Jurassic World (2015)

[Proclone]

I have a great fondness for the original Jurassic Park.  It's one of the first movies I have a really clear memory of seeing in the theater, plus I was one of those kids hugely into dinosaurs.  Is this movie as good as the original? Not by a long shot, but it is light years better than Jurassic Park 3 and probably Lost World too, at least no one wonder around covered in baby T-Rex blood after stating T-Rexs have best sense of smell in the fossil record (though for some reason I have a certain fondness for that movie too). 

 

This is a fun popcorn movie.  I didn't think the CGI was that great however, and the dinos in the original still seem more real to me.  Actually I think the ability to CGI the animals rather easily also takes away tension from the movie.  Some of the scariest, most tense moments in the original come from waiting for the dinosaurs to appear, like the water vibrating scene in anticipation of the T-Rex.  There aren't a lot of moments like that in Jurassic World, I think in part because it was just easier to insert them into a scene. I don't think there is a real sense of danger in the movie that there was in the original.  And I think part of this is because no one who gets attacked other than Owen, Claire, and the kids (and you know they weren't going to die) are anyone we care about.  There were other characters in the original that you liked that bought it, the Game Warden and Samuel L. Jackson's character for examples.  Also there was a real possibility of Hammond and Malcolm dying (and even to a certain extent Ellie) because they weren't really main characters.   Sure we meet Claire's assistant but does she ever get any scene time that makes us care about her, or that she just got eaten?  There is the CEO but that's towards the end and I'm not sure the movie made me care very much about him either.

 

I also kind of thought the InGen use raptors as weapons subplot was pretty stupid.  I'm pretty sure that there's a reason the military doesn't use wolves, lions, tigers or bears (oh my).  They are wild animals that while they can be trained cannot be expected to always follow commands.  It seems unlikely that the military would be that excited about using animals that are even more dangerous, and even more difficult to control than normal carnivores.  Also I agree with everyone who said that the inability to recall the Gyrosphears was stupid.  There could have been a throw a way line about there being a malfunction or something.  It might have been contrived, but at least it wouldn't have been moronic.  There is no theme park that would rely on guests to return a vehicle promptly in an emergency, especially not one where there is a chance of the attractions eating the guests.

 

That being said, I did actually enjoy the movie for what it was.  I like Chris Pratt's Owen and somewhat surprisingly I actually really liked Claire.  I liked that she was intelligent, wasn't ever the damsel in distress, and that she pretty saved the day in the end by being really brave (would you let a T-Rex chase you?).  I was somewhat surprised that she was never handed the idiot ball, but she never really does anything stupid except yell the kids' names which I think would be a rather knee jerk reaction.  Also the end fight was awesome.  It was actually really awesome.  I'm not sure I can up with anything more intelligent to say about it.  The crowd cheered when the T-Rex showed up.

Edited June 14, 2015 by Proclone

[theredhead77]

I frelling loved it. LOVED IT! I I'll see it again, in the theater. The 3D was cool, the motion seats were alright. I don't regret spending the money but I wouldn't do it again.

 

Yeah that was a huge question I had too. What if you got lost driving one of those things....it sounds like it would take a lot of effort to get you back.

 

I had a hard time believing the gyrospheres weren't on a track. Put me in one of those and I'd spend hours out there.

 

I loved when Owen told Claire to lose the heels and instead she rolled up her sleeves, tied her jacket and Owen was confused. I also love that they established Owen and Clarie went on a date and it didn't work out... not because she's a hyper focused businesswoman with no time but because of a personality difference. I didn't mind the kiss in the middle but I felt the ending was forced. The kids were fine and self-sufficient. Zach's indifference didn't bother me. Not all brothers are close, not all teens love going off to visit family even if said family runs Dino-Island. He stepped up when shit got real and that's where it counts. I got a little misty when they were in the old visitor center. Was that a raptor skeleton on the ground?

 

Dinosaurs fucking shit up. Check! The commercials and trailers did a great job of hiding IR. Maybe a more discerning eye could tell that Shamuasauras wasn't the same as the IR but I had no idea. I figured out they bred IR with raptor, I couldn't say why I figured it out, but it just seemed like something they would do. Loved Owen's bond with the Raptors and that they explained why he bonded with them - he imprints on them at birth and he respects the crap out of the fact that they are still raptors. Raptors have a new alpha. 

 

My audience went crazy when Rexie showed up. That's how you make an entrance! I was worried that the IR was going to take Rexie down but nope! Shamuasaruas to the rescue! The "discussion" between the raptor (was that Blue?) and Owen at the end, with the little shake of the head was brilliant.

 

Mustacheless mustache twirling villains. Check! My audience cheered when D'Onofrio's character was eaten. Loved seeing BD Wong as a villain. Weaponized dinosaurs. That doesn't sound like a good idea but it was an original idea. I don't think its fair to blame Claire for the IR. Ingen and the shareholders wanted a new dinosaur for more business with no regard to common sense. Some nice commentary on Wall Street.

 

All in all it was a great summer popcorn flick that met my super high expectations and I'll see it again, and buy it.

 

ETA - the control room guy (forgot his name) had Dr. Malcolm's book on his desk with the author photo facing out!  It may not have been shirtless on a table but we got a tiny bit of Malcolm. I squeed.

Edited June 14, 2015 by theredhead77

[galax-arena]

And I think part of this is because no one who gets attacked other than Owen, Claire, and the kids (and you know they weren't going to die) are anyone we care about.

