You gotta Respect the Raptors

Rating: 7/10 (12 June 2015)

As a fourth film in a franchise (not a good sign) coming 14 years years after the last film (not a good sign), Jurassic World gives us a fully-functioning Jurassic Park open to the public, in which Henry Wu (the only character from the original to return this time) designs a completely new dinosaur in an attempt to respark interest (as if interest would ever be lost in a real-life park like this). Of course, "Indominus Rex" and some pterosaurs break loose, and it may take the classic dinosaurs of the original to stop them.
First, some good points off the bat- I liked seeing Jurassic World open for business. In the first, Jurassic Park is a ghost town, with the staff inexplicably deserting in the middle of their first tour. In the sequels, small parties journey to Site B. Here, we see some imagination in what the park might look like- people explore it by train and hamster ball, and gather around a tank a la Sea World. Bringing back Mr. DNA is a nice touch.
The negative points are mainly confined to the first half- our leads are hollow characters, walking stereotypes presented by actors giving less than stellar performances. Bryce Dallas Howard's, in particular, is flat as cardboard- motivated by profit and business, lacking humanity and passion. Vincent D'Onofrio is the two- dimensional bad guy even more concerned with profit, and also obsessively (and bizarrely) interested in sending million-dollar animals (that would never be put at risk by a sane corporation) to war. The two kids are the typical teenager and the boy excited by dinosaurs, but depressed about his parents' looming divorce. "Indominus Rex" is no better as a character- just a killing machine, not a real animal at all. Incidentally, they tell us right off the bat it's mostly a T-rex, but keep the other species it was blended with a secret. It's only towards the end that they reveal it's part raptor- was that seriously supposed to shock? That was my first guess! A YouTube video put forward a much more interesting theory that it was a blend of more than just two species- including human. The film also reveals Indominus Rex only 30 minutes in, whereas Spielberg kept his carnivores concealed until half-way through. And when Indominus Rex breaks loose, they don't evacuate the island right away. Riiiiight.
So are there any good characters? Actually, the most flesh-and- blood, real, relatable characters aren't human at all- they're the velociraptors. The trailers made them appear completely controlled, with Chris Pratt even in the pen with them, and then showing them hunting Indominus Rex. Reminds me of what Hammond says in the novel- "Domesticated dinosaurs? Nobody wants domesticated dinosaurs!" But it turns out the trailers were a little misleading- Pratt's character is only in the pen for emergency reasons, and narrowly escapes death himself. And the raptors at first recognize Indominus Rex as one of their own. And when Vincent D'Onofrio tells them, in English, that he's on their side, of course they don't understand- they kill him. They only spare Pratt moments later because they imprinted on him. They're a little tamer, but they're still animals and carnivores. So, more so than the trailer suggests, this film respects the raptors- and I respect that. Indeed, the second half battle between the classic dinosaurs and Indominus Rex is a bit thrilling, so despite a weak first half, I did walk a way at the end feeling some satisfaction.