A Huge Disappointment

Rating: 4/10 (5 June 2015)

Item #2 on my watch list before "Jurassic World" hits theaters was "The Lost World". I explained in my review for the original "Jurassic Park" that this is my first time seeing the trilogy, having missed them when I was in high school and then college. Having finally sat down to watch them, I enjoyed the first film just fine and gave it eight stars, so I was hopeful that "The Lost World" would keep up the trend.
Unfortunately, it was a huge disappointment. The story is a bit weak, and it leaves one wondering if this film was thrown together purely for the money that a sequel would make after the success of the original film. The acting is on par with the first movie, but the style becomes a fair bit more gory with blood and violent death scenes being fairly gratuitous throughout the film. It's not on par with an 80's slasher movie, but there's certainly a more grotesque use of imagery in this film.
The main thing that I disliked about the film is its ending. Without spoiling the movie, the last half an hour or so sees a shift in scenes that is very strange when compared to the first movie, and it's a weird plot twist that just doesn't work with the film. Throw in the fact that I was ready for the movie to be finished before that last thirty minutes was ever tacked on, and the whole thing just winds up being a tedious affair. Between the blood, the weak story, and the awkward ending, I just don't feel good about rating this movie higher than a four. I suppose I might be talked into giving it five stars, but no sooner than I say that I realize that a five would be a neutral rating, and this frankly deserves to be labeled as a bad movie, so four it is. I don't regret having watched the movie, but it definitely won't be on my favorites list any time soon.