I don't know, for a little while I was worried that Claire was going to be Deep Blue Sea'd, especially during the last battle when she baited the T-Rex.

 

I really didn't like either of the kids and felt bad that Zara had to die - in one of the most brutal ways of the franchise, IMO - after getting stuck watching their asses. As I've gotten older, I think I've become less tolerant of annoying kid characters, because I had no problems with Tim and Lex in Jurassic Park. When Gray and Zach went into the restricted area, my immediate reacton was basically, "Fuck it, just let them die." At least no characters died as a result of those two, I hate it when characters bite it in disaster movies because they stop to rescue a kid. (Lookin' at you, San Andreas.)

[MartinKSmith]

Just back from seeing it. I really, really liked it.

I was 5/6 when the original came out, saw it in the cinema the night it came out in my town. Owned it multiple times throughout the years, have seen and owned the sequels, too. Even went to see the 20th Anniversary re-release at the cinema. Point is, this film, for me had a lot to live up to and for the most part, it did.

 

Was it super clichéd? Of course, and I definitely eye-rolled a few times. But I sat with a smile on my face throughout. It doesn't beat the original for me, but it beats Lost World and III. I think, for younger viewers coming to the franchise for the first time, or close to the first time, this film would beat out the original, as they don't have nostalgia kicking them in the ass when they think about Jurassic Park. 

 

Most of all, four films showing why it's an awful idea and should never happen... I still want to visit Jurassic Park/World. It looks amazing.

 

(Also, I had zero issue with any of the Dino-CGI. None of it looked bad to me. The only CGI that did was the crow at the very start of the film. I was also happy to see that there was use of animatronics and that the creatures weren't entirely computer generated.)

Edited June 14, 2015 by MartinKSmith

[spaceytraci1208]

I spent the first 2/3 of this movie talking smack about how stupid so many of the people were. But that last 20-30 minutes??? AWESOME!!! I was so pumped when she got the T-Rex out, but definitely felt bad that it was getting it's ass kicked (I imagined a lot of jokes from the super dinosaur about the T-Rex's lack of arms lol). Did anyone else laugh when the last raptor did that slo-mo run just as the T-Rex was about to be killed? Then the finale with the deep-sea dinosaur...I geeked out at that point. Ultimately, I had fun...not sure if it'll hold up for TV for me like Jurassic Park though

[NoWillToResist]

Well, I sure got my money's worth.

 

I was actually pleasantly surprised by the characters. They were cliches on the outside, but then I felt that they actually were given layers.

 

- On the surface, Claire seems like the cold-fish, career-oriented bitch destined to be the weepy damsel in distress who will end up with the big,strong, rough man whom she'd misjudged. But she wasn't like that to me. She had no experience with kids so she was awkward around her nephews. I felt bad for her. But girl got shit done. Her super white outfit was utterly impractical for the field but she wasn't expecting to spend time there. For a delightful change, she didn't give a flying fuck about her wardrobe and adapted it as best she could. The heels had to stay since she had no other footwear but bless her heart, she could haul ass in them. I loved Owen's look of surprise when she took off into the jungle in those things. Good for her. And she was brave and saved people several times in a realistic way (IMO).

 

- the younger brother was the dino nerd who knew everything. Yet instead of being a totally precocious asshole, he was realistic about being sad about his parents' impending divorce, and scared shitless when everything went to hell. I found him clinging to his older brother cute and realistic.

- the older brother was a closed-off dick at the start, but you later figure out that that's been his coping mechanism for the strain at home. Early on, he was all bored indifference, and outward "ladies' man", but he came through for his younger brother, was protective, comforting, supportive and resourceful. Not long into the movie, I felt that he was basically a young Dean Winchester from TV's Supernatural, and as the movie progressed, I couldn't shake that comparison. It endeared him to me. I was particularly touched at him hugging his brother after they jumped off the cliff into the water; he was so proud of his little brother and so happy they were both alive.

 

- Owen was the typical hero of the piece but he wasn't an annoying know-it-all, and even he needed help/saving now and then.

 

Since the movie went the typical route of romance between the leads, I appreciated that they at least dropped a line about the fact that they'd had a date before, so we knew that there had at least been an attraction not that long ago. This way, it was an easier romance to understand.

 

I felt really bad for Claire's assistant. She did not deserve to go out like that. She's an assistant, not a nanny and the kids ran off on her. Poor thing. I could have done without her death.

 

But really, the dinos were the big stars here and the movie delivered.

 

As soon as the big bad got near the water, I wondered whether the aquatic dino would make an appearance. I even whispered to my husband a paraphrasing of Dave Chappelle's Samuel L. Jackson send-up of Deep Blue Sea: "A motherfucking [dino] ATE me!" ;)

 

I had to suspend my disbelief that Owen's alpha imprinting was stronger than the Indom Rex's hold over the raptors, but it's such a minor quibble...

 

They've obviously set things in motion for more sequels. And I will be there... ;D

[Bruinsfan]

I can only assume the franchise is going to cross over with the Bond or GI Joe franchises to let BD Wong's character go full-on Mad Scientist. Speaking of, I had forgotten that his character was in Jurassic Park giving Alan and Ellie a tour of the genetics lab until I saw it rerun on TV this week. It was nice that they got at least one of the original supporting characters back.

