Jurassic World Dominates the Screen

Does Jurassic World: Dominion light up the big screen? Or is it a total flop? It really depends on the viewer.

The fifth sequel to 1993’s Jurassic Park, the movie takes place 4 years after Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, when all the dinosaurs have escaped into the rest of the world and mankind is adjusting to having to live alongside them. Velociraptor trainer Owen (Chris Pratt) and former In-Gen executive Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) are taking care of Maisie (Isabella Sermon), a young teen who we had previously learned was cloned using the same basic technique used to resurrect the dinosaurs. Owen and Claire live off the grid in order to protect Maisie, as well as Blue, a human-raised velociraptor, and her baby. When poachers looking for some extra cash enter the picture, the real action begins.

I’ve always loved the Jurassic Park movies, as they’re what got me into dinosaurs. When they announced a new movie was coming out in 2020, I was incredibly excited. Unfortunately, when COVID-19 hit, they had to delay production, but Jurassic World: Dominion finally made its appearance in 2022. I first saw the movie in the theater and thought it was pretty good, although it wasn’t quite what I expected. I certainly heard of many critics who disliked it, but when the Jurassic World: Dominion – Extended Cut was released, some people started to change their minds. I really recommend you watch the extended cut since it fills in some gaps, gives the characters more personality and detail, and helps tie the plot together.

A scene that I particularly enjoyed was the chase scene set in a city in Malta. Owen and Claire are tracking down a bounty hunter when some Atrocirators (nasty Velociraptor-type dinos) are sent to kill them. Viewers will hold their breath watching Owen dodge citizens and traffic alike on a motorcycle with two Atrocirators on his tail. This scene is both thrilling and suspenseful and I loved every bit of the insane stunts they pulled off.

Another very suspenseful scene involves amber mines underneath another dinosaur-making facility called Biosyn. In something reminiscient of a horror movie scene in its creepiness and capacity for jump scares, Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler (Sam O’Neill and Laura Dern from the original movie) must travel through a cavern inhabited by Dimetrodons that threaten to pop out of the darkness.

The acting and CGI in the series has definitely gotten better over the years (with the sorry exception that was Jurassic Park III) and with Dominion, they really outdid themselves. Dominion took a risk by using both CGI and animatronics without the CGI to give the movie more realism. The Jurassic Park movies have always found a way to make their movies seem so realistic and thrilling, with the various dinosaurs, villains, and final dino battles providing that extra touch we didn’t know we needed.

Like many fans of the series, I was happy to see that in Dominion, they brought back characters from the very first Jurassic Park movie. Just seeing original actors such as Sam O’Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum back at it again, along with the more recent cast, is such fun. A number of the dinosaurs, from the velociraptor Blue to the famous T-Rex, also take their places as heroes, or if you will, anti-heroes.

Jurassic World: Dominion is a great movie, though others may disagree. It may not have been the best of the Jurassic movies, but the amount of effort and time the director and the cast put into it just makes it all the more special. I didn’t really like how easy it was to finally defeat the main dinosaur antagonist or how they didn’t bring back the Spinosaurus like many fans had expected, but the movie was still very exciting. If I had to give this movie a rating out of ten, I would probably give it an eight.