A sequel that lives up to the marvelous original! ***** out of 5

Rating: Null/10 (10 July 2005)

Where the original film captured a sense of awe and wonder this film captures a sense of danger and darkness.
That's not to say the original film didn't have it's dark side, but this film is a lot darker in tone and look. It's not pretty and bad things happen to good people. It's also a sequel that follows the rules of what a good sequel should be. It has a lot more of what we liked in the original (more dinos and action sequences) and it's bigger in the sense that it goes all out and puts a T-Rex in San Diego.
The story enriches the world of Jurassic Park. We find that there is yet another island where dinosaurs are roaming free and Ingen wants to bring those dinosaurs to the main land.
All of the dinosaurs that were in the original are back in this one (minus the Dilophosaurus) and then some. We have Stegosaurus', Pteranodons, Compys, and others. We also get to see the Parasaurlophus a lot more up close and personal whereas in the original they could only be seen in the background with the Brachiosaurs.
The film features a wide variety of very interesting characters. Peter Ludow's character played by Arliss Howard happened to be one of my favorites actually and Jeff Goldblum returns as Ian Malcolm and happens to have a ton of very memorable lines in this film.
Perhaps my main problem with the film was when the girl Kellie does her gymnastics thing and kicks the raptor out of the window. It just didn't fit but it's a scene that is overwhelmed by all the good stuff. And believe me there is a ton of it.
And the climax in San Diego is fantastic. It's outrageous and almost surreal because everything has always taken place on the islands. So when a T-Rex is attacking people on the streets it leaves one sitting there with their jaw dropped open! The music, as always in a Spielberg film, is by the great John Williams. He returns with those wondrous themes we remember so fondly from the original and uses them here and presents us with new darker ones.
It's a fantastic movie that doesn't let up. It's one of Spielberg's most action packed pictures and contains one of the longest most drawn out suspense sequences ever put on film.
For a sequel I couldn't have asked for anything more! Welcome back to Jurassic Park!