 

I spent the first 2/3 of this movie talking smack about how stupid so many of the people were. But that last 20-30 minutes??? AWESOME!!! I was so pumped when she got the T-Rex out, but definitely felt bad that it was getting it's ass kicked (I imagined a lot of jokes from the super dinosaur about the T-Rex's lack of arms lol). Did anyone else laugh when the last raptor did that slo-mo run just as the T-Rex was about to be killed?

I realized at that point that I was rooting for the T-Rex more than I was for the human characters. So glad he or she got the run of the island at the end!

[Racj82]

I'm never going to understand the over the top love this movie is receiving but a 204 million domestic three day weekend is fucking insane no matter how you look at it. It's breaking first Avengers money records here.

Edited June 15, 2015 by Racj82

[MartinKSmith]

As soon as the big bad got near the water, I wondered whether the aquatic dino would make an appearance. I even whispered to my husband a paraphrasing of Dave Chappelle's Samuel L. Jackson send-up of Deep Blue Sea: "A motherfucking [dino] ATE me!" ;)

 

I had to suspend my disbelief that Owen's alpha imprinting was stronger than the Indom Rex's hold over the raptors, but it's such a minor quibble...

 

They've obviously set things in motion for more sequels. And I will be there... ;D

As soon as Gray, the younger kid, said that they needed more teeth, my mind didn't go to T-Rex, it went to the big fuck off dinosaur sat in the tank a few metres away, so while I was happy to see T-Rex again, I knew it was only a matter of time before they dropped the new Dino into the tank (or, as what actually happened, had the Dino drag it into the tank). 

 

While it was a stretch that he could imprint in such a way to begin with, I actually liked that moment in the film, where Blue opts to choose him over the new Dino. Essentially Blue chose her parent over the new guy in town and again, as cheesy as it was, I was happy to hear her little clicks as she came running to join T-Rex in battle.

 

Definitely more sequels on their way, especially as it's had the best opening weekend of all time(? - if not best, it's second, I was looking at BoxOfficeMojo earlier). Though, I don't know where they'll go with it, which only makes it better, really.

[Bruinsfan]

The late estimates as of last night are falling slightly short of The Avengers' opening weekend, but the margin for error might push it over the top when you're talking about a fifth of a billion dollars.

 

It has broken the worldwide opening weekend record with $511 million. So, in three days it made more than three times its total production budget and almost certainly paid off the marketing budget as well.

Edited June 15, 2015 by Bruinsfan

[VCRTracking]

An article from Birth.Movies.Death.:

 

The Strangely Cruel And Unusual Death In JURASSIC WORLD

Edited June 15, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Shannon L.]

'Jurassic World' smashes U.S. and international box office records

 

Well, they did it.

 

I'm never going to understand the over the top love this movie is receiving but a 204 million domestic three day weekend is fucking insane no matter how you look at it. It's breaking first Avengers money records here.

I liked The Avengers better, but this movie had three things going for it:

 

1.  A whole generation of Jurassic Park fans who were nostalgic for the first one.

2.  A new generation of kids who love dinosaurs and

3.  Yes....Chris Pratt, who is probably one of the hottest actors out there right now.

 

There's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to come out with it:  I liked this one better than the first one.  Let me explain!  I loved, loved, loved, the book, so I was super excited for Jurassic Park and, while I know better than to expect movies to be like the book, and while know that the books are always better, this movie still let me down. I've been over it before in another thread (I forget which one, though). So, even though it was a fun, summer movie and the dinosaurs were great, I don't have the same love for it that others do.  Having said that, it was really great for them to put in the scene where they found the old building.  That was a nice touch.

 

For this one, though, I had somewhat low expectations and knew going in that it was going to be nothing more than a fun, summer popcorn flick (and it wasn't a book first) and it surpassed my expectations in spite of some of the problems with the plot and the mostly cliched characters (I say mostly because I agree with Proclone and others have said regarding Claire not becoming a damsel in distress).

 

I could quote most of you who liked the movie, Chris Pratt and Claire, but it would take too long.  Just a couple of new  things:

 

I loved the scene in the control room when that guy was going to stay behind and decided to go for it and kiss his coworker only to have her brush him off.  So often the guy gets away with the kiss and I thought this was a cute way to go with it.

 

At the end, when she says "What now?" and he responded, I immediately thought of the end of the movie Speed:  "You know, they say that relationships that begin under extreme circumstances rarely work out" (or something like that).  I also thought of Pretty Woman:  "She rescues him right back.".  Other than the extreme situation, I can't tell you why those two endings came to mind.

 

In regards to Claire's assistant's death:  I agree I thought it was a bit much.  Our son saw it with friends in IMAX 3-D an hour or so after our movie started, so when he got home, we talked about how much we liked it and at one point  he said "What in hell did her assistant do to warrant such a death?!" 

 

We'll end up owning this one and I'll probably stop and watch it whenever it's on tv and I see it while flipping through stations. 

Edited June 15, 2015 by Shannon L.

[galax-arena]

An article from Birth.Movies.Death.:

The Strangely Cruel And Unusual Death In JURASSIC WORLD

That article is on point.

 

If we're talking about deaths serving certain cinematic purposes in the movie, take Hoskins. He was a swaggering jackass from the beginning and it was clear that Blue in particular hated him. So it was incredibly fitting/satisfying to have his death come at her hands.

 

With Zara, it was just... WTF? I think her death and the dog's death in JPII bothered me the most, lmao. 

 

But let's go back to Blue, because Blue was the best. Such a sassy little murderous raptor.

[benteen]

Yeah, Zara's death was cruel and I can't believe they made her go through all that just to end up dead.

