to some humans he happens upon at a weapons depot.  Little do they know...

The ape society is built on classes with Caesar at the top as the smartest and the strongest.  But unlike most animal class systems there is no battles for supremacy because the teachings of Caesar are that "ape not kill ape".  This mantra works...right up until the point that one of the ape's decides Caesar likes humans too much and is weak because of it.

Often times with movies that should focus on non-human characters (like Alien vs. Predator) the human characters always seem to take over and overshadow/drown out they main characters.  But Dawn did a good job representing both equally and well.  Time was spent with just the apes; of them having conversations and discussing serious topics.

There are a few scenes that are very impactful; like when Caesar and the entire ape society show up at the doorstep of the human refugee camp as a show of strength with a warning not to venture into their woods before.  When Caesar speaks - the reaction of the humans in the crowd is outstanding.  And, as you've no doubt seen in the previews - seeing an ape on horseback shooting an automatic rifle is pretty amazing.

As a second installment in the movie franchise Dawn is excellent.  It's not just a plot piece, moving us to the next film - it does so much more than that.  The struggle for the planet is real and Caesar realizes this at the end.  Humanity will not be coming back - now is the time for the ape to rule; and he will lead his people to victory.

I, for one, can't wait to see where the next movie takes us.  Hail Caesar.

Thanks for reading!

Tim