Summer blockbuster season is in full swing, and you know what that means! Give me those unnecessary sequels, those forced romances, and those ridiculous plots that only someone who is looking to escape the heat and sit in air conditioning for two hours could bear to see! If this is what you want in a film, then Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom was made just for you. This movie is quite a mess with only a few saving graces to make it worth a watch.
Most of the problems with this film stem from the often ridiculous plot and the acting. It is so utterly silly at many points that I began to wonder if any true effort was put into the writing. However, many of these ludicrous scenes happen to be some of the most important and "exciting" points throughout the film. Scenes such as the reveal of Maisie Lockwood being a clone of another version of herself that died in a car crash and trying to shoot a gun underwater honestly just made me laugh. In these life or death situations, the audience should be gripping their seats to find out what happens next, but I was definitely not part of said audience. Having an auction for the last remaining dinosaurs? Releasing those dinosaurs into the suburbs of what looks like Arizona? These small details, while they worked together for the plot just fine, are so ridiculous. But a small part of me still can't wait to see what the writers are going to do in the third installment to top it all off. I really hope the next film will be titled Jurassic World: Blue Goes to High School, and at this point, I wouldn't be surprised if it was. There are also many plot points in this film that did not fit the story at all. When the hired army general just decided to leave Owen to die in the jungle, it did not make any sense whatsoever, besides the general being petty. And the scene with Claire and Owen refusing to open the gate to release the dinosaurs that they have spent three years trying to save also blew me away (not in a good way). These plot choices were very out-of-character and had no context behind them at all.
Other parts that did not sit well with me include the acting and the antagonist. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are both extraordinary artists with so much credit behind their names in other great projects. But no matter how hard they try, they simply do not have chemistry together. They were quite decent in scenes by themselves, but I personally do not think they have much compatibility. Which was especially apparent in their forced romance. That kiss towards the end was so unnecessary and easily could have been left out to make their characters build upon themselves and not rely on each other. I also could not tell you the name of the antagonist of the film, played by Rafe Spall. He was so "textbook villain" that it bored me beyond belief. There was no motivation behind his character other than getting millions of dollars from the sale of the dinosaurs. And he killed an old guy for it! However, despite these bad parts, I still do appreciate the writers making the plot a bit different than the typical "we created dinosaurs but can't control them" motif that has plagued this franchise.
For a summer blockbuster, I was surprised how colorful and visually exciting this movie was. I have noticed this trend of a minor increase in the focus on cinematography and I would really like for this trend to continue. In particular, I adored the shot of Isla Nublar being destroyed while Owen looks back at the lone, screeching brachiosaurus on the end of the pier. This shot alone got me emotionally invested and spoke so loudly. Every part of Owen's arc with finding and saving Blue was also of interest to me, as it provided a great flow from their story in the first film. The final piece that made this movie a bit reminiscent of the original Jurassic Park was the score. Michael Giacchino has been all over the place in film scores recently, and he is one name that I hope gets plenty of attention.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom provides a story just strange enough to keep me interested, but nothing worthy enough for any more of my money (I did use a free Harkins pass, after all). This is the perfect popcorn movie and I can honestly say that I was satisfied with it. But that's only because I had no expectations whatsoever.
My Rating: ★★½
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