[MartinKSmith]

Zara's death was definitely over-the-top, but I looked at it from the actor's POV, in that she got to have the most over-the-top death in the movie, the one everyone's talking about (granted, probably not for the right reasons). 

 

She didn't do anything to deserve that death, but did she really do anything to deserve to live/have a happy ending? She was barely in the film, an issue with the writing perhaps, but still.

[theredhead77]

I had to suspend my disbelief that Owen's alpha imprinting was stronger than the Indom Rex's hold over the raptors, but it's such a minor quibble...

I love that in a movie about a real-life dinosaur amusement park this is where you decided you had to suspend disbelief. And I love this is where others did too. Ultimate storytelling at its best.

 

I remember when I realized that I-Rex was part raptor - it was the first scene with the egg. It looked just like the raptor egg / coloring.

 

I may be the only person on the planet who wasn't bothered by Zara's death because flying dinosaurs aren't looking for people who did wrong. What did bother me was realizing Shamuasauras swallowed her whole. 

[PrincessEnnui]

I don't think Zara's death was that over the top or cruel. It seemed to be by the 3rd or 4th pickup, she stopped screaming and thrashing. She likely drowned or died of shock before hand. Also note that Samuel L. Jackson and Wayne Knight both signed on to the first JP to be eaten. I think Katie McGrath probably did to and she has a fantastically horrifying death, probably the best in the series. 

 

The only character I lament being eaten was Ajay and Eddie from the Lost World. 

[AD35]

I saw it on the first day of release and like others have said, it's a highly enjoyable popcorn movie.  One thing that I liked in this one compared to the very first one was the unspoken acknowledgment that just because a predator like a T-rex can't see you (remember Sam Neill's comment?) doesn't mean that he can't smell you. When the I-rex starts his rampage, Owen pours gasoline on himself to dowse his scent when the I-rex is looking for him.

[Craphole Island]

Saw it yesterday and loved it. I haven't had that much fun in a movie in a long time (even though I loved Avengers 2 as well).

 

I really loved the casting. I know that all the characters were basically just stereotypes but I still liked them. I was all prepared to hate Bryce Dallas Howard's character because she seems to always play villain types and I wasn't sure where they were going with her, but I was happy they went a different way and I liked her. At *small voice* I liked the kids. I actually was way more invested in the kids than I thought. I thought it was hilarious how awestruck they were by Owen/Chris Pratt because that seemed so true-to-life - 2 teenage boys obsessing over this badass guy.

 

Also, Jake Johnson going in for that kiss and getting denied was maybe the best part of the entire movie for me.

[Shannon L.]

 

I had to suspend my disbelief that Owen's alpha imprinting was stronger than the Indom Rex's hold over the raptors, but it's such a minor quibble...

I love that in a movie about a real-life dinosaur amusement park this is where you decided you had to suspend disbelief. And I love this is where others did too. Ultimate storytelling at its best.

I was just having this conversation with my husband, only he had a problem with the whole training aspect in general and the imprinting explanation made it slightly more palatable to him.  I responded the same way...in a movie about a real life dinosaur amusement park....etc, etc.....

 

Given the numbers for the weekend, I'm guessing it was sold out practically everywhere?  We went to see a different movie on Saturday and when I asked about the crowds for JW, they said that since Friday morning, every show except the midnight ones had sold out.  We bought our tickets for Sunday after the Saturday movie and when we got to the theater an hour and 20 minutes before our movie started, there was already about 20 people or so in line.

 

 

At *small voice* I liked the kids. I actually was way more invested in the kids than I thought.

Kids and their story lines rarely bother me, so I was fine with them, too.  They seemed pretty normal for their age and their situation and I'm glad that big brother came through when push came to shove. 

 

Did they address how they stopped the dinosaurs from breeding?  They did say that they used frog DNA for the new dinosaur.

 

Edited for one, shallow comment:  I love Chris Pratt's laugh (we heard it at least once when Claire went to his place). 

Edited June 16, 2015 by Shannon L.

[galax-arena]

did she really do anything to deserve to live/have a happy ending?

I don't think anyone's saying that they thought she deserved to live. I was fully expecting her to die, her character had CANNON FODDER written all over it. To quote the article that VCRTracking posted upthread:

Zara’s death rankles not because she didn’t deserve to die but because she didn’t deserve to die quite that hard.

 

Re: the kids, I thought that the older brother in particular was a jerk. Yeah, yeah, he eventually came around, but by then I wanted him to get it. And his resentment towards Claire didn't make any sense to me. So she hasn't seen you in several years, who cares? She's not your mother, she's your aunt.

 

I don't know, maybe he was meant to just be a sulky sullen too-cool-for-school teenager considering how he acted for the overall first part of the movie, but the way the actor played it, it came off as though he had some animosity towards Claire in particular. Get the hell over yourself, kid. 

 

 

Did they address how they stopped the dinosaurs from breeding?

You think they could have taken a clue from Malcolm. Life, uh, finds a way. 

 

I actually really liked Claire, but I might have been rebelling against the movie's not-so-subtle pushing of her "cold career woman" narrative. But I'm still not sure I recognize what BDH looks like, I feel like she looks different in every movie I see her in. 

Edited June 16, 2015 by galax-arena

[Rick Kitchen]

 

Did they address how they stopped the dinosaurs from breeding?  They did say that they used frog DNA for the new dinosaur.

 

In the previous movies, they tried really hard to have only females.  They addressed all of them as "she".

