JURASSIC PARK
A film review by Chad Polenz
Copyright 1997 Chad Polenz
**1/2 (out of 4 = OK) 1993, PG-13, 127 minutes [2 hours, 7 minutes] [science fiction/thriller] starring: Sam Neill (Dr. Alan Grant), Laura Dern (Dr. Ellie Sattler), Jeff Goldblum (Dr. Ian Malcolm), Richard Attenborough (Dr. John Hammond), produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Gerald R. Molen, written by David Koepp, Michael Crichton, Malia Scotch Marmo, directed by Steven Spielberg, based on the novel by Michael Crichton.
Modern storytellers, especially those in Hollywood, are fascinated with dinosaurs. They have always wanted to tell a plausible story where modern man somehow co-exists and/or comes into contact with dinosaurs, and "Jurassic Park" is a film of grand designs that fulfils that wish. The film is extremely impressive visually, but the story and the way it is told is not.
We meet Dr. Alan Grant (Neill) and Dr. Ellie Sattler (Dern), two paleontologists whose dig in the Badlands of Montana is interrupted when a Scottish scientist named Dr. John Hammond (Attenborough) tells them their expertise is needed for his new theme park in South America. Hammond describes his "Jurassic Park" in a vague but exciting manner and convinces them to come with him.
At the same time, an overly complicated sub-plot of espionage begins to develop. Dennis Nedry (a funny Wayne Knight), a computer programmer at Hammond's park plans to sabotage it through a complex process of tricks that only could happen in such a Hollywood movie.
When the doctors arrive we finally learn what Hammond's park is about as we get our first glimpse of a realistic, life-size dinosaur. The dinosaurs were cloned from blood from mosquitoes that had been petrified and preserved for millions of years in amber. The way this explanation is given is surprisingly believable because it is kept relatively simple.
The first half makes for an interesting sci-fi story, as we learn the dinosaurs are genetically bred to be female, and we see a few up close in fine detail. Then a matter of scientific and philosophical theory comes into play as Grant and Sattler, along with mathematician Dr. Ian Malcolm (Goldblum), start to question the ethics of the park, saying nature selected dinosaurs to become extinct and Hammond is tampering with uncontrollable forces. Since we are dealing with fantastic beasts in a major Hollywood picture, it is clear something big is going to happen from all the scientific jargon.
The second half is even more impressive visually, but the story and overall genre seem to turn on a dime into a dressed up (but thrilling) horror flick.
Nedry's scheme and a tropical storm cause for the park to go into a state of chaos. Grant and Malcolm, along with a lawyer and Hammond's two young grandchildren, find themselves on the run from a Tyrannosaurus Rex! This encounter is fantastic, but goes overboard quickly. We get scenes involving the dodging of a falling truck, climbing a 50-foot tree and climbing back down to dodge the same truck, only to have the characters become trapped in the truck again!
The film's attempt at thrilling us wouldn't have been half as blatant if the two children stuck with Dr. Grant hadn't been such annoying characters. These kids overact at every given opportunity and seem more like living cartoons than any kind of plausible characters. The fact the boy's name is Timmy says it all.
The final act involves lots of running from dinosaurs and trying to fix a huge computer system crash. But the film keeps snowballing and becomes tiresome. Some individual scenes are even more corny than some slasher flicks, and if it had been done in the spirit of satire it would have been forgivable.
To say "Jurassic Park" is a bit over-the-top would be pointless - that's premise of the film. Over-the-top films work if they are done in a sense of innocent adventure, not as something to be taken as seriously as this film would like to be.
Please visit Chad'z Movie Page @ http://members.aol.com/ChadPolenz
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