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dinosaurs

Monster Mondays: Jurassic Park III (2001)

June 20, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

With the success of The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), it seemed pretty obvious that film would not be the last in the franchise.  In June 1998, a third Jurassic Park film was confirmed by Universal Pictures, with a release targeted for the summer of 2000.  Unfortunately, the same big problem that faced the writers for the previous film remained: what could possibly happen next?

With no third novel on which to base the new film, the plan was to bring Michael Crichton on to write the script. Crichton, however, left the project very early on to continue working on writing novels.  Likewise, Steven Spielberg decided not to return as director, insteading becoming the executive producer and passing the baton to director Joe Johnston, who had made the successful Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989) and Jumanji (1995).

Writing the film proved to be a major challenge.  The script went through several reworkings, even after construction had begun on sets and casting had started.  In the end, principal photography commenced without a finalized script.

The basic premise of the film is pretty simple.  A wealthy couple hire Dr. Alan Grant and his assistant, Billy Brennan, to join them on a chartered flight over Isla Sorna so that he can teach them about the dinosaurs they see.  When they get to Isla Sorna, however, the plane lands.  The couple, it turns out, are not wealthy.  They are actually divorced and have come to the island to search for their missing son.  Of course, they all end up stranded on the island together and have to find a way to get off before they are eaten by the island’s dinosaur residents.

Despite the issues in the writer’s room, Jurassic Park III is a brisk and fun little adventure film.  Though it lacks the depth of the previous two movies, the film delivers on dinosaur action sequences.  Stan Winston’s animatronics are top notch, with the gigantic Spinosaurus being an awe-inspiring practical special effect.  The final encounter our protagonists have with the Spinosaurus happens in a river, and the animatronic is truly life-like as it thrashes and splashes around alongside the human actors.  The CGI is also pretty good for the most part, though it is noticeably weak in a few shots.

While The Lost World: Jurassic Park brought back Ian Malcolm and John Hammond from the first film, with Lex and Tim Murphy getting a small cameo, Jurassic Park III brings back Dr. Alan Grant and Dr. Ellie Sattler, with both Sam Neill and Laura Dern returning to reprise their roles.  It is nice to be reunited with these two characters again, though fans were a little disappointed to learn that Dr. Sattler had married some boring bureaucrat rather than Dr. Grant.  

Replacing the Tyrannosaurus rex as starring carnivore this time is the Spinosaurus, a decision I think was a bit of a mistake.  Spinosaurus was first described by German paleontologist Ernst Stromer in 1915 from very incomplete remains discovered in Egypt in 1912.  In April 1944, this only specimen of Spinosaurus was destroyed as Britain bombed Munich.  Only a handful of highly incomplete Spinosaurus specimens were found in the years between World War II and the making of Jurassic Park III, meaning very little was known about the dinosaur prior to the making of the film.

New discoveries in the years since Jurassic Park III was released has shown that the depiction of Spinosaurus in the movie is terribly inaccurate.  We now believe Spinosaurus was semiaquatic and hunted primarily fish.  In keeping with this semiaquatic lifestyle, Spinosaurus was adapted to live in the water much more so than it was for living on land.  It had shorter hind legs than most other therapods, meaning it was probably not a very fast runner, and it had a flat, paddle-like tail to help with swimming.  The shape of the sail on its back is now also believed to be much different than the semi-circle shown in the movie.  Perhaps one of the most controversial moments in a Jurassic Park film comes when the Spinosaurus battles and kills a Tyrannosaurus rex, impossibly snapping the Tyrannosaurus’ muscular neck with its narrow fish-catching jaws.

Also getting its chance to shine is the pterosaur Pteranodon, which briefly appeared in the final shot of The Lost World: Jurassic Park.  Despite the name Pteranodon literally meaning “wing toothless”, the animals on screen are depicted as having sharp teeth lining the inside of their beaks.  Similar to Spinosaurus, Pteranodon was actually primarily a piscivore and spent its life in and around water.  Still, there is no denying the scene in the aviary is one of the highlights of the film. Interestingly, this scene is adapted from a scene in the first Jurassic Park novel that did not make it into the earlier movies.