[Raja]

This was my first Jurassic experience but as I was watching I was thinking that what Point Break was to The Fast and The Furious, Aliens was to Jurassic World. I was expecting some character to lose it and declare game over while another counseled to evacuate the island and nuke it from offshore to be safe.

That said I enjoyed all four of the movies while I was surprised by the off camera carnage on this one.

[Bruinsfan]

Zara's death really was way over the top. She basically went out the same way Captain Hook did in Disney's animated Peter Pan, and despite how villainous he was I always thought the torture porn aspect was very questionable.

 

Some plausibility problems with the dinosaurs are occurring to me in retrospect now, like pterosaurs barely bigger than human beings being able to grab and lift them—a golden eagle with a 6 to 7 foot wingspan can only lift about 8 lbs. in flight. (They are, however, capable of killing goats and wolves, just not actually picking them up.) Also, while I can easily see a 5+ ton dinosaur being able to break one of those gyrospheres by sheer weight, I'm unaware of any animal's DNA that would give it the diamond-tipped talons it would need to puncture spherical bulletproof glass with a slashing motion rather than just glancing off the curved surface.

[spaceytraci1208]

My biggest struggle from a realism standpoint was the boys being able to get one of those jeeps working again lol

[theredhead77]

I thought it was hilarious how awestruck they were by Owen/Chris Pratt because that seemed so true-to-life - 2 teenage boys obsessing over this badass guy.

What was that line? Can we stay with you? No, not you (Claire), him.

 

I'm unaware of any animal's DNA that would give it the diamond-tipped talons it would need to puncture spherical bulletproof glass with a slashing motion rather than just glancing off the curved surface.

Raptor claws: used to bisect, slice, dice and poke holes in bulletproof glass.

[tennisgurl]

I was enjoying the movie just fine, and then....dinosaur team up! Suddenly the movie became amazing. Thank you, Jurassic World. Thank you. Team Dinos all the way. 

 

Seriously, though, while this was no Mad Max, this was a really enjoyable popcorn flick. Chris Pratt and his raptor squad, Jake Johnson doing some comic relief, Bryce Dallas Howard was a really likable character to me (I had heard a lot of complaining about the movies sexism, but I was not too bothered. I thought Claire was a good character, and I didn't mind her arc of becoming more caring. Plus, she did everything Owen did, but in heels! Thats one badass lady), not too annoying kids, and lots and lots of dinosaurs! Cute dinosaurs (dino petting zoo!), scary dinosaurs, badass dinosaurs, dinosaurs everywhere! 

 

If that park exists, I would be torn by the genre savvy (of course something is going to go wrong at some point) and my excitement (those rides all looked freaking awesome). So, I would probably go, and be paranoid the whole time. 

 

All in all, I enjoyed the hell out of it. 

[Bruinsfan]

I'd go if it were all docile herbivores or a Seaworld-type setup like the mosasaurus had. Zoos manage 5 ton animals all the time without any visitors being harmed—it's when you mix large predators like tigers and people who don't know to avoid taunting them that you get casualties. And orcas are only dangerous to trainers and dumbasses like that guy who broke in to Tilikum's enclosure and ended up becoming a human hacky sack.

Edited June 16, 2015 by Bruinsfan

[galax-arena]

Cute dinosaurs (dino petting zoo!)

Disgruntled baby triceratops! Poor disgruntled baby triceratops almost being snatched away by a pteranodon!

 

Good thing it was so chubby. 

[tennisgurl]

I got so upset when it looked like they were going to hurt the baby triceratops! Thank god it was a big baby. Now all the other babies were fine, and none of them got hurt. They are FINE damn it! 

[theredhead77]

I got so upset when it looked like they were going to hurt the baby triceratops! Thank god it was a big baby. Now all the other babies were fine, and none of them got hurt. They are FINE damn it! 

They are so totally fine, safe and reunited with their parents!

 

I presume this will be answered in the next movies... but what happens to the park now? Do they just leave it like Jurassic Park? How did they capture all the animals from the original park anyway. And all the flying dinosaurs? Why are there no reports about them ending up in Costa Rica?

Edited June 16, 2015 by theredhead77

[PrincessEnnui]

I am more concerned about every dino- being trapped, with only Rexie and Blue and mature herbivores loose. Not to mention all the cattle and sharks being used to feed the carnivores. Poor Mosasaurus is trapped in her lagoon by her lonesome. All just trapped and will starve to death unless Rexie or Blue find them first. 

 

... I also wonder if Blue and Rexie knew about the Mosasaurus and how. Its like they expected her.

Edited June 16, 2015 by PrincessEnnui

[Bruinsfan]

Yeah, the mosasaurus better start hibernating after it finishes its I-Rex snack. While the herbivores should be OK on their own, I don't see park personnel making it back with large food animals while Blue and the T-Rex have free run of Isla Nubar.

[Anela]

'Jurassic World' smashes U.S. and international box office records

 

Well, they did it.

 

I liked The Avengers better, but this movie had three things going for it:

 

1.  A whole generation of Jurassic Park fans who were nostalgic for the first one.

2.  A new generation of kids who love dinosaurs and

3.  Yes....Chris Pratt, who is probably one of the hottest actors out there right now.

 

There's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to come out with it:  I liked this one better than the first one.  Let me explain!  I loved, loved, loved, the book, so I was super excited for Jurassic Park and, while I know better than to expect movies to be like the book, and while know that the books are always better, this movie still let me down. I've been over it before in another thread (I forget which one, though). So, even though it was a fun, summer movie and the dinosaurs were great, I don't have the same love for it that others do.  Having said that, it was really great for them to put in the scene where they found the old building.  That was a nice touch.

