The Lost World is a Very Unappreciated Sequel

Rating: 8/10 (21 June 2015)

The Lost World is Steven Spielberg's follow up to the innovative Jurassic Park, so how does it's sequel measure up by comparison? Well it's far better than most have given it credit for. The Lost World is a flawed film, but it's a film that set out to be different, and not just a rehash of the previous film, something the newest film in the franchise Jurassic World has done. Many seem to like Jurassic World for how it "recaptures" the feel of the original film, but by comparison, comes off as a pale soulless imitation of Jurassic Park.
The Lost World however, gets away from the theme park idea, and does something that wasn't expected. In The Lost World it is revealed that there was another island called Isla Sorna (Site B) that had dinosaurs that were bred, and raised before being brought to Jurassic Park, on Isla Nublar. The film starts with a wealthy family yachting, and stumble upon Isla Sorna, where their daughter is severely injured by little dinosaurs called Compsognathus that act like land Piranha.
Jeff Goldblum reprises his role as Dr. Ian Malcolm, and is summoned by John Hammond for reasons unknown. Ian Malcolm is still a sarcastic character, much like he was in Jurassic Park, but his character is visibly different after the events of Jurassic park, he rarely laughs, or smiles, and Ingen has made Ian a laughing stock, after trying to create public awareness after what happened to him at the park. Hammond is also losing his credibility, after the incident at Jurassic Park, and Ingen has taken control away from Hammond, and given it to his arrogant nephew, named Ludlow, who Malcolm has clashes with.
Hammond tells Malcolm that he has been trying to preserve Isla Sorna, and protect it from human interference, but implies that the island is in danger of being pillaged for it's assets. Hammond say's public opinion could keep exploiters from removing the dinosaurs, but that in order to gain such support, a photo record must be obtained, which means sending people in to research, which Ian immediately disapproves of. This is until he finds out that his girlfriend, Sarah Harding a Paleontologists, has already gone to the island. This gives Malcolm as reason to go to a place he would rather never revisit again, as this dinosaur island has no fences of any kind, and the dinosaurs are free roaming.
Ian arrives to the island with two other companions Eddie Carr, a field equipment expert, and Nick Van Owen, a video documentarian as well as Malcolm's daughter Kelly (a unneeded character) who sneaks aboard the ship in one of the team's vehicles. Soon they find Sarah, and come across a herd of Stegosaurus, where Sarah has a close encounter when she gets to close to an infant Stegosaurus. The Lost World focuses a great deal on the nurturing habits of dinosaurs, which expands upon the first film, which tried to portray dinosaurs not only as movie monsters, but as animals. This film carries that idea further, and delves into how these animals act in a more naturalistic environment. The T-Rex's also have an infant, that gets injured by Ingen's team. Sarah, and Nick repair the baby's leg, but when the T-Rex's show up, they're less than appreciative, and wreck the trailers/vehicles, believing they have to defend their territory further.
This forces Malcolm, and his companions to join forces with Ingen's team headed by Ludlow, but lead by Roland Tembo, played by the late Pete Postlethwaite. Of course since both teams have different agenda's this leads to conflict. Regardless they come together to try and reach a communication center to get off the island. Of course along the way dinosaurs show up, resulting in casualties. After the group gets separated by the T-Rex's, Roland tranquilizes the male T-Rex. Ludlow then want's to bring it to San Diego, where a facility has been built to house the dinosaurs, since the dinosaurs captured earlier were released by Sarah, and Nick. This is where many people are left divided, some liking the T-Rex running around San Diego, and some hating it.
There's no denying that the way the T-Rex gets to the mainland isn't well executed, and makes little sense. It also may feel tacked on because it was, the original ending was different, but Spielberg felt the The Lost World needed a bigger ending, just as he did with Jurassic Park. While it may seem out of place, the entire film teases the idea of bringing dinosaurs back to the mainland. Malcolm, and Sarah find the infant T-Rex that was also brought back, and use it to lure the adult T-Rex, back to the cargo hold of the ship, where they both could be contained, and be brought back to the island. Not before the T-Rex causes some dino-damage down the streets of San Diego, which admittedly is neat to see.
The Lost World isn't as good as Jurassic Park, but it isn't as bad as critics, and "fans" alike have made it out to be. The Lost World has it's issues, such as underwritten plot elements/characters, and unneeded characters like Malcolm's daughter Kelly, but also has a strong cast/performances, and the effects are even more believable looking than in the first film. The animatronic dinosaurs looked even more convincing in The Lost World, especially the T-Rex's that had subtle changes made mechanically, making them much more lifelike. The CGI is also impressive, especially during the Compsognathus sequence that required the animation of several little dinosaurs. John Williams provides another great score for The Lost World, adding more tribal melodies to go with the mood, and look of the film. The Lost World may not be Spielberg's best film, but it's hardly his worst, and it's a decent, well made followup to a film that never really needed one.