REVIEW: Jurassic World: Fallen KingdomBy Bri ManzanoJune 26, 2018Jurassic Park is universally considered one of the best movies of all time. I can still remember the bone-rattling thud of the T-rex’s footsteps as they shook the kids to their core in the Jeep. I was in that Jeep; I screamed with this kids and my heart stopped when I saw those teeth in the rain. Maybe I’m just older, just too cynical to be afraid of such things, but Jurassic World doesn’t have nearly the same effect as Jurassic Park. It’s good enough for what it’s made for, but make no mistake about it - the franchise is not what it used to be.

We pick up as Isla Nublar’s long-dormant volcano is readying for eruption. Debate on the fate of the island’s ancient inhabitants has ravaged the political sphere, Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) helming the pro-dino movement as Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) builds his cabin and turns his back on the lot of them. Just as all hope seems lost, Claire and Owen are pulled to the island yet again in a privately-funded (read: super sketchy) effort to save the dinosaurs.

Okay. Can we all agree that CGI pales in comparison when practical effects are an option? Because it’s pretty obvious which is which in Fallen Kingdom, and the practical effects really only suffice to remind you how far we’ve drifted from the art that was Jurassic Park. Nonetheless, the animatronics are marvelous, and when the dinosaurs feel like they’re taking up real space in the environment, like they are the weighty beings that they would be, it changes the entire feel of the scene.

The action follows much the same pattern. When the dinosaurs inhabit real space around our protagonists, the suspense is tangible; otherwise, it just feels like they’re being chased around by a Snapchat filter. Though, there is one scene earl on whose action is very effective, mainly due to the sheer number of challenges being thrown at the leads.

Overall, it is exactly what it is meant to be: a popcorn flick. Enjoyable for those two hours and forgotten soon after. (Though Chris Pratt is a national treasure.)

Rating: 5.75/10
Favorite scene: mayhem.
Least favorite scene: Rafe Spall.

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