 

For this one, though, I had somewhat low expectations and knew going in that it was going to be nothing more than a fun, summer popcorn flick (and it wasn't a book first) and it surpassed my expectations in spite of some of the problems with the plot and the mostly cliched characters (I say mostly because I agree with Proclone and others have said regarding Claire not becoming a damsel in distress).

 

I could quote most of you who liked the movie, Chris Pratt and Claire, but it would take too long.  Just a couple of new  things:

 

I loved the scene in the control room when that guy was going to stay behind and decided to go for it and kiss his coworker only to have her brush him off.  So often the guy gets away with the kiss and I thought this was a cute way to go with it.

 

At the end, when she says "What now?" and he responded, I immediately thought of the end of the movie Speed:  "You know, they say that relationships that begin under extreme circumstances rarely work out" (or something like that).  I also thought of Pretty Woman:  "She rescues him right back.".  Other than the extreme situation, I can't tell you why those two endings came to mind.

 

In regards to Claire's assistant's death:  I agree I thought it was a bit much.  Our son saw it with friends in IMAX 3-D an hour or so after our movie started, so when he got home, we talked about how much we liked it and at one point  he said "What in hell did her assistant do to warrant such a death?!" 

 

We'll end up owning this one and I'll probably stop and watch it whenever it's on tv and I see it while flipping through stations. 

I wasn't interested in this movie, but I prefer it to the first one as well. The first one bugged me, because of changes made from the books (including the fact they didn't use my favourite parts). This was better than I expected.

[theredhead77]

I am making my way through Jurassic Park and during the raptor birth scene Hammond touches it while stating that they imprint on the first thing they come in contact with. Yay for continuity with Owen imprinting on them at birth and not random "imprinting" to explain the "mutual respect".

[NoWillToResist]

I love that in a movie about a real-life dinosaur amusement park this is where you decided you had to suspend disbelief. And I love this is where others did too. Ultimate storytelling at its best.

 

Well heck, you have to draw the line somewhere, right? :)  And I just had trouble that the raptor stuck with a human with a clicker over another dino which spoke its fucking language. I suppose the I.rex may have been a total arrogant dick and Blue was all "hey, fuck you then, pal. Imma stick with my boy over here, ok?"

 

At *small voice* I liked the kids. I actually was way more invested in the kids than I thought. I thought it was hilarious how awestruck they were by Owen/Chris Pratt because that seemed so true-to-life - 2 teenage boys obsessing over this badass guy.

 

Heh. Yeah, when they were all "don't leave us!" and Claire's all "I'm never leaving you again" and there's this awkward silence and the boys are all "errr, we were talking about him." Hee!!

 

Re: the kids, I thought that the older brother in particular was a jerk. Yeah, yeah, he eventually came around, but by then I wanted him to get it. And his resentment towards Claire didn't make any sense to me. So she hasn't seen you in several years, who cares? She's not your mother, she's your aunt.

 

I don't know, maybe he was meant to just be a sulky sullen too-cool-for-school teenager considering how he acted for the overall first part of the movie, but the way the actor played it, it came off as though he had some animosity towards Claire in particular. Get the hell over yourself, kid. 

/snip/

I actually really liked Claire, but I might have been rebelling against the movie's not-so-subtle pushing of her "cold career woman" narrative. But I'm still not sure I recognize what BDH looks like, I feel like she looks different in every movie I see her in. 

 

Maybe he (understandably) felt that Claire wasn't interested in them and they'd been shipped off to her to get them out of the parents' way. Claire didn't even know how old her nephews were! That's damned sad.

 

I think the only part of the movie which pissed me off was when Claire was talking to her sister and she says something about "if" she has kids and the sister is all "no, WHEN". Like, fuck you, Claire's sister. Not all women want kids, whether they're career-focused women or not. Jesus. That pissed me off. You can love the kids in your life without wanting to take that on for yourself...

[Jediknight]

I really liked it, not as good as Jurassic Park, but better than Lost World and 3.  I definitely thought it paid more respect to the first one than the other 2 did.

 

I didn't like that the first time we hear the theme is just for the park.  It hits it's crescendo and it's just to reveal the park, that shouldn't happen, the crescendo of the JP theme should be hit the first time they reveal dinosaurs.  Screw the actual park, we want to see the dinosaurs, that's where the magic is.

 

When Owen went into the raptor cage to save new guy, that was some Star Wars music playing.  It gave me vibes of Luke vs the Rancor.  Giacchino needs to do the score for a Star Wars movie.

 

And once again with the score, loved the theme playing when the kids discovered and walked through the Visitor's Center.  That was awesome, I wouldn't be opposed to this score getting an Oscar nomination.

 

I liked that they didn't turn the park owner into a villain.  He thought that everyone should be able to see and enjoy the dinosaurs, and was concerned with the dangers that the I Rex posed.  The park making money for him, was low on his priorities.

 

And thank you movie for not jobbing out the T Rex.  That's the star of the franchise, and continues to own your soul.  That's not something you job out, looking in your direction Jurassic Park 3.

[PrincessEnnui]

I didn't like that the first time we hear the theme is just for the park.  It hits it's crescendo and it's just to reveal the park, that shouldn't happen, the crescendo of the JP theme should be hit the first time they reveal dinosaurs.  Screw the actual park, we want to see the dinosaurs, that's where the magic is.

