More hungry dinosaurs!

Rating: 7/10 (19 November 2005)

After the success of the first film it went pretty much without saying that a sequel would come along and while it was not received as well by critics and general viewers it still had numerous charms. The problem with this sequel is that it lacks the element of surprise and from where I'm standing that is the main problem the film has. Otherwise I believe that it is a fair sequel. In short I liked it.
One thing I missed in The Lost World was Sam Neill. I thought he did an exceptional job in the first film and therefore I do not fully understand why he wasn't in the second film (of course I know that his character might not be in the novel upon which the film is based but they could have added him anyway). Instead Jeff Goldblum gets a chance to prove what he can do. He didn't really get to portray many nuances in the first film as a result of relatively limited screen time. In The Lost World , however, he proves that he really can act. He brings the character more down to earth than he was in the first film and it suits the character as he becomes more believable. Julianne Moore does a good job with her character as well. She is a good female counterpart to Goldblum's character as she produces a very likable character. Pete Postlethwaite's character is the most interesting in the film. His reasons for coming to the island are perhaps a bit ridiculous but the way he plays the character makes it worth it. Arliss Howard is a good, greedy villain. He plays the character in a way that makes the character seem like an intelligent character who is blinded by his greed. The supporting cast is good as well. Especially Peter Stormare and Vince Vaughn do good jobs. The acting is overall inferior to that of the first film but it is still very worthwhile.
The effects have naturally improved from the first film. Spielberg has himself said that the way he saw it was that people saw the first film to see if they could make the dinosaurs seem believable and since the first film proved that people saw the second film to see what they could do with the dinosaurs. Accordingly the film is full of even more details than the first. There is a high level of interaction. Much more than in the first film and to Spielberg's credit it all works and seems 100% believable. The tyrannosaurus still looks absolutely brilliant and even more detailed than in the first film. You see veins and imperfections. Raptors return as well and the scenes they appear in are very tense like in the first film. Among the additions to the dinosaur cast is the stegosaurus and it, like the other dinosaurs, looks nothing short of impressive. Overall the effects are very good but we already knew that Spielberg could do it so it is really what was to be expected.
The story is decent. Spielberg does what he often does. He takes his time and builds up the characters so we as the audience will care about them. Even though the story is not as well conceived as it was in the first film it still works. The film retains the message of the first film, making it more than just an effects movie. The message of course being that man should not play God and let nature find its own way. Other than this the story is both tense, interesting and allows the characters to grow. Some people found the ending a bit ridiculous and a bit of a copy of Godzilla but I didn't see that. I thought it was very tense and atmospheric.
Overall I agree with the general consent that The Lost World is not as good as the original but in my opinion it is not a bad film either. The Lost World has a lot to offer both in terms of storytelling but of course also in terms of effects. The only advice I can give future viewers is that you should watch the film with an open mind and try not to let yourself be too affected by the negative tone surrounding the film.
7/10