Jurassic Park

What can be said about this movie that hasn't already been said? Who knows. We all know that this has some of the greatest special effects, even today. Also, if there's anything that can match the awesome T-Rex, it's the movie's musical score. I swear, listen to it more than once, and you're bound to see the movie yet again, if for that sole reason. It's that powerful. Oh sure, acting isn't this movie's strong suit, but who looks for acting in a Dinosaur thriller? Who?!

Anyway, I think I've made my point. Jurassic Park: One of America's greatest classics. Steven Spielberg created magic with this movie. If you haven't seen it once, you haven't seen it at all.

If you were born in the 90s or before, you had a connection with people...you absolutely loved this movie, and it made a mark on you. I think most people remember