watching movies one cup at a time

F’ing Dinosaurs!!! What’s not to love about this movie? Seriously tho, in 1993 when this came out, no one had seen anything quite like it. We’re very used to CGI creatures these days but back then it was very impressive how real these creatures appeared. And of the 3 JP movies that have been made, this is hands down the best. It’s not even close. Steven Spielberg really interjects some style and flair to this to build the suspense and elevate the terror. And the whole story behind the creation of the park is very well done. That is what was lacking from the following movies. By the time the third one came out, it was all “Oh Sh*t! RUN!!!!”.

I think it would be really interesting to see these dinosaurs really make an attempt at spreading beyond the island. They played with the idea in the second movie but it never got past the “Oh Sh*t! RUN!!!!” stage. The first movie made a big point about how the dinosaurs were evolving beyond what the scientists that created them had anticipated. You could take that a step further and have the dinosaurs make a real play to coming back and dominating the world again. Or at least part of it. They were once the dominant species here. So why not see what would happen if they came back and started busting up man’s world. JP3 didn’t do so well at the box office so this series has probably run it’s course. And that world idea might be too much or if not done well, look really stupid.

But this movie was very well done. Sam Neil is perfect for this role, I can’t see anyone else playing him. Samuel L. Jackson’s small role is memorable and I love how he can believably play a character like this scientist and then follow it up a year later with his phenomenal performance in Pulp Fiction. Jeff Goldblum was fun to watch, like he always is, but I didn’t buy him as a scientist. It seemed more like Jeff Goldblum just joking around and being himself.

The movie is about an island where a billionaire is looking to create a kind of a dinosaur zoo/theme park with real, living dinosaurs he had created by a team of scientists. Certainly if such a thing really existed, it would be a huge attraction. But of course, it all goes to hell as the dinosaurs break out of the confinement imposed on them and start to evolve beyond expectations. Lots of screaming and terror ensues. Fun! But like I said, very well done by director Steven Spielberg.

One interesting thing about this movie is that it came out the same year that Steven Spielberg released his oscar-winning masterpiece, Schindler’s List. You probably couldn’t find two movies that were farther away in tone, content, style, you name it. And after watching Schindler’s List, I’m sure Steven Spielberg needed a project like Jurrasic Park to help “lighten the load” and not be as emotionally demanding as SL must have been. It’s a credit to him that he can so skillfully tell both stories in two entirely different ways. But that is what makes him one of the best directors of our time. He can do fun, fluff movies and make them exceptional. And he can do serious dramas and elevate them to impeccable standards of excellence.