Where Jurassic Park III really falters, however, is its ending.  After returning some stolen eggs to a Velociraptor pack, the characters run out of the jungle and are greeted by the military.  After all that had come before, including two major clashes with the Spinosaurus, it all just feels anti-climatic.  Worse yet is the reappearance of Billy, who is all bandaged up in the military helicopter after his encounter with the Pteranodon.  It feels a little too neat and tidy, and it lacks any final sense of tension.

Jurassic Park III is a deeply flawed Jurassic Park sequel which likely suffers from its inability to pin down a final script before shooting started.  Its portrayal of the Spinosaurus borders on crossing the line from animal to monster, and its lackluster ending sucks the air out of its sails rather than leaving a strong last impression with viewers.  Still, the film is fun, and its short running time keeps the movie from becoming bogged down.  While not as strong as the previous two films in the franchise, Jurassic Park III is an entertaining movie that is definitely worth watching.

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Reviews, VOD Tagged With: dinosaurs, Jurassic Park, Jurassic Park III, Jurassic World, kaiju, Sam Neill

8.27 Lost Worlds and Legacies in JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION

June 10, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Directed by Colin Trevorrow, JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION takes place four years after the destruction of Isla Nublar. Since that fateful day, the once-secluded dinosaurs have spread across the globe, living and hunting alongside the human race. However, when a new species threatens the global food industry, teams spanning generations must reunite in order to solve the mystery and prevent global catastrophe. This week, Dave Voigt (In The Seats) and Ben Dower (SF’s Monster Mondays) band together to bite back at DOMINION and its world of mayhem as we discuss missed opportunities and the joy of theme park rides.

You can stream on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), Google Play, Spotify, iHeart Radio or Amazon Podcasts! Or, you can downoad the ep on Apple Podcasts!

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

8.27-Jurassic-World-DominionDownload

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Podcast Tagged With: Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, dinosaurs, Jurassic Park, Jurassic World, Jurassic World: Dominion, Laura Dern, raptors, Sam Neill, Universal

Jurassic World: Dominion – Sound and Fury

June 10, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

The age of the dinosaurs has come to an end. And there are many who are celebrating its demise.

Although the franchise has seen tremendous financial success over the past three decates, few of the entries have been a hit with critics. Other than the (still) brilliant original, many have felt (rightly) that the sequels have been somewhat of a mixed bag, either relying too heavily on nostalgia or just plain ridiculous. But its latest instalment, Jurassic World: Dominion, has found itself utterly blasted by poor reviews across the board.

Spoiler alert: this won’t be one of them. (Well, not entirely.)

Directed by Colin Trevorrow, Jurassic World: Dominion takes place four years after the destruction of Isla Nublar. Since that fateful day, the once-secluded dinosaurs have spread across the globe, living and hunting alongside the human race. However, when a new species threatens the global food industry, Dr. Ellie Sadler (Laura Dern), Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) reunite to prevent global catastrophe. Meanwhile, Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) are also working hard to discover what mega-corporation BioSyn wants with their daughter Maisie (Isabella Sermon) as she may hold the key to solving the mystery herself.

Every longstanding franchise comes to a point where they have to change the formula in order to survive. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. Admittedly, the Jurassic world wrote itself into a corner with the ending of the previous installment, Fallen Kingdom. By unleashing dinosaurs to rule the earth, the franchise opened a Pandora’s Box without any way to close it. All of a sudden, a series that found its greatest success telling stories about a group of people fighting for survival an enclosed environment completely reversed their formula. 

The series that began as a Lost World had transformed into Land of the Lost. 

Now, as the beasts of history were trampling wide-open spaces around the world, the franchise was forced to pivot. Given the impossible task of attempting to re-create the magic of a classic film, Dominion has had all of its rules changed. How do you attempt to wrap up an iconic franchise when the previous installment threw away the things that made it work? (In fact, one could argue that, like the characters in the film itself, the screenwriters are clearly trying to make the best of a bad situation.)

In a lot of ways, one has to respect the franchise for trying to make the old feel fresh. After all, they had been using similar formulas for the last 30 years with varying degrees of success. Ambitious and wild, Dominion is an attempt to bring an aging franchise into a whole new (Jurassic) world. As a result, the film is chaotic, silly and often non-sensical. 

But, dang it, I enjoyed myself.

