Something has survived.
1997-05-23
$73.0M
129 min
Four years after Jurassic Park's genetically bred dinosaurs ran amok, multimillionaire John Hammond shocks chaos theorist Ian Malcolm by revealing that he has been breeding more beasties at a secret location. Malcolm, his paleontologist ladylove and a wildlife videographer join an expedition to document the lethal lizards' natural behavior in this action-packed thriller.
If you loved the charismatic Doctor Ian Malcolm of the first film, then get ready for him to take centre stage, and immediately have every interesting character trait stripped away! Did the original have you believing dinosaurs walked the Earth with its seamless blend of practical effects and groundbreaking CGI? Too bad! That's gone too! Sense of wonder? Poof! Marvel as each and every actor phones it in over an absurdly bloated runtime in: Jurassic Park II! I mean, Jurassic Park II: The Lost World... I mean, The Lost World! I mean, The Lost World: Jurassic Park for some damn reason.
Final rating:★★ - Had some things that appeal to me, but a poor finished product.
Actually where you're going is the only place in the world where the geese chase you!
The Lost World: Jurassic Park is directed by Steven Spielberg and adapted to screenplay by David Koepp from the novel written by Michael Crichton. It stars Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Pete Postlethwaite, Vince Vaughn, Richard Schiff, Peter Stormare, Vanessa Lee Chester, Arliss Howard and Harvey Jason. Music is scored by John Williams and cinematography by Janusz Kamiński.
Four years on from the horrors of Jurassic Park on Isla Nublar, it transpires that there is a second dinosaur site on Isla Sornar. Dr. Ian Malcolm (Goldblum) is forced to head off to face the horrors once again when he learns that his paleontologist girlfriend, Sara Harding (Moore), is already on the island as a forerunner to a team John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) is assembling to document the dinosaurs in their habitat. Once there, though, the problems soon arise, especially when a team from InGen arrive with other ideas about the dinosaurs on their minds.
Given the massive success of Jurassic Park in 1993, a sequel was inevitable. What transpires is pretty much more of the same, it's very safe film making by Spielberg. Coming off of the emotional exertions of his last film, Schindler's List, few can deny that the director was entitled to wind down with The Lost World project, there was after all nothing safe about Schindler's, but although Jurassic 2 is a hugely enjoyable family blockbuster, a jazzy bit of hi-tech fun, it lacks the requisite brains to make it an inspiring sequel.
Formula follows the same path, humans in peril on the island, with some added and new dinosaurs (double T-Rex a bonus), and then the "twist" in the narrative sees some monster peril come to San Diego, King Kong style, for the finale. There's inter fighting between the good dudes led by Malcolm and the bad guys led by the weasel Peter Ludlow (Howard) who is Hammond's conniving nephew and current head of InGen. Family issues also feature, of course since this is Spielberg after all, while the dangers of tampering with science message remains as strong as ever.
Cast are ably led by a witty Goldblum, who is a reassuring presence carried over from the first film, and the tech-credits are as expected, very high. Some scenes soar, such as a sequence shot from under a pane of glass that starts to crack under the weight of a character, others not so, such as having Malcolm's teenage daughter turn into Nadia Comăneci for one credulity stretching scene. But all told it's an honest blockbuster purely aimed at the target audience who helped to see it make over $600 million in profit. Safe often pays you see, and as sequels go it's one of the better ones in the 90s. It's exciting if intellectually stunted. 7/10
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The Lost World definitely didn't deserve its originally bad reception. Sure, it's far from the incredible 1993's Jurassic Park. Less interesting character arcs and overall (silly) story.
However, it remains fun enough with equally memorable dinosaur sequences. Goldblum rocks.
Rating: B-
I feel I should point out that my overall positive review is based on entertainment value and not at all on scientific accuracy and the like.
This sequel mirrors a few of the winning elements from the successful first movie: they retain Ian Malcolm, who is one of the highlights of the first film; they bring in a child, because it is much more dramatic to endanger children; they have at least one bad guy who we root for to become Dino-dinner; and there are plenty of action sequences with heart-stopping chases and hair-raising escapes. Several of the great one-liners are again given to Ian. My favorite line for all the Jurassic movies occurs early on. After they watch the cute Triceratops herd pass closely by them, Ian says, “Well yeah, ooh and ahh; that’s how it always starts, but then later there is running and then screaming.”
And four years after the first movie, they have learned one thing from other action films: increasing the body count. Why kill of a handful of people when you can easily send a large team in to capture the dinosaurs and start picking them off one at a time? They even have a T-Rex wandering the streets of San Diego like King Kong at the end. So it sticks to the formula with a few variances and is entertaining.
