Review: Jurassic World

Cinema: Jurassic World (2015)

Sat in the ‘sweet spot’ at my new local IMAX 3D cinema, I’m shaking with excitement as I awaited what I hoped would be the ultimate summer blockbuster.  But not just me; hundred’s more and millions more around the world whom many of 20yrs ago sat in a cinema wide-eyed as we saw one of the greatest movie spectacles of all time…so Colin Trevorrow, NO PRESSURE!

Steven Spielberg’s original now stands as one of the greatest films of all time, not just a ‘summer’ movie but a masterpiece of moviemaking. 20 years old now and still as vital as ever, it spawned two sequels of equal brilliance (in my opinion) and the heat has been on for a fourth instalment for 14 years.

Well, rest easy people because without a shadow of a doubt, director Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed) has crafted a film that will thrill and excite audiences for years to come. Bravo.

OK, NO SPOLIERS I PROMISE….Jurassic World is set in a near future where John Hammond’s vision is now a reality. A dinosaur theme park that has a petting zoo, a sea world and a big problem; it’s now been open long enough to have become a bit ‘old hat’ and the public need to be ‘wowed’ again, so we meet ‘Claire’ (Bryce Dallas Howard) a company woman who, with the aid of Dr Henry Wu (BD Wong reprising his role from the original) has engineered a genetic hybrid to ‘scare’ the public again and oh boy is this thing scary! Bollywood legend Irrfan Khan appears as (Simon Masrani, easily putting the entire cast to shame with his acting ability) the billionaire mind behind the park, who wants the safety of the new dinosaur, named INDOMINUS REX assessed by his security man; former Naval officer and all round alpha male ‘Owen’ (A role which will solidify Chris Pratt as Hollywood’s new leading man and hopefully the next Indiana Jones, yes, he’s THAT good).  Owen is trying to train 3 Velociraptors to respond to human commands, something which his shady InGen co-worker ‘Hoskins’ (Vincent D’Onofrio) has a close eye on. Claire has two vacationing nephews in tow; Zach & Gray played by a moody Nick Robinson (The Kings of Summer) and a delightful Ty Simpkins (Iron Man 3) who are running free around the park when the inevitable horror ensues. The indie heavy cast is rounded off with Lauren Lapkus (Orange Is the New Black) and Jake Johnson (New Girl) who share tech nerd duties and the funniest scene in the movie.

What director Trevorrow achieves so well with this sequel is to mix thrills, horror and real humour just like Spielberg did with the first movie. To go from absolute terror to genuine belly laughs is something only a true thrill ride can deliver and there’s nothing better than sitting with friends or family and gasping one second then laughing with relief the next. In IMAX 3D there is nothing better. It’s a PERFECT cinema experience. The Indominus Rex is a horrific creation in every sense, in scenes reminiscent of Predator and Aliens; she chomps her way through anything in her path in some of the franchises most terrifying scenes to date. This rex will haunt the minds of all the brave children in this 12A audience. New to the Jurassic Park world is an aquatic behemoth that nearly steals the show and some stunning Raptors who almost become cuddly (!) The real star of the show is Pratt, after Guardians of the Galaxy put him on the map, his turn in this can only be likened to a young Harrison Ford. He has the look, the charisma and the talent. He carries every action scene with assured ease like he’s been doing it for years. Instant man crush.

Jurassic world is AWESOME plain and simple. If the naysayers want to pick its very few and minor flaws apart they will be silenced quickly by the box office returns which, as I type, have just pushed this film into the history books as now having the most profitable opening weekend in cinema history and we know what that means in movie land…. another sequel. JUST TAKE MY MONEY ALREADY!

I will see this again on the big screen before it goes but to be honest, this monster of a monster movie is going nowhere anytime soon. See it now in IMAX 3D and remember why you love going to the cinema.

Review by Ramrod (co-host of 60 Minutes With)