 

I saw that whole scene as jaded. It was subtlety hinting that Jurassic World (the park) was quite different from what Hammond originally intended to do with Jurassic Park. Everything about Jurassic World was different from the visitor's center to the exhibits in comparison to Jurassic Park. Where as Jurassic Park was more safari style, Jurassic World was more modern zoo meets theme park. It also served to highlight that Jurassic World (the park) wasn't about the dinosaurs anymore, it was about the experience. 

[galax-arena]

Claire didn't even know how old her nephews were! That's damned sad.

Meh. I have aunts and uncles who I'm sure don't know how old I am either since they live far away from me and I haven't seen them in years. And I'm not even sure how old some of my cousins are because we barely see each other. Like I said, it's not like she's their mother. It's not unusual for extended family to be scattered all over the world (and therefore not all that update to date with each other's lives, although I suppose you could stay in touch with facebook... but not everybody does) - I'm guessing Claire's in a very different time zone - so the animosity he showed Claire for not being in step with the specifics of his adolescence was OTT to me. 

 

But I think maybe it could have been a problem with the actor and not the writing. Because now that I think about it, his creepy blank-eyed staring at various girls didn't make much sense either. The obvious answer is that the movie wanted to show him being a stereotypical girl-crazy teenager (before disaster struck and he went through Character Development by morphing into protective big brother mode), but the actor couldn't pull it off IMO. 

Edited June 17, 2015 by galax-arena

[stealinghome]

Just got back from seeing this, and my immediate reaction is that it was very fun and definitely a great thrill ride, but settled for being good when it actually had the potential to be EXCELLENT, a real classic. Somewhere, buried deep in the story, there was a movie to rival the first Jurassic Park, but it just got bogged down by way too many subplots and less-interesting narrative choices.

 

Pratt was appealing but just okay--I mean, he's entirely not believable as an ex-Navy badass guy, that character type doesn't fall within his range--but I thought Bryce Dallas Howard was actually quite good in a thankless, super stereotypical role. She made what could have been a cardboard character seem very human. I loved the running gag with her heels--by the end it was clear that the movie was mocking that trope. Actually, in general the movie had a lot of (sometimes ironic) self-awareness, which was part of its charm. The spirit of Jeff Goldblum was alive and well. Also the callbacks to the first movie were awesome. Meaningful but not overdone. The humor overall was hit and miss though. Sometimes it really worked--Claire's "It's going to be all right! Really!" refrain to the boys never ever got old--but sometimes it really didn't, or went too OTT to be really funny.

 

Did love the command center crew. They had some of the most consistently funny humor throughout.

 

That said,  there were also  a lot of moments that dragged, even after the dinosaurs started fucking things up.

The pacing was a bit off for me as well. I'm not sure the movie ever hit the point where you were really concerned for the people who were at the park--that looming threat just never felt like much of a threat at all. And the tension never really crescendo-ed.

 

they can't just recall the gyrospheres

Yeah that was a huge question I had too. What if you got lost driving one of those things....it sounds like it would take a lot of effort to get you back.

One of the biggest suspensions of disbelief I had was that this island would not have better emergency protocols. I straight-up do not believe that anyone would let this park run when the emergency evacuation plan seems to be "um, have everyone gather in the main square and hope for the best and that boats can reach you within 12 hours"--like come on!!! No. Way. Freaking Disneyworld probably has better emergency evacuation protocols! Also, underground bunkers never occurred to these people who are cultivating entirely avian and above-ground dinosaurs? Unless they're breeding mole dinosaurs, at least some underground bunkers seem like a decent precaution....

 

I think I would take Lex and Tim back over these too.

Agreed. Lex and Tim felt like real kids. These kids were painfully tropes instead of characters. (All the characters in this movie were to some extent, but the kids were the worst.) And I too thought the teenage brother was a really weak actor. There were several scenes where he was supposed to look shocked/horrified/etc, and the younger brother is giving it his all acting-wise, and the older brother looks...mildly constipated.

 

I was waiting with bated breath for the T-rex to appear and almost screamed when she/he did. KING/QUEEN. Loved the T-rex and Blue fighting together against the fake dino, and then Blue's "oh shit!" back away slowly when she realized the T-rex might turn on her! Really, Blue was more fleshed out than most of the characters in this film. Pratt's little head shake to her at the end was super sad.

Edited June 17, 2015 by stealinghome

[theredhead77]

After thinking about it I really want to know what Blue was asking. First I thought it was to leave Rexie alone but now (with other comments) it was to call her off from eating Claire and the kids. 'Did I do good dad?? Do I get a treat now?'

I'm going to imagine Blue and Rexie go off and leave all the babies alone.

And I feel really stupid for not realizing Charlie, Delta and Echo died.

[Beezel]

After thinking about it I really want to know what Blue was asking. First I thought it was to leave Rexie alone but now (with other comments) it was to call her off from eating Claire and the kids. 'Did I do good dad?? Do I get a treat now?'

 

 

That really made me laugh! I figured Blue asked, "Can't I at least have the little one? I mean really, who's gonna miss him?" And then Owen,  of course, said no.  

