Old Fashioned Creature Scares instead of Uber-CGI

Rating: 6/10 (12 June 2015)

After the seemingly unneeded critics review embargo lifted, I started reading through the reviews to get an idea of what was in store for JP4 (or JW4?). One reviewer hit upon the appeal of the original movie, was that it created a world where you could actually believe they made dinosaurs. None of the technology depicted looked like fantasy, and none of the activities of the dinosaurs defied the laws of gravity. Fast-forward 22 years, and filmmakers seem to be obliged to give us over-the-top, causing realism to get tossed out the window. The other thing lost on modern CGI spectacle films is the sense of tension. Here, after years of tinkering, Spielberg carefully crafts new set pieces that can still get you jumpy. Also credit the careful effects work, the CGI contains enough animal characteristics to feel realistic. One of the new conventions that I don't disagree with these days is not even bothering to create characters that you are going to care for. Another recent blockbuster "San Andreas" disposed of the formalities and went straight into havoc mode. Here we don't get preachy or run through the obligatory checklist of all cliché characters and their cliché hangups. We still get stuck with a strange subplot about weaponizing the technology in regards to breeding Dino-Soldiers. Believe me it was supposed to be worse.
So I congratulate the filmmakers for being more concerned about creating a film that holds some good scares than trying to make it about bigger CGI. Nevertheless, all the wide shots of the theme park, and stuff like the monorail, looked like CG models. It was also interesting to see effects shots that were in the trailer many months ago looking very different in the final film after they were all 'cleaned up'. One thing you wish could be improved upon is the intelligence quotient of the cast. It's OK if some of your expendable cast does some illogical things, but you should expect your main characters to act intelligently to keep the audience with you. It's these intelligent moments that are missing that makes you appreciate the original creation by Spielberg and how infrequent such a well crafted film comes about (I saw JP four times in the theatre when it first came out).
The scary moments in JW are borrowed directly from the film Aliens, which is not such a bad thing. I remember enjoying some good scares in that monster film. There are many borrowed moments from the first Jurassic Park, including the tear-jerking animatronic dying dinosaur breathing it's last breath. But why throw in the holograms? Most things they showed in this film I could buy as present day technology. But in the main pavilion they show 3D holograms of dinosaurs walking around. Of course 3D holograms that you can walk around and see a complete 360 degrees does not exist. It was too bad they decided to toss this in, it made the film more about CGI eye candy than realism.
All the acting was competent, it was just too bad that they had such flimsy setups to work with. Problems with jumps in time and many events happening off screen created a choppy attempt at creating empathy between relatives. Still, the scary sequences still work because the filmmakers know how to make you squirm. Fans of Chris Pratt will be glad to hear he somehow can eke out some charisma despite so little to go on. Less so for Bryce Howard and Vincent D'Onofrio, who are trapped in their cliché roles. And poor Judy Greer, looking to show some acting range, has to literally phone it in. Ty Simpkins, the kid from Ironman 3, is allowed to respond intelligently and had the best chance at keeping the audience grounded. Less said for the third act, where Chris Pratt needs to take charge and be the connecting thread for all the final showstoppers.
This film ultimately gets a thumbs up, and could be possibly one of the best of the summer films in terms of getting the most thrills for your buck. Perhaps Hollywood is finally hearing our complaints about Summer Films getting over-bloated and testing our patience by going over the 2 hour mark. Jurassic World benefits from this. Good pacing on the one hand means large chunks of story go missing, but it means you get out of the theatre before your attention span wanes.