In the first Jurassic World movie, Henry Wu says, "Nothing in Jurassic World is natural. We have always filled gaps in the genome with the DNA of other animals, and if the genetic code was pure, many of them would look quite different. But you didn't ask for reality; you asked for more teeth."
It cleverly explained why many of the dinosaurs in the original Jurassic Park weren't scientifically accurate, but it also reinforced the movie's theme about escalating a spectacle for a jaded audience. As Claire says, "The park needs a new attraction every few years in order to reinvigorate the public's interest. Kind of like the space program."
The parallel is clear: The movie is set in a fake world where real dinosaurs aren't amazing anymore, because the current generation of kids don't remember a time when dinosaurs didn't exist. Similarly, the real kids going to see movies in 2015 don't remember a time when amazing on-screen dinosaurs weren't possible. To realize what a miracle that is, you must have lived long enough to see how the world changed when visual effects (which once, by necessity, left much to the imagination) finally made anything possible on-screen.
Jurassic World was such a good movie because it understood its DNA. While being over the top, it cleverly acknowledged how and why it was over the top. Most importantly, it was executed pretty well.
Ironically, Fallen Kingdom is a disappointment (at least for me) because it embodies the careless escalation of spectacle that its predecessor denounced. Henry Wu's criticism of the Indominus Rex could apply, word for word, to this sequel: "You didn't ask for reality; you asked for more teeth."
To be clear, teeth aren't bad. People show up to these
movies for teeth… but striking a balance is important. The characters need to
make enough bad decisions to enable the disaster, but not so many bad decisions
that you can't take them seriously. The spectacle needs to be exciting, but not
so densely packed (more dinosaurs! more violence! volcano!) that it all runs
together. The story needs to be outlandish to be fun, but should make enough
sense to be compelling.
Unfortunately, Fallen Kingdom misses those marks. I couldn't
buy into what was happening; I couldn't buy into why it was happening; and I
couldn't buy into the people it was happening to. The movie does have some
appealing characters and good ideas, as well as some good spectacle, but it’s
hampered by too much over-the-top action, and too much sketchy characterization,
to keep me invested. I don’t hate it, but I don’t like it much either. For
someone who’s been a huge fan of Jurassic Park since childhood, that’s a
disappointing surprise.
