It's No Park, but Jurassic World Still Charms

The dinosaurs are a sight to be seen, Chris Pratt isn't bad either
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 12, 2015 11:25 AM CDT

The latest, long-awaited installment in the Jurassic Park saga is here. This time, characters played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard watch as the genetically-modified dinosaur Indominus rex is unleashed on the park; destruction, of course, is inevitable. Here's what critics are saying:

  • "You can't experience first love twice," writes Kenneth Turan at the Los Angeles Times. "Despite the best efforts of director Colin Trevorrow, Jurassic World's story of Indominus rex on the loose, while certainly acceptable, doesn't have the same impact as the initial film." That being said, the moviemakers "have done as well as they could," Turan writes, and Pratt's "combination of physicality, charisma, and attitude prove hard to resist."
  • Brian Truitt is awed by the "zoo of phenomenal creations that rivals the original's impressive array of ancient animals." While he says Jurassic World is "a monster step up from the two disappointing previous sequels," it’s "sorely missing the heart and inherent wonder of the classic first film," he writes at USA Today. Still, it holds "enough dino-mite action to stave off excitement extinction."

  • Audiences will flock to the film regardless of what he writes, but Joe Morgenstern writes it anyway: "Something should be said about the film's cheesiness—it doesn't even look good, though it sounds grand—and the shoddiness of its workmanship." Pratt offers an easy charm, but he's "no match for the crude filmmaking or the stupid plot that keeps him running around in a constant state of artificial animation," he writes at the Wall Street Journal. His vote: Don't waste your money.
  • Writing for the New York Post, Kyle Smith's opinion couldn't be more different: "Motorcycle, Chris Pratt, sprinting dinosaurs: If you require more than that out of a movie, you're being unreasonable." He says Pratt, combined with the film's "brilliant special effects … make the first Jurassic movie since 2001 nearly as much fun as the stellar first two." There are strong, quiet moments and great action scenes. "The worst you can say about the movie is that it sticks to a highly potent formula."
Click for more reviews or find out why some accuse the film of sexism. (More Jurassic World stories.)

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