A big dumb shiny movie, and for the most part, that's just fine.

Rating: 6/10 (15 July 2015)

Yeah, Jurassic World is a hot mess. In development since the third left theaters and despite a barrage of criticisms and little hope after the various trailers and clips we were shown - ranging from sexism to inadequate CGI - Spielberg's juggernaut franchise still managed to slay the box office and take over the world. It's nearing the top 30 adjusted box office ever now. That's pretty much the most Jurassic World has got going for it. It's an event movie, and that's all it feels like. The best reaction the film has gotten is calling it the best Jurassic Park sequel, which while true, isn't saying much to its quality. At the very least, it pays off something we've been waiting for 20 years. We get to see the park in operation, including many inventive ride concepts. The resemblance to Universal Studios is uncanny and wholly deliberate I'm sure, but admission for the movie feels like a discount for the theme park. Its first act of nostalgic awe is pretty wonderful, if utterly superficial but I can't call it hollow.
The film may only have cheap surprises up its sleeve, but it's not short on entertainment value. Yes, it has trappings of today's action sequences of impossible camera moves that hint at how green their screens are, but it's fun to watch. Characters are indeed one- dimensional and it gives us little reason to invest in them besides the fact that if they don't act now they'll be mangled and/or eaten. It does have many contrivances to get them in or out of danger, but they're facing dinosaurs, a contrivance is the only way in or out. I wish Chris Pratt could have more opportunity to put his goofy charm on that made Guardians of the Galaxy so endearing, but here's it's more stoic badass. Among the clichés, it does get to explore a few interesting things that the first didn't have time to touch on, such as the morality of using dinosaurs as weapons. Those few moments reveal that it does have more intentions than money. Otherwise, of course Jurassic World is a big dumb shiny movie. It could be worse.
6/10