Finally, a worthy sequel to the original Jurassic Park

Rating: 10/10 (13 June 2015)

The Lost World stank, Jurassic Park III was just okay (PTEROSAURS make up for a lot of deficiencies) but this film is in every way up to the standards of the original. I enjoyed myself thoroughly except for having to listen to the shrieks of the terrified little kids whose parents were sadistically forcing them to sit through it. In my opinion this film would merit a PG-13 as it features more gore and genuinely horrific moments than any of the previous Jurassic films, so if you're planning on taking your babies to it so they can see the funny dinosaurs, really, think again.
I liked Spielberg's Jurassic Park a lot, but I also love Michael Crichton's original novel, and although the Spielberg film was a smart, deliberate and fully authorized bastardization of Crichton's story, it was a candy-coated distortion nevertheless. Crichton's novel is about greedy, arrogant people creating a totally foreseeable and avoidable disaster, and in this film a new generation of equally greedy, arrogant people are back, creating an even bigger disaster. It can't be a coincidence that some of the most capable and aware people staffing new Jurassic World are Iraq-Afghanistan veterans (speaking of DISASTERS CREATED BY GREEDY ARROGANT PEOPLE) and that they are aware that animals, like humans, can get PTSD if thrown into situations with no regards for their basic psychological needs.
The characters in this story are considerably more three-dimensional than in the previous films, especially the leading lady Claire, who undergoes an unexpected and satisfying character journey from corporate dingbat to war-torn survivalist. I liked seeing Henry Wu again and finally getting to hear his side of the story, and Jack Johnson filled in the Jeff Goldblum spot in the picture as the righteous geek with the added advantage of NOT BEING ANNOYING. Just for good measure there is one bona fide heroic leading man with the required characteristics of beauty, goodness and wisdom, and he just happens to be a Southerner who lives in a trailer! which I believe is a Hollywood first.