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With the second Jurassic World (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) starring Chris Pratt set to hit theaters across the United States on June 22nd, the question that is on many people's minds is: Does anyone really want to sit through another awful Jurassic Park movie sequel?
The franchise was thought dead in the wake of 2001's Jurassic Park III starring Sam Neill and William H. Macy, but when 2015's Jurassic World was announced, a glee in popular culture began to surface. The idea that the next generation of filmmakers might be taking over the Steven Spielberg and Michael Crichton-created franchise in order to bring it back to life for a new audience was something exciting…and then, the film was released
Reviews of Jurassic World (2015):
“ There is plenty here to divert, but little to leave you enraptored. Such is the fate of the sequel: Bigger. Louder. Fewer teeth. “ - The New Yorker
“ If you limit your expectations for Jurassic World to "more teeth," it will deliver on that promise. If you dare to hope for anything like more relatable characters, narrative coherence-you'll only set yourself up for disappointment.” - The Atlantic
While Jurassic World would go on to be one of the biggest box office successes of 2015, the critics certainly responded differently to the Chris Platt flick. But the negative responses had been the consensus about the franchise since The Lost World -- as the Jurassic Park sequel had landed in theaters in 1997. (The Lost World only has a 53% Approval Rating on Rotten Tomatoes today).
What made the original 1993 Jurassic Park so special was in how it managed to not only hit audiences with special effects which had never been seen before on the big screen but it also gave everyone a reminder of our own childhood fascinations; it inspired a resurgence in paleontology, it gave us the reminder of our love of dinosaurs. It was pure Spielberg, yet, that Spielberg aesthetic has been missing in the sequels ever since the first film.
If the critics had anything to say about 2015's Jurassic World -- it was that it was all for the benjamins; continuing on with this idea today with the reviews trickling already, even though we're two weeks away from when Jurassic World: Tragic Kingdom hits US theaters, it's again, that the latest entry in the Jurassic Park franchise is nothing more than but a means in which Hollywood can cash in and pull a bunch of money out from under our butts. Should we continue to see movies like this when we know in advance that they're only being made for the proceeds?
So, is it really worth it? With the reviews already coming in suggesting that Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom is awful – will you still be inclined to see the film?