Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Review
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
RUNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN- Chris Pratt
Jurassic
World: Fallen Kingdom is a big improvement on the first film, one
that I wasn’t expecting at all considering my hated towards the first film. The
film is certainly flawed but man did I have fun in the cinema. I had the same
giddy feeling that I had as a kid when I went to see Spiderman 2 (a superior film by every means don’t get me wrong).
Jurassic world is everything that a summer blockbuster should be. It has all
the ingredients A badass lead in the terrific Chris Pratt, A will they wont
they romance boosted by Pratts and Howards effortless chemistry, A score by
Michael Giacchino that increases tension and more fire than you could imagine. Director
J.A. Bayona is the man to thank for making this film work. God knows how he did
this because Jurassic World: Fallen
Kingdom has some of the worst writing in terms of dialogue and plot
progression that you will ever see on the big Screen.
Let’s talk about the script before we talk about anything else in
detail. This is an action movie, we all know this. I know it. You know it. Anyone
who hears the term dinosaur island rescue mission knows it. But boy does this
movie want to tell you that you’re watching an action movie at any point
possible. The following is my personal
favourite overused action lines in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.
1: One-character shows intelligence and gives a reasonable
explanation into his science. To which he gets the beautiful response of “In
English please?”.
2: more than five bad guys appear at once so clearly Owen must say
“We got company.”
3: Owen has an idea which requires teamwork to point this out he
needs to say, “You thinking what I’m thinking?”
4: Claire lets Owen know that he’s the star of a summer Blockbuster
“You’re a better man than you think you are.”
5: Now I couldn’t pick up a direct quote due to being painfully bored,
but Jeff Goldblum’s 10 lines are a rehash of everything he’s already said in
the franchise. “Life finds a way”.
Now it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the dialogue is painful once
you realise that the script was written by the Colin Trevorrow and Dereck Connolly,
the two men who wrote the previous film. Trevorrow is not looking like he’s
made out for Hollywood, if you disagree go watch The Book of Henry and come back to me. The human characters in the
film are wasted for the most part, with every character being a stereotype. Franklin,
played by Justice Smith, is given horrific material which makes him out to be
nothing more than a scared nerd who shouldn’t be there. Most of his screen time
is spent screaming. I feel sorry for the kid because he’s clearly trying his
best but there’s only so much you can do with what you’re given. Daniella
Pineda fares better as Zia, her character is given backbone and not made out to
be entirely useless. However, she’s made the medic of the team purely because
she’s done a first aid class. I’m sorry but I’ve done a first aid class too but
there is no way that I should be attempting to give blood transfusion to
dinosaurs. These two young antagonists are written by men who clearly don’t
have a clue how to write young people. We seen it in Jurassic World with Zach and Gray, who weren’t even brought back
for this film due to no one liking them. These young actors are being let down
by writers who are making their big break painful to witness. Maisie played by
Isabella Sermon is the youngest of the cast and the only one who makes a case
for herself to be in the next sequel. The young girl’s portrayal of fear is
possibly the best one seen on screen since Rebecca Jorden in Aliens.
Money is my main issue with this film. So many characters are
defined by money in Jurassic World:
Fallen Kingdom. Benjamin Lockwood,
played by Hollywood veteran James Cromwell, not given enough screen time to
make an impact, all we know about him is that he’s very wealthy and being taken
advantage of due to this. The villains in the film are an utter disaster. Eli
Mills played by Rafe Spall is nothing more than a business man, his motivations
are just about money. Toby Jones who is
normally phenomenal is relegated to nothing more than a bank for Eli. Ted
Levine is what worst culprit of the film, his character is the same as Stephen Lang’s
antagonist in Avatar, grizzled military man whose signature move is breaking
balls and demanding that he gets a bonus. The characters decision making is without
a doubt the stupidest I’ve ever seen on the big screen, the audience seemed to
have a synchronised groan every time he’s on screen. The problem with using
money as a story device is that when you don’t give the characters any other
motivations besides it than you’re left with empty characters that have no
drive. The audience can’t relate to a character who doesn’t give his reason for
wanting money in the first place.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom despite all my complaints is a
movie that I enjoyed I swear! Chris Pratt is so charismatic that he elevates
any film that he’s in. The actor is one of the few in Hollywood today who
manages to have the audience in stitches
whenever he’s on screen. The MVP of the
movie is Claire. Bryce Dallas Howard has really upped her game from the first
film. She is no longer constantly portrayed as a damsel in distress, this time
around she is an action heroine who is not relegated to the side-lines
thankfully. Owen and Claire’s potential romance is intriguing thanks to Pratts
and Howards chemistry which no longer feels forced. The two leads make both a
great comedic and action duo as the way they bounce off each other is rare to
find in summer blockbusters these days.
The film without spoiling anything almost feels as if it is two
films in one. The first half of the movie is a disaster movie with the second
half of the movie turning into a thriller. The first half works better than it
should thanks to the amazing special effects. I felt that the characters and
dinosaurs were in danger the entire time. The Dinosaurs are a spectacular
spectacle with each one feeling unique, they all add something to the film (You’re
my boy blue!). The opening of the film and the second half of the film is where
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom really shines. J.A Bayona uses the horror
elements seen previously in his film The
Orphanage to perfection. The film is surprisingly eerie in many places and
provided me with some genuine scares, making me leap out of my chair at
numerous times. Brave creative decisions like this one is what kept me
engrossed in the film, this sequel is entertaining the entire way through
thanks to the risks it’s willing to take. The talent of the leads and the
director has saved Jurassic World: Fallen
Kingdom from being a movie that you’ll forget about in a day.
Overall Jurassic World:
Fallen Kingdom is a film that you should see on the big screen. This is a film
made for cinema, the effects and the music are so good that you deserve to see
it with the best technology available. This may be the best entry to the franchise
since the first film, the franchise after nearly 30 years has still not matched
it. The writing may be prehistoric but if you can work past that than Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom will be a
film that you’ll have a great time with and you won’t want this franchise to
become extinct just yet.
Liam’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Summary
Best Moment: The films horror elements makes
dinosaurs scarier than they already are.
Worst Moment: The villains are a bore; also please no more hybrid
dinosaurs I’ve had enough.
Best Character: Claire for going from the worst character in the
last movie to the MVP in this one.
Worst Character: This one is tough, but it has to go to old commander
man who’s name I can’t remember.
Overall Rating: 3.25/5
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