"Maybe progress should lose for once."

Rating: 7/10 (12 October 2015)

The fourth Jurassic Park film (and, given its success, not the last) is being hailed as the best since the original, with eyebrow-raising claims from some corners that it is as good as or even better than the original. Well that claim is patently absurd since this movie offers nothing unique of its own, but rather plays with the groundwork laid by the previous movies (particularly the first). Jurassic Park was an instant classic that had a little bit of everything. This one is just a very good movie and, yes, it's probably the best of the sequels so far. I did like the third one better than many did, however. The cast here is decent, with Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard both likable leads. The two little kids are kind of forgettable, though, and the character played by Vincent D'Onofrio is straight out of the Big Book of Clichéd Villains. The script is good with plenty of humor and nods to the first film. Michael Giacchino's rousing score is nice but tries a little too hard at times to match John Williams (an impossible task). What everyone watches a movie like this for is the dinosaur action and this has that in spades. We get regular dinos and souped-up genetically engineered hybrid dinos, as well as the fan favorite velociraptors figuring into things in a clever way. The special effects are great and the monster fight climax is kick-ass. If you go into it with just the expectation of being entertained, you'll have fun watching it. If you go in expecting to be 'wowed' like you were with the first Jurassic Park, then you'll probably be a little underwhelmed by it. It's a good movie but it doesn't offer much that it can call its own.