Crichton and Spielburg once again make a great team

Rating: 8/10 (11 March 2007)

While admittedly not as good as the first movie, this one has the right to be considered a cinematic gem. Unlike sequels to many other movies out there, The Lost World finds a healthy balance between creating an original and inventive storyline, and preserving the same whimsical sci-fi/adventurous atmosphere as it's predecessor.
Positives: -Slightly better special effects than the first. -Spielburg still manages to work his magic with a plot that is merely a rough interpretation of the book (from what I understand anyways, I haven't actually read the book). -The scene with the trailer hanging off the cliff, while cheesy and somewhat unrealistic at points (but hey, it's a sci-fi movie, what do you expect) still remains as one of the most suspenseful scenes I've seen in a long time. -Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) was a terrific choice as a returning main character. -I personally liked the fact that more is explained about the science behind Jurassic Park, such as the ability for the dinosaurs to survive without the safeguards that they were "engineered" with (i.e. "Life will find a way") -the parental instincts of the T-Rex served as a basis for the dinosaur attacks. Instead of the creatures destroying the vehicles out of rage, they destroy them to protect their child. In this aspect, the dinosaurs are portrayed better here than in the first movie where they were more spontaneous, chasing, killing, and eating anything they felt like.
Negatives: -The scene at the end with the T-Rex rampaging through San Diego made me cringe. I thought it was incredibly pointless and unnecessary, not to mention filled with corny lines and clichés. The story could just as easily have found it's conclusion on the island. Come on Spielburg, you can do better than that. -While I thought the acting was pretty good in this movie, it just wasn't superb like what we saw in the first. The interactions between Malcolm, Grant, Ellie, and Hammond were what made the first film so great. We only see this type of interaction briefly and sparsely in The Lost World. -And finally the most irritating thing about this movie was the occasional corny lines, and improbable occurrences. Such as the scene towards the end where Kelly performs a gymnastics feat in front of a stationary, awe-struck raptor before knocking the 100-200 pound predator off it's feet and clear through a wooden wall where it is conveniently impaled by huge splinters.
Overall, it was a valiant effort that managed to produce some substance. In no means a failure, it simply just didn't live up to the incredibly high standards set by it's predecessor. Compared to Jurassic Park III however, The Lost World could be considered a masterpiece.