Solid action movie; not so good in the "adventure" aspect

Rating: 8/10 (14 June 2015)

Hopefully this review will be useful to non-fans and those new to the franchise as well.
What made the first Jurassic Park so great was mostly the sense of wonder it evoked in children and adults alike, and also the initial slow buildup of tension that led to great fast-paced action sequences in the later part. In other words, it wasn't just an action movie, but a proper "adventure/action" movie, with a perfect balance of both elements. I watched JP1 as a kid and can safely say that it was one of the most awe-inspiring experiences of my childhood.
How does Jurassic World measure up in these areas? It does try to evoke that sense of wonder with the tried and tested scenes of huge herbivores in huge fields, shots of helicopters flying past waterfalls, etc. However, it's not effective because we've all seen it before, plus after two decades we're used to jaw-dropping graphics, so it's rare for us to be impressed by CGI-rendered scenes. It also tries to build up tension, but unfortunately, this buildup doesn't last long (I won't say more than this so as not to spoil the plot). Therefore the "adventure" aspect of Jurassic World is much weaker than that of JP1.
As for the acting, Pratt does a reasonably good job, while the others are kind of meh. The kid actors were horrible, in my opinion. Their "terrified" expressions on seeing a super-predator trying to kill them were laughably bad. Their acting is the weakest aspect of the entire movie (again, in my opinion), not even close to the kid actors in Jurassic Park 1.
In spite of all this, the second half of the movie is -really- good. Some of the action sequences are incredibly nice, and the ending scenes are some of the best in the entire JP franchise. Sure, these scenes may be predictable, but they're done well and I'm sure most of the audience won't mind. As far as I'm concerned, the second half made up for all the above-mentioned problems. (And the absolute last scene is really awe-inspiring!)
So all in all, Jurassic World is a great action movie that IMO is comparable to The Lost World (although many people will be divided on this), but still does not hold a candle to the first Jurassic Park. Even so, I'd say both fans and non-fans alike should give this a try.
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I'd also like to address some reviews panning the film because of the characters' stupidity. What did you expect? The premise of the movie was bound to involve some people doing stupid stuff involving dinosaurs, that's why there would be consequences, and that's what would lead to all the dinosaur-related action. How else do you make a movie that's story-wise a sequel to disastrous events 20 years ago? I don't even know why those reviewers went ahead and saw the movie knowing fully well that it would inevitably have these stupid characters/actions.