Now it's clear from this thread that she should have asked for the older brother, maybe  then Grady would have thrown him a bone and we all could have cheered at that particularly annoying  character's demise. ;) 

Edited June 17, 2015 by Beezel

[Raja]

Pratt was appealing but just okay--I mean, he's entirely not believable as an ex-Navy badass guy, that character type doesn't fall within his range--but I thought Bryce Dallas Howard was actually quite good in a thankless, super stereotypical role. She made what very human. I loved the running gag with her heels--by the end

Did love the command center crew. They had some of the most consistently funny humor throughout.

The pacing was a bit off for me as well. I'm not sure the movie ever hit the point where you were really concerned for the people who were at the park--that looming threat just never felt like much of a threat at all. And the tension never really crescendo-ed.

One of the biggest suspensions of disbelief I had was that this island would not have better emergency protocols. I straight-up do not believe that anyone would let this park run when the emergency evacuation plan seems to be "um, have everyone gather in the main square and hope for the best and that boats can reach you within 12 hours"--like come on!!! No. Way. Freaking Disneyworld probably has better emergency evacuation protocols! Also, underground bunkers never occurred to these people who are cultivating entirely avian and above-ground dinosaurs? Unless they're breeding mole dinosaurs, at least some underground bunkers seem like a decent precaution....

.

Something tells me he was a sailor so one day they can reveal that he was a SEAL, in media badassery no other type of soldier matters anymore.

Compared to the Colonial Marines/ACE whose death was lifted straight from Aliens, the Park Rangers and corporate mercenaries he was the only one carrying a beast killing and not a man killing weapon. It was like Starship Troopers carrying assault rifles to fight giant bugs when they had access to science fiction weapons.

[NoWillToResist]

I liked that they didn't turn the park owner into a villain.  He thought that everyone should be able to see and enjoy the dinosaurs, and was concerned with the dangers that the I Rex posed.  The park making money for him, was low on his priorities.

 

Yeah, I appreciated that he didn't care about making money and was trying to honour Hammond's original intentions re: Jurassic Park. He wasn't an asshole just...perhaps not as detail-oriented as he should be. I mean, who orders up a "cooler" dino without asking any specifics?

 

I was also entertained at the number of shots of Claire's heels. I kept trying to see if they'd changed her to flats during the group shots but I only ever saw heels. Kind of appreciated them turning that cliche on its head. Rather than having the woman teeter totter along or toss them aside and go barefoot, Claire's all "see ya, bitches!" and can haul ass in those puppies. :D

 

One critique has just occurred to me: the dino removed her tracking device because "she remembered where you put it in her". Now, (1) how does the dino know what this thing does? and (2) they put that massive thing in her without knocking her out first? WTF??? I'd be out for their blood too!

[galax-arena]

And I feel really stupid for not realizing Charlie, Delta and Echo died.

I know I said that Zara and JPII's dog (heh) bothered me the most out of the Jurassic deaths, but I might have to add Charlie to the list. Poor Charlie! She was looking right at Owen, she was going to switch her allegiance. And then BAM! She's dead. I mean, okay, so she was killing any humans not named Owen. But still. 

 

I went into this movie thinking that I was going to absolutely hate the raptor squad. And yet... 

[Unusual Suspect]

I know I said that Zara and JPII's dog (heh) bothered me the most out of the Jurassic deaths, but I might have to add Charlie to the list. Poor Charlie! She was looking right at Owen, she was going to switch her allegiance. And then BAM! She's dead. I mean, okay, so she was killing any humans not named Owen. But still. 

 

I went into this movie thinking that I was going to absolutely hate the raptor squad. And yet... 

 

Yeah, they actually sold me on the Raptor squad, which is surprising, as I went in thinking it was ridiculous. And I'd agree on Charlie. She paused and got a rocket in the back for her trouble. And it clearly upset Owen too.

[Shannon L.]

Speaking of upsetting deaths, in the usual "kill hundreds of people and no one cries, but kill one dog and everyone collapses in grief" manner, I was a bit embarrasses at not only tearing up when Charlie died, but when they were comforting that brontosaurus who was suffering.  I literally had to keep reminding myself that it was a dinosaur--completely computer generated--and not a real person or animal.  I love Chris Pratt and this character, but I understand the critiques of him not being quite right in the role.  For me, he has charming and funny down to a T, but, imo, he needs a bit more work on tough and macho.  But, damn, did he sell me on how much he cared for those dinosaurs!

Edited June 17, 2015 by Shannon L.

[caracas1914]

I admit it bothered me that the ethnic Billionaire owner bit the big one. 

 

Hammond didn't die in the original..oh never mind.

[Raja]

I admit it bothered me that the ethnic Billionaire owner bit the big one.

Hammond didn't die in the original..oh never mind.

its not that you die, its how you die. While he was living his own fighter pilot dream he did bravely go forward to protect his guest and staff. Just as all the park staff did, I think.

[NoWillToResist]

Speaking of upsetting deaths, in the usual "kill hundreds of people and no one cries, but kill one dog and everyone collapses in grief" manner, I was a bit embarrasses at not only tearing up when Charlie died, but when they were comforting that brontosaurus who was suffering.  I literally had to keep reminding myself that it was a dinosaur--completely computer generated--and not a real person or animal.  I love Chris Pratt and this character, but I understand the critiques of him not being quite right in the role.  For me, he has charming and funny down to a T, but, imo, he needs a bit more work on tough and macho.  But, damn, did he sell me on how much he cared for those dinosaurs!

 

I was a bit of a mess during that scene too. And then I further embarrassed myself when they did the long shot of the field and showed that another FIVE of them had been slaughtered. Inside I was wailing "nooo!"