Jurassic Park

Release Date: 1993 Length: 126 min

“Life will not be contained. Life breaks free. It expands to new territories, crashes through barriers, painfully, maybe even dangerously.” -Ian Malcolm

Director: Steven Spielberg (Known for Indiana Jones, Schindler’s List, and E.T.) Writers: Michael Crichton (Known for writing the book series Jurassic Park) David Koepp (Known for The Da Vinci Code, Carlito’s Way, and The Mummy) Actors: Sam Neill (Known for Dead Calm, The Hunt for Red October, and The Omen 3) Laura Dern (Known for Blue Velvet, Citizen Ruth, and October Sky) Jeff Goldblum (Known for Independence Day, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and Invasion of the Body Snatchers)

Summary: Doctors Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler are invited to a remote island where a special theme park is located. When they get there, they find the island is filled with real live dinosaurs. What was first a journey filled with wonder and awe turns into a horrible nightmare as the island loses power and the dinosaurs begin to escape. The characters have to fight for their lives as they find themselves trapped in a world similar to how it was 145 million years ago when dinosaurs roamed the earth. Based on a book by Michael Crichton.

Overall thoughts: There is a reason that the movie is so well-renowned. At the time of this movie, nothing like this had ever been made. The movie brought a new feeling of terror to the audience that would not be seen again for several years. Even after two decades later when I saw it, I still felt the fear and excitement that many felt when watching it in theaters. I like how the movie blends together science and entertainment into one. The film stays close to the book while also including some new ideas to add individuality. Each of the characters is different in so many ways. And yet they have been put in a situation where they must work together to survive. Four main characters stick out in the movie. Each of them is are scientist, but they each represent something different. The character Dr. Alan Grant represents a man of the past. This can be seen in the fact that he is very comfortable studying the bones of the prehistoric creatures, and although he is in wonder at the park like everyone else, he only wants to study them from what was fossilized. Then, there is Dr. Ellie Sattler, who represents the present. Instead of looking for answers in the past or for the future, she is always focusing on the problem at hand. Dr. Ian Malcolm symbolizes the future because he is always focused on what could happen and what could become of their actions. This is the main reason why he is so against the making of the park. And finally, there is the creator, John Hammond, who represents the connection between the past, present, and future. John tried to recreate dinosaurs for the entertainment of the present world, which is full of technology. He is always thinking about a future world where everyone can see the dinosaurs with the beauty he sees. I think that the actors do well in acting out the tension and fear that they each feel. The actors also show different reactions to dangerous situations. For example, when the T. rex first attacks the cars the characters are hiding in, the character named Donald Gennaro’s reaction is to run away and leave the grandchildren of the park’s creator alone in danger. This is a very different response from what Dr. Alan Grant has because the first thing he does is try to save the children. Situations in the film give us a deeper insight into each of the characters’ personalities, which the actors perform very well. I think that all of the individual acting is done in a way that the whole film fits together perfectly. Steven Spielberg has often made science and academics a major aspect in his movies. This also occurred with Indiana Jones, who was an archaeologist who used logic and history to guide him in his adventures. After seeing these movies, a lot of young adults found interest in these fields. Because of the director’s choice to have adventure surround these jobs, paleontology and archaeology are both very popular fields of science. The director also continued the theme of adding beautiful music that has been known and reused throughout the years. This has occurred in so many of his movies and is part of the reason they will remain in film history forever.

Ratings: Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 91% My Rating: 94%