The Lost World: Jurassic Park

Michael Crichton's original novel "The Lost World" was once again geared towards a more intelligent audience. Just as with "Jurassic Park", Steven Spielberg took the story and altered it so that everyone could enjoy it. When this movie came out, I liked it a lot more than I do now. "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" is still a decent film thanks to Spielberg's direction but it has story problems. The narrative arch is less dramatic than the original film because it appears that Spielberg wanted to take the animals that he introduced in "Jurassic Park" and apply them in a classic monster movie story motif. This did not perfectly work.

Crichton promoted Ian Malcolm to the role of protagonist and while he is a beloved character, Dr. Grant was better designed for such a role. The plot device from the original film of Malcolm always being right is reused so that is good. I wish there had been more returning characters and I am sure Spielberg felt the same way. I was glad that Lex and Tim showed up briefly. The scene between Malcolm and Hammond is well done but all the other exposition in this film feels long and it is not as entertaining as was the case in the first film. To make a long story short, Ingen is not in Hammond's control anymore and "Site B" is going to be exploited. Also, Malcolm's reputation is tarnished because of his demand for the truth to be told concerning the events of the first film. Hammond has changed his priorities in life but as Malcolm humorously points out, he is still making mistakes. His request to send a team to document the animals in order to save them from his own company may seem essential but Malcolm knows the risk will not pay off for those who are sent on this wild goose chase to "the only place in the world where the geese chase you". It is established that Malcolm's relationship with Kelly needs to be stronger but we don't get very much resolution for this plot line by the end of the movie. "The Lost World" is darker in mood and the advantage is on the dinosaurs' side this time because the island is completely wild. I also like how two groups who are against one another must work together to survive. Hammond was a capitalist with heart and sincere passion but Ludlow has no heart. Ludlow feels his knows better than his uncle and you can tell right away that he won't be alive by the end of the show. The suspense in this movie when compared to the first film is not as powerful. We do have some thrilling scenes such as when the T-rex's first show up but the suspenseful scenes in "Jurassic Park" by contrast are fun to watch every time. I get a kick out of the "three double cheeseburgers" joke during the cliff sequence because Nick and Sarah add to the joke on the fly. Seriously speaking though, our heroes passing unscathed through the trailer as it falls seems quite unrealistic. Some examples of true suspense in "The Lost World" include the pack of Compsognathuses stalking Dieter and the subsequent T-rex's arrival at night. The POV shots of the Compsognathus and other cinematographic shots in that sequence make it a good one. I like how new carnivores are introduced but do not take the place of the two main carnivores of the franchise. Unfortunately, the raptor sequence was not scary because their intelligence was not featured to the extent that it was in the first film. I did enjoy the overhead shot of the field as the raptors close in for the kill. You never go off alone in a survival movie so I thought that Nick was going to die was I first saw this show. It was a pleasant surprise when he showed up alive because we didn't see him during the raptor sequence with Malcolm and company. Roland is an interesting character. He is employed by the bad guys but is at odds with Ludlow. I think that Nick incorrectly compares him to Ahab. There are some similarities but not enough such as Roland coming to his senses after loosing Ajay. As with the first film, Spielberg changed the ending from what was in the book. I do get a little kick out of the T-rex on a rampage in San Diego, especially with the Asian businessmen running in fear. The citizen that is eating by the T-rex by the way is screenwriter David Koepp. When I first saw the movie, I could tell that he was significant. The line "Now your John Hammond" is very fitting. Despite the fun in this climax, there wasn't a climatic high note like unto when the T-rex saves Grant and the others in the first movie.

The special effects in this movie are Oscar nominated. I thought the cracks in the glass were real when I first saw the movie. I also thought that the amphitheater at the end of the film was actual size where in fact it is a miniature. The use of camera here causes the model to appear larger than it actually is. This movie introduced me to Julianne Moore, who later won an Oscar after four previous nominations. Her role in this movie did help to further her career. I also was introduced to Vince Vaughn and the late Pete Postlethwaite. Vaughn's career also took off thanks to "The Lost World". Just as Wayne Knight from "Seinfeld" was in "Jurassic Park", Ian Abercrombie (who was also on "Seinfeld") is at the very start of this movie as Hammond's butler (Spielberg is a fan of the show). I like the theme that John Williams wrote for this sequel because it reminds me of "King Kong" and other similar shows. There is a similarity between "King Kong" and the first two Jurassic Park films but despite this comparison, "The Lost World" wasn't perfect. It would have been a lot worse I feel without Spielberg in the director's chair. This sequel was the highest grossing film in 1997 except for "Titanic" of course but the filmmakers should have called it quits after this film.

3.5 Stars