Must go faster!!!—-Jurassic Park Review

WOW! This movie still amazes me. I remember seeing this in theaters, and I remember being blown away. This was the first movie that just completely held me in awe. I think everyone has that first great movie experience, and for me it was Jurassic Park. I was 13 at the time, and I was just old enough to start really appreciating movies for more than just their popcorn-entertainment value. It was also the first movie that I saw after reading the book on which it’s based. The book was so awesome, I read it before and after seeing the movie.

This movie has it all. Story? You better believe it. Author Michael Crichton construed a well-thought-out story with enough science to make it plausible. An eccentric genius named John Hammond has created an amusement park on an island filled dinosaurs. Using cloning technology he extracted the dinosaur blood from the stomaches of mosquitoes whom were found trapped in fossilized amber. Now before he can get the insurance company to sign off on the park, he needs to get the endorsements of some dinosaur experts. One problem, Hammond’s competitors have a mole who plans to steal some embryos, and escape with the rest of the park’s crew during a hurricane evacuation. The mole shuts down the parks systems and takes off. Unfortunately for him, and many others, the dinos get out and run amok.

Characters/Acting? Absolutely. Sam Neill is wonderful as Dr. Grant, the dinosaur expert who is no fan of technology or kids, and is thrown into a chaotic situation where technology shuts down, and he is forced to protect Hammond’s grandkids as they make their way across the park. Laura Dern,as Dr. Satler, is very good as well as Neill’s co-worker, who is not just another damsel in distress. It was very refreshing to see a woman who could hold her own, and not need the man to come to her rescue every time. Richard Attenborough was the perfect choice for Hammond. Jeff Golblum (Dr. Ian Macolm), however, steals every scene he’s in (until the dinosaurs show up that is). He delivers some great lines, most of them to himself. The scene where he is sitting in the back of the truck and declares, “That’s an impact tremor. That’s what it is. I’m fairly alarmed here,” is only topped by his observation “That is one big pile of S___,” upon finding dino droppings. Sam Jackson, B.D. Wong, and Newman from Seinfeld round out some of the other characters.

The direction was incredible! But of course, you would expect nothing less from the great Steven Speilberg. He is the king of the chase scene and suspense. The scene with Dr. Grant and Tim climbing down the tree to avoid getting crushed by the car is masterful. And the scene where the raptors stalk the children in the kitchen is suspense at its best. I enjoyed how most of the most suspenseful scenes were filmed with the dinosaurs in the humans’ environment, instead of the other way around. A T-Rex in the foyer of a building, or a velociraptor with the glow of a computer on his devilish face, makes the tension so much more palpable.

This is also the first movie that had so many of the central characters done via computer animation. This was a breakthrough in cinema, one that has been copied for years. Although computer animation technology has since gotten more sophisticated, nothing, in my mind, has topped the sheer awesome feeling I experienced when the first dinosaurs burst on the scene.

Because I can watch this movie any time it airs, and the effect it had on me, I rate Jurassic Park Number 10 on my all-time list.

Phil