Action/Adventure Month (2024) – RAWR!

I can’t believe it’s already August. The summer goes by so fast but movie selections for July were a “roaring” good time. I decided to start way back in 1993 with the first Jurassic Park movie. All the Jurassic Park and Jurassic World movies were the selections for July. I mean, who doesn’t like dinosaurs? Make sure you read until the very end because this time I have some final thoughts about this franchise.

There are also some bonus/special event movies this month so be sure to check out that section too.

Jurassic Park Movies

Jurassic Park (1993)
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Sir Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum
My Rating:

This is the film that started it all. In 1993, this was an amazing movie experience in the theater. John Williams provides the soundtrack for this film. It’s, easily, one of my top 5 favorite film scores. This is a movie that should be seen often, especially if you have a decent sound setup. I may have to go back and read the book again.

I don’t know what else to say about this movie, it’s just a fun movie to watch. If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend it.

The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore
My Rating:

I feel like this movie was made because the first one was such a success. Unfortunately, it did not live up to its predecessor despite Spielberg and John Williams’s involvement. Most of the movie is pretty good, it just should have ended half an hour sooner. The whole “King Kong” aspect of the T-Rex is unnecessary and kind of ruins the whole movie. It was a Hollywood addition and not part of the novel. I did enjoy the appearances of Vince Vaughn, Richard Schiff, and Peter Stormare; Vince Vaughn’s character is particularly interesting.

Jurassic Park 3 (2001)
Directed by: Joe Johnston
Starring: Sir Sam Neill, William H Macy, Téa Leoni
My Rating:

This is the first film not to be directed by Steven Spielberg, however he was an executive producer. John Williams is also not attached to this film, although many of his themes were borrowed by Don Davis to compose the soundtrack. I did enjoy this movie more than the previous though it does not live up to the original. As with most of the movies in this franchise, it’s a bit superfluous.

Jurassic World Movies

Jurassic World (2015)
Directed by: Colin Trevorrow
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard
My Rating:

Of the three Jurassic World movies, this is the better film and probably the better of the films in the franchise other than the original. I think the cast has much to do with it; Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are great actors. Vincent D’Onofrio is a pretty good bad guy (his Kingpin is incredible). Michael Giacchino is the composer and a good one at that (I loved his score for Rogue One).

I don’t know if this movie is necessarily a reboot as it does take place on the same island as the original Jurassic Park. There are times when you see some of the old structures. Be that as it may, the concept is similar; man gets greedy, things go awry, people get eaten, and little kids are involved.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)
Directed by: J.A. Bayona
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard
My Rating:

The second Jurassic World movie isn’t terrible, just unnecessary. The first movie didn’t end with any indication that we needed to go back other than the fact that the dinosaurs are still alive. The acting is pretty solid again and this time Jeff Goldblum is back with appearances from James Cromwell and Ted Levine. Michael Giacchino provides the score again, improving the film’s quality.

Jurassic World: Dominion (2022)
Directed by: Colin Trevorrow
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard
My Rating:

Again, this movie felt unnecessary. Sure it was great to get “the band back together” and pay some homage to the original film. Michael Giacchino provides another solid soundtrack (with the help of John Williams themes). If you know the music of the original film well, you can spot moments in which some of the other themes are reused in this film.

The thing that bothers me the most about this film, especially the end, is that the dinosaurs are still alive and living among humans. To quote Malcolm from the first film “dinosaurs had their chance”. It just doesn’t seem possible for dinosaurs and humans to coexist, even with suspension of disbelief. As cruel as this may sound the proper ending to this franchise is euthanization.

Final Thoughts

Each of these movies often mentions John Hammond’s legacy, however, I feel like all of these films are more of a depiction of Ian Malcolm’s warnings and predictions, especially avarice. Honestly, it’s probably the most realistic thing about this film franchise. If man were to accomplish such a feat as bringing back dinosaurs, you can bet every corrupt man would try to get rich from it.

If I’m being honest, I don’t know why Hollywood keeps making these films. I do love dinosaurs and that’s the main reason I watch all of these films. A Malcolm quote from the first film coincidentally applies to these films (replace “scientists” with “filmmakers”):

“your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn’t stop to think if they should.”

The bond between Owen and Blue, as well as the music by Michael Giacchino are the only real redeeming qualities from the Jurassic World films. I hope they are done, although a fourth film is apparently in the works, however, given the poor performance of the last two films, I’ll be surprised if they make it. I don’t think we need more.

Bonus/Special Event Movies

I realize this post is growing more verbose so I will be quick. July only has one special event film and it’s fairly obvious. Independence Day. There are two bonus movies in July. Since July is Action/Adventure month it’s the month I chose to always watch one of my favorite films, The Rock.

This July also had a rare opportunity for my wife and I to go see a movie without the child. We chose Fly Me to the Moon, which we quite enjoyed. I provided a full review of the film in a separate post.

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