Now they are trying to recover from the devastation that happened from the 1st one. This movie is pretty boring and not much happens.
The other 2 star / 40% review of this movie is on point. The Lost World: Jurassic Park sucks on so many levels.
I had Jurassic Park 1 on repeat for nearly 24 hours and every time I sat down I had a laugh or a feeling of awe or excitement. Jurassic Park 1 is truly a marvel. Apart from the squealing, the characters are well written and well acted. The casting is amazing, even the kids, and it's so WOKE I oughta give it a 10/10. Actually, I think I will.
This time around it's all trash.
Malcolm returns but the off-putting charisma that made him "beloved" is dulled. The kids return for a cameo but get replaced by Malcolm's daughter who... exists like Stacker Pentecost's son apparently exits in Pacific Rim. She does basically nothing for the majority of the movie. I'm not one to hate on kids unless they're insufferable but she kinda embodies the reaction I had throughout this movie, which is "this is pointless". Pointless movie, nothing happens, sure some folks get nommed but no one cares because they're all kinda stupid and useless except for the first guy who gets nommed who I'm almost certain mentioned the Rexes left the area.
I've never seen Julianne Moore smile so much. Her character, Sarah, is fine up until Sarah and Nick do the "no good deed" with a lot of unnecessary stupid that results in the events of this movie.
Unlike the normal fare, I don't have an issue with women or feminism so her little quip about not needing Malcolm to save her at the start of the movie before everything goes awry doesn't phase me. She went there not expecting events to unfold the way they did, and by events I mean Ludlow.
Anyway, back on topic. There isn't much else to say except just re-watch Jurassic Park 1 five times and you'll likely have a better time than watching any of the five sequels.
P.S.: Can anyone explain the ship? Anyone at all? I know what the script says was supposed to happen but that's not what we get in the movie and the movie makes no sense whatsoever.
4/10 is too generous for this trash. I should reduce my rating. This was so disappointing after watching Jurassic Park 1 on repeat over the course of 24 hours.
The Lost World: Jurassic Park tries to follow in the footsteps of the original masterpiece but stumbles along the way. While Spielberg delivers some thrilling action and stunning visuals, the movie lacks the charm and cohesion that made Jurassic Park so iconic. From the start, it feels like something is missing. The plot kicks off with a weak foundation, and motivations for the characters feel scattered and unclear, which makes it hard to connect with their journey.
What really hurts the movie is the lack of focus. The story feels pulled in multiple directions, with some characters there to explore, others there to capture dinosaurs, and a few just along for the ride. This muddled narrative waters down the tension and excitement, leaving you questioning the point of certain scenes. Even Ian Malcolm, who was a standout in the first movie, struggles to carry the weight of a leading role here. The awe and wonder of the original have been replaced by darker tones and chaotic action, which might appeal to some but feels like a step back overall.
That said, the movie does have its moments. The action sequences are gripping, and Spielberg still knows how to build tension when it counts. Visually, it’s as impressive as you’d expect, with dinosaurs that still hold up today. But ultimately, The Lost World feels like a sequel that’s trying too hard to recapture the magic of its predecessor without fully understanding what made it special in the first place. It’s worth a watch for the action and nostalgia, but don’t expect it to leave the same lasting impression as the original.
There's a lovely quote from the late Lord Attenborough at the end of this film along the lines of "...creatures don't need our help to survive, they need our absence". Never a truer word, but sadly it doesn't really enliven this merchandising booster of a film. The aforementioned gent, "Hammond" has had control of his company wrested away from him and informs chaotician "Malcolm" (Jeff Goldblum) that there's a B-site full of the beasties from the first film and his new board are determined to monetise them all. He has to get there first, and so armed with his sarcastic wit and the savvy Quatermain-esque "Tembo" (Pete Postlethwaite) off he goes. Of course, it being a Spielberg movie, there has to be an annoying child and in this case that's the stowaway "Kelly" (Vanessa Chester) and to complete our line up of charm-free misfits we have Vince Vaughn's "Nick" and Julianne Moore's "Sarah". Thereafter we embark on an whole load of set-piece snatched from the jaws (literally) of death time and time again type scenarios from the real stars of the show, only they have lost the wow factor of their 1993 outing and so now look like pale imitations or something from Ray Harryhausen's reject pile. The story is all too hysterically predictable as it turns out that the venal and the scientific end up going head to head with each other, and the ravenous dinosaurs, before a denouement that is entirely fitting but about ninety minutes later than I wanted it to be. Postlethwaite is the only one here who has anything like a character, in many ways akin to Bob Peck's first time round and there are some astonishingly creative visuals, but this is a sequel that nobody is going to look back upon very fondly.
