Jurassic World Mini-Review

Jurassic World Mini-Review

It's taken 22 years and 3 attempts, but we finally have a Jurassic Park sequel worthy of the title, courtesy of the director and writer of the wonderful indie sci-fi comedy Safety Not Guaranteed (stop reading this and watch that movie. You're welcome.): Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly. The world's mutual man-crush Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard lead this playful send-up of Hollywood's attitude towards sequels of (understandably) dormant franchises: bigger, scarier, more teeth. As it turns out, when the bean-counting executives of the now-functioning dinosaur theme park create a new hybrid attraction, this model is far from fool-proof. Trevorrow frames his barely-family-friendly film with a Spielbergian sense of awe, the frequent low-angle shots giving a true sense of scale to the chaotic proceedings. The director's lack of blockbuster experience is easily masked by his expert handling of the numerous heart-pounding action scenes, the standout being a spine-prickling jungle chase, facilitated by the joyously dopey inclusion of human-trained velociraptors. Unfortunately, his mastery with a camera does not extend to his and Connolly's slightly lacklustre screenplay, which opts for stupid-for-a-stupid-movie subplots about militarised dinos and two precocious (if serviceable) kids for his leads to rescue, instead of, you know, the thousands of other innocent people being eaten alive. Michael Giacchino has always excelled in nostalgic charm and childlike wonder, and his latest score may be his finest work to date; perfectly blending John Williams' classic themes with new, pulse-pounding compositions. The two leads share an easy-going chemistry, making their inevitable romance both believable and compelling, however unnecessary.  Jurassic World is a silly, explosive and surprisingly brutal crowdpleaser that knows exactly what it is and excels at it, whilst providing a sly nod to its own existence. I loved it, and if you can tune into its brand of gleeful destruction, so could you...