Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom proceeds three years after the incident at Jurassic World which caused the park to close down. Dinosaurs roam free on Isla Nublar, but Owen Grady and Claire Dearing must return to the island to save the remaining dinosaurs from an extinction level event and relocate them to a sanctuary when the island's dormant volcano becomes active. Along the way, a conspiracy is discovered that threatens to disrupt the Earth's natural order.
The adjustment that most excited me about Fallen Kingdom was the switch-up of directors behind the camera, with Colin Trevorrow handing the franchise baton off to J.A. Bayona for this fifth installment. Though I enjoyed Jurassic World, the 2015 rebootquel lacked Trevorrow's directorial voice and was seemingly genetically engineered by Universal Studios to rake in all the dough (wound up grossing $1.6 B worldwide and currently is the fifth highest grossing motion picture of all time). On top of that, I haven't whole-heartingly loved a Jurassic film since the original, so I was really hoping Fallen Kingdom might rectify that and reinvigorate my interest in the series. After seeing Bayona's work in A Monster Calls, my anticipation then went through the roof though because that flick showcased his sensibilities and skill as a filmmaker who could tell emotional, character-driven stories with striking visuals.
Fortunately, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom does the same whenever the suspense-driven blockbuster is at its best. Viewers are in for a treat anytime Bayona and his longtime collaborative cinematographer, Oscar Faura, get a chance to play around with suspenseful scenery. The third act is full of gothic horror-esque imagery that will have your spine tingling as you venture closer and closer to the edge of your seat and your heart sinks further and further to the bottom of your chest. It's probably the first film in the franchise since Jurassic Park to feature such inventive uses for the dinosaurs as devices of horror, and it's all thanks to Bayona's brilliant work behind the camera. Those key sequences work wonders for the film as a whole, truly elevating the more lackluster elements which I'll discuss in a second.
Also, be prepared to bear witness to the best opening the franchise has seen in quite some time. It's tense, riveting, and an utter delight that harkens back to the days when Spielberg was at the helm. I only wish Bayona had been given more control over the story so he'd have the opportunity to make more sequences like it...
However, there are some caveats I should probably mention... As skilled of a director as Bayona may be, there was nothing he could have done to salvage the atrocious script he had to work with. Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly were the only writers to stick around after Jurassic World and it's abundantly clear that they had ideas for the third installment which they actively wanted to set up here. Fallen Kingdom unfortunately falls prey to the reoccurring trend in which a franchise focuses on the future rather than telling a solid standalone story (I'd cite The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Pacific Rim: Uprising as prime examples of this trend). Laying the groundwork for a sequel is fine so long as it doesn't take precedence over the story at hand, but Fallen Kingdom is much more concerned with getting to Point B that Trevorrow and Connolly didn't seem to care how they got there. Therefore, logic is thrown out the window and there are retcons galore to ensure the writers reach their destination.
Fallen Kingdom borrows plenty of plot beats from its prehistoric predecessors, but it takes from The Lost World: Jurassic Park most egregiously. The first hour or so veers very closely in the direction of blatantly ripping it off altogether. As a result of all this, Fallen Kingdom is probably one of the more infuriating entries in the franchise. It's a film that's very confused for so many reasons. It wants to paint a picture of dinosaurs as creatures who deserve to be preserved and protected, but simultaneously shows them to be rampaging murderous beasts who are incredibly dangerous. This establishes an interesting debate in regards to whether humanity should be responsible for these animals almost immediately, but Trevorrow and Connolly hardly scratch the surface of that idea despite bringing it up fairly often. There's simply no nuance to the discussion because their script doesn't give the characters much opportunity to sit down and discuss the issue. Besides that, the pacing and narrative flow feels ridiculously jumbled as everyone seems to be in a hurry to reach the closing credits in spite of having two hours and eight minutes to do so.
While the script may be messy, Bayona still sets aside enough time for some truly beatuiful moments which serve as sweet, subtle homages to the beloved original. Most memorable of these was a scene involving a brachiosaurus (you'll know exactly what it is once you see it). From a visual standpoint, Fallen Kingdom is a substantial improvement over Jurassic World's flat aesthetic with spellbinding cinematography from Oscar Faura and a better blend of practical and digital effects which are quite convincing. Meanwhile, Michael Giachinno's score is a swell accompaniment for the onscreen insanity, although not nearly as memorable as any of John Williams' legendary work in the first two.
In regards to performances, Chris Pratt continues to be the charming movie star whom studios can always count on. It doesn't seem like Owen Grady is a challenging role for him whatsoever, but Pratt portrays him well thanks to stellar comedic timing and his perky personality simply lends itself well to the character. He's mostly just playing an extension of himself, but I wouldn't say that's a bad thing since Pratt's a guy who seems fun to be around.
Returning opposite Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard's Claire Dearing has drastically improved her choice in dino-park footwear (no high heels to be found this time around) and has a more active role in the action than her administrative position last time. Here, Howard seems to have more personality as Claire in addition to more believable chemistry with Pratt, both of which were somewhat lacking in Jurassic World. Newcomers Justice Smith and Daniella Pineda play animal rights activists Franklin Webb and Zia Rodriguez, but both prove to be little more than plot devices in the grand scheme of things. Franklin, in particular, is an incredibly obnoxious character who seemed unnecessary because all he did was hack things and scream really loud anytime they saw a dinosaur. He's basically the token hacker that all blockbusters have these days and just might be the most annoying character in the franchise thus far...
Isabella Sermon has a peculiar role as Maisie Lockwood because her character is relegated to her grandfather's mansion so she can snoop around and gather intel for herself and the audience to understand exactly what's going one. There's one twist involving her character that I found to be really strange because it serves almost no purpose towards the story at hand. It simply left me scratching my head in response. In relation to her, James Cromwell is introduced as Benjamin Lockwood and does a fine job as the kindred old man somewhat akin to John Hammond.
As for baddies, Fallen Kingdom's got little more than generic corporate types up its sleeve. Rafe Spall, Toby Jones, and BD Wong are a greedy businessman, auctioneer, and familiar mad scientist respectively. These archetypes are nothing new for the franchise, but the actors each gleefully chew up the scenery with their cartoonish characters.
If you're going to see Fallen Kingdom in hopes of seeing a solid supporting role for Jeff Goldblum, you're going to be woefully disappointed as the actor is totally wasted in a glorified cameo. He's probably in that Jeep ad which aired at Super Bowl more than he is in this movie, and about 90% of his screentime has already seeped into the trailers.
My feelings towards Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom are complicated to say the least. Despite everything J.A. Bayona was able to accomplish which made me love Fallen Kingdom more than its predecessor, there were many components that I absolutely hated and lead me towards a middle-of-the-road opinion when reflecting on this fifth series entry. Regardless of my growing indifference towards these sequels, I still can't quite justify the franchise's extinction since I'm admittedly interested in seeing where the next one goes from here. Here's hoping Trevorrow steps up his game...