Over the years, there’s been much debate as to whether certain films are ‘cinema’ or nothing more than ‘theme park rides’, as though there is some definitive line between the two sides. Dominion may be the film that hits both targets. Broad in its scope, this film feels as though the viewer has paid their ticket, gotten into the boat and takes a trip through a world of wild and possibilities. Whereas early films in the franchise attempted to delve into the moral high ground of scientific achievement, Dominion has no such sensibilities. (I believe it Shakespeare would say that it’s fueled by ‘sound and fury, signifying nothing’.) Instead, it simply wants to play with the toys they’ve created and unleash them in their new environment. Gone is much of the social commentary that marked Spielberg’s original, now replaced by scene after scene of monster-mayhem.

But it’s having fun doing it.

As (supposedly) the last film in the franchise, a clear effort has been made to bring the past and present together. By reuniting original characters with legacy cast, Dominion is very interested in bringing generations together. Wisely, the older characters are far more than cameos. Similar to the returnees in Spider-Man: No Way Home, beloved characters like Ellie Sadler, Alan Grant and Ian Malcolm are allowed to affect the plot. Although the film is drenched in nostalgia, there remains a certain level of satisfaction in seeing them back together onscreen. 

As with previous entries, there is an admiration of the natural world that pervades the film as well. At every opportunity, Dominion wants you to know that the filmmakers still care about the dinosaurs, even if the beasts almost feel as though they are the background as opposed to in it. With nature now lording over the ‘civilized’ world, these monsters are simply looking for a way to make their home among us. No longer are they for our amusement, yet they still carry the Spielberg-ian sense of wonder. (For example, an Apatosaurus slowly wandering through a lumber site is only one moment of many where humanity pauses to admire their new dino-roommates.)

As such, there is a deeper level of humility for nature in this than any of the other films. Whereas previous entries were about attempting to gain control of the nature world, Dominion recognizes that humanity is no longer the top of the food chain. (“Humanity has no more right to be top of the food chain than any other species,” pines Ian Malcolm.) The damage has been done and we must accept the reality that we’ve created. The past cannot be changed… so what does it mean to live in the moment that is here? 

Right now, there are many who feel like Jurassic World: Dominion is an extinction-level event. But this reviewer simply doesn’t agree. Although there are moments that are laughable, Dominion’s insanity is wrapped in gleeful silliness. Is it the best of the franchise? Not at all. But, despite what some may say, it isn’t the worst either.

Admittedly, one needs to lower their expectations for Dominion if they believe it will achieve the heights of the original. But, if you’re willing to hop onboard for a journey into dino-chaos, there’s no reason that you won’t enjoy the ride.

Jurassic World: Dominion roars into theatres on Friday, June 10th, 2022.

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Reviews Tagged With: Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Colin Trevorrow, dinosaurs, Isabella Sermon, Jeff Goldblum, Jurassic Park, Jurassic World, Jurassic World: Dominion, Laura Dern, raptors, Sam Neill, Universal

Prehistoric Planet: Welcome to Cretaceous World

May 23, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

We’ve always had a fascination with dinosaurs. 

It seems like every generation of kids seems to have been amazed by these gargantuan beasts that stomped the Earth millions of years ago. From Jurassic Park to Walk with Dinosaurs, many attempts have been made to capture their majesty and power, some better than others. With Prehistoric Planet though, Apple TV+ has created something truly special for those interested in trying to experience the world of these massive creatures in a different way. 

Emphasizing five different environments, Prehistoric Planet is designed to immerse the viewer in the ancient world of the Cretaceous era. By focusing on coasts, deserts, freshwater, ice worlds and forests, the five-episode event series invites families to witness the world of dinosaurs with as much authenticity as possible. From the parenting techniques of Tyrannosaurus Rex to the brutality of winter conditions and the majesty of the ocean depths, Prehistoric Planet seeks to bring the ancient world to life, one creature at a time.

Anchored by narration from David Attenborough, Prehistoric almost feels like the third entry into his iconic Planet Earth series. With each episode, the series attempts to bring these beasts to life by observing them in their natural habitat. As such, the film feels as close to a natural documentary as possible. Featuring stunning animation and exceptional cinematography, Prehistoric simply feels like a window into the lives of creatures we are never going to get the chance to see in real life. (That is, of course, unless my government funding for a Jurassic Park gets approved. I’m not holding my breath.) 

