My History With the Film:
I was nine years old when Jurassic Park was released and I had no idea it was coming out. My introduction to the movie was seeing the toys on the shelf at a Navy Exchange in Orlando, Florida. I had just relocated to Orlando between my third and fourth grades shortly after my parents had divorced. My dad needed some help with after school care, so he signed us up for the after school care on the Naval base.
What The Film Is About (Non-Spoiler):
During a preview of a theme park featuring actual dinosaurs, all hell breaks loose and a group of scientists and two kids struggle to survive.
What I Didn’t Like About It:
-N/A
I was nine years old when Jurassic Park was released and I had no idea it was coming out. My introduction to the movie was seeing the toys on the shelf at a Navy Exchange in Orlando, Florida. I had just relocated to Orlando between my third and fourth grades shortly after my parents had divorced. My dad needed some help with after school care, so he signed us up for the after school care on the Naval base.
I don’t recall which day, but it was within the first couple of weeks that we took a trip across town to the one dollar theater to see Jurassic Park. We were packed into Barney purple school bus and dropped off at the front of the theater where we were about to see one of the greatest movies ever made. I didn’t know it was quite so epic at the time, but man would this movie impress the hell out of me.
I didn’t own Jurassic Park until it was released on DVD, but I did buy The Lost World on VHS. I enjoyed the original two films quite a bit in the 90’s, and then when the DVD hit the shelves in October 2000. Since that release, I’ve purchased Jurassic Park four or five additional times and I’ve watched it well over a dozen times. I realized that it’s arguably my favorite movie of all-time and its a movie I’ve only grown to love more and more after each viewing. It’s one of the ‘perfect’ movies in my eyes and I have nothing bad to say about it at all.
With that being said, reviewing Jurassic Park as a horror film could be controversial to some. It’s doubtful that you would have ever seen it placed in the horror section of your local video store, but when I look at the elements I like in horror I see them all within Jurassic Park: life or death situation, live out of control monsters, gore, and suspense.
What The Film Is About (Non-Spoiler):
During a preview of a theme park featuring actual dinosaurs, all hell breaks loose and a group of scientists and two kids struggle to survive.
What I Liked About It:
-The open scene is fantastic. It’s a bit confusing at first, but once you realized what is going on you quickly see that owning dinosaurs is not a wise idea.
-The cast is phenomenal and there is not a weak link among the bunch: Sam Neill (Dr. Grant), Laura Dern (Dr. Sadler), Jeff Goldblum (Dr. Malcolm), Richard Attenborough (John Hammond), Joseph Mazzello (Tim Murphy), Ariana Richards (Lex Murphy), Samuel L. Jackson (Ray Arnold), Wayne Knight (Dennis Nedry), Bob Peck (Robert Muldoon), Martin Ferrero (Donald Gennaro), and B.D. Wong (Dr. Henry Wu).
-The CGI used in 1993 combined with the practical effects hold up incredibly well now. There are only a few moments where things look dated and instead the vehicles, clothes, “CD ROM,” and amazement at touch screen date the movie more than the graphics.
-The sound design is incredible and the T-Rex roar is outstanding along with the thud of his stomp. All of the other dinosaurs have incredible, memorable shrieks and shrills as well. The morse code style clicking of the raptors claws and the hissy of the dilophosaurus will always haunt my dreams.
-The soundtrack is one of my favorite and the Jurassic Park theme immediately takes my mind to Isla Nublar.
-There so many great details like little mistakes that really make this movie feel real. For example: when Hammond begins his tour with the DNA animation and he doesn’t have his cards ready to go and is a few seconds behind. It’s little details like this that make this movie so good.
-The scene when Dr. Grant, Dr. Sadler, and Dr. Malcolm all see the brachiosaurus for the first time is arguably my favorite scene in cinematic history. The look of joy, admiration, and astonishment is so well shown on all of their faces, its hard not to believe there isn’t an actual dinosaur walking around.
What I Didn’t Like About It:
-N/A
Additional Notes:
-The T-Rex roar was made up of sounds from a dog, alligator, tiger, penguin, and elephant.
-The triceratops poo was made of mud, clay, and straw that was drizzled in honey and papayas so to attract flies. It actually did not stink.
-The T-Rex weighed 12,000 lbs.
-The entire movie contains only fifteen minutes of dinosaurs: six minutes of CGI and nine minutes of animatronics.
-The T-Rex’s stomps were made of the sound of sequoias crashing to the ground.
-Richard Attenborough (John Hammond) directed Ghandi in 1982 which beat out Steven Spielberg’s E.T for Best Picture at the Oscar.
Rating:
Odds are you’ve seen this film and if you haven’t, I highly recommend you go check it out. It’s one of my favorite films of all-time and it holds up incredibly well. Will it keep you up at night scared out of your mind? Probably not. But there is enough horror in this film (a lot like Jaws) to wet your appetite.
Jurassic Park is a five out five and a must own.