Produced by Jon Favreau and Mike Gunton, Prehistoric Planet has gone to painstaking links to ensure that the most accurate scientific information was used in developing the creatures themselves. As we gain more information about their appearances through scientific research, questions regarding feathers and body movements continue to develop our understanding of their behaviour. In essence, these are longer simply big lizards but complex creatures who share the DNA of birds and other beasts. With this in mind, from feathers to fur, the level of detail within their animated bodies is particularly impressive. (Just look at the complex skin of the baby T-Rex’s in the first episode and you’ll immediately see what I mean.)

What’s more, however, the detail is far from limited to the dinosaurs themselves. For a series comprised entirely of digital creations, the cinematography is particularly impressive as well. Using techniques that one would find in their Planet Earth series, Prehistoric manages to bring these creatures to life with subtly. Slightly blurred angles and perspectives are relatively unnoticeable but, with their inclusion, Prehistoric genuinely feels as though we are getting authentic footage. In other words, these episodes do not look like they were simply created on a laptop but rather shot in the field using actual cameras. 

Of course, holding the series together is Attenborough himself. With his gentle demeanor and calming narration, he has always excelled in helping to bring storytelling into his subjects. This is not a series designed to terrify the viewer but rather to enrapture them with a delight of the natural world. (The fact that the series is divided up by location as opposed to species is further evidence of this.) Whether it’s the drama of an infant trying to escape their predators or trying to endure the harshest of conditions, Attenborough manages to keep the viewer invested in what’s taking place. We feel the thrill of animals hunting and the sadness of the loss of others who fall victim to their hunger. We witness the birth of creatures and mourn in their deaths. Because of Attenborough’s skill as a narrator, Prehistoric maintains the beauty within creation that gives the viewer a sense of awe. 

With a passion for scientific inquiry and a loving eye, Prehistoric Planet is certainly the most realistic experience that we have gotten onscreen of dinosaurs in their way of life. Making full use of their skills as storytellers, Favreau, Gunton and Attenborough have created something visually stunning that never loses its heart.

The first episode of Prehistoric Planet is available on Apple TV+ on Monday, May 23rd, 2022 with new episodes airing daily throughout the week.

Filed Under: AppleTV+, Featured, Reviews Tagged With: David Attenborough, dinosaurs, documentary, Jon Favreau, Jurassic World, Planet Earth, Prehistoric Planet, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Walk with Dinosaurs

4.21 Life Still Finds A Way in JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM

July 22, 2018 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

http://screenfish.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/4.21-Jurassic-World-Fallen-Kingdom.mp3

After 25 years (!) since the original film, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom showed that the Raptors still have box office pull but have poor reviews brought the future of the franchise in jeopardy? This week, dino-fan Ben Dower returns to talk with Steve about how the franchise has changed, science and awe, and whether or not life really finds a way.

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

4.21 Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom

Thanks Ben for joining us!

Filed Under: Film, Podcast Tagged With: Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, dinosaurs, Jeff Goldblum, Jurassic Park, Jurassic World, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

Toy Story That Time Forgot – Do You Know Who You Are?

November 2, 2015 by Jacob Sahms Leave a Comment

toystory

Woody, Buzz, and the rest of the Toy Story crew are back at it in this 2014 Christmas special from Disney/Pixar. When the child Bonnie takes some of her favorite toys to a playdate with her friend, Mason, they are accidentally held hostage within a dinosaur world run by the megalomaniac The Cleric. While all of Bonnie’s toys know that their primary purpose is to entertain and bring joy to children, the Battlesaurs don’t actually know that they’re toys.

While this mini-story is short and sweet, it does make clear that knowing who we are is serious stuff! While Buzz once reminded Woody that he was owned by Andy, Trixie sets Reptilus Maximus straight about his identity and purpose. From a Christian perspective, this is the ultimate battle: we fail to see that we are created in God’s image because sin clouds our understanding. Thanks to the grace and love of Jesus Christ, we are able to see who we really are, to have hope and a purpose that can only be found in him.

Along with the spectacularly funny (and poignant) short film are the animated opening of the Battlesaurs television show and a look at the dinosaurs’ world. There’s a karaoke singalong of “My Unexpected Friend” and the appearance of the Toy Story crew at Comic-Con. Fans of these films will want to add this to their animated collection!

Filed Under: DVD, Film, Reviews, Television Tagged With: Buzz Lightyear, dinosaurs, Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Toy Story, Trixie, Woody

Jurassic World: A Whole New ‘World’?

June 19, 2015 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Jurassic-World-The-Game

$208.8 million dollars.

Let’s just let that number sit there for a minute.

While it was no surprise that it took top spot at the box office, the fact that Jurassic World has literally shattered every box office record in its opening weekend is nothing short of staggering. While there was high anticipation for the first Jurassic Park sequel in fourteen years (and, arguably, the first good one since the original), no one expected the response that this film has received.

But does popularity also necessarily mean that the film has anything to say?

In this case, maybe.

Directed by Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed), Jurassic World returns us to Isla Nublar, the site of the original Jurassic Park. Now a fully operational theme park with over 20 000 visitors a day, Jurassic World has become an incredible success. Although, due to the fact that it has become so accessible to the public, the dinosaurs have become commonplace as attractions. As a result, the park’s operations manager Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) ambitiously seeks to create excitement by developing the Indomitus Rex, a new hybrid dinosaur, to terrify and delight new visitors. However, when the Indomitus eventually escapes from its pen—an ‘inevitability’ claims the park’s CEO, Simon Masrani (Irrfan Khan)—Claire must enlist the help of rugged raptor trainer, Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) to prevent the rampaging beast from killing innocent park patrons.

While far from a perfect film, World finally delivers the sequel that the franchise has needed, offering the right balance of new direction and nostalgia that has been lacking from previous entries. At long last, the raptors are both dangerous and have a purpose in the story. Once again, the narrative seems to have something to say about our current culture. Even the decision to return to Isla Nublar deliberately signaled a desire to return to the magic of the original film. (What’s more, if Guardians of the Galaxy wasn’t enough proof, Jurassic World fully establishes Chris Pratt as this generation’s lovable action hero. And yes, if the rumors are true, I am fully onboard with him taking on the whip and fedora in the inevitable Indiana Jones reboot.)

JWSuperBowlTrailer-Raptors1

Produced by Spielberg through his Amblin label, Jurassic World very mucy feels like a throwback to the adventure films of the 80s and 90s, a fact which both plays out as a strength and a weakness. As a strength, it reveals a sense of light-heartedness and pure adventure that is often missing from today’s darker, more brooding tones. However, as a weakness, it has been argued that the character development plays out in a sexist manner; a charge that I feel isn’t fully accurate. While it is true that Owen’s character plays hero to Claire most of the film, the power dynamics have balanced out by the end. (Even if Claire’s character may not have the fearlessness of someone like Furiosa in Mad Mad: Fury Road, she’s also far from ‘weak’.)

Thematically, a lot has changed in the past twenty-two years as well. Whereas Jurassic Park stemmed from a culture just breaking the science of DNA, Jurassic World is born out of an era where people have grown accustomed to these sorts of technological advancements. Gone is the overall sense of wonder in the first film, replaced with a feeling of general malaise. Though, this is where the film dips its toe into theological territory. While Park asks whether or not man should attempt to play God, World begs the question of what happens when man gets bored of doing so? In other words, in a culture where human scientific achievement has become an everyday occurrence, Jurassic World reminds us that there is something wondrous about the very nature of life itself. In this film, the moral dilemma of the science isn’t the core problem.

The real issue is that they are no longer impressed by it.

JurassicWorldPosterCROP

By arguing that their ‘triceratops is seen the same [by kids] as an elephant’, Claire constantly pushes her team to invent something new. However, in the process, she also loses sight of the astonishing nature of what they’ve accomplished, a theme that echoes our own culture of self-satisfaction and entertainment. Frequently losing sight of the miraculous and emptying our world of a spiritual connection to God’s creation, too often we break down the nature of life into one giant scientific equation. As a result, by subtracting the Divine aspect to science, we are left with little view of anything larger than ourselves. (Incidentally, Jurassic World counters this error in self-absorption through the character of Owen who recognizes that these dinosaurs ‘don’t know [they were created in a lab]’ and acknowledges that they fact that they are alive makes them more than mere experiments.)

In the end, Jurassic World delivers what it promises – a fun ride with a nostalgic feel. Most surprisingly though is the fact that it also has something new to say in a franchise that had seemed to run its course over a decade ago.

Despite the fact that we may not have learned from our mistakes, it really is a whole new World.hgxfysec5xcn2odalxro

Filed Under: Film, Reviews Tagged With: Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Colin Trevorrow, dinosaurs, Jurassic Park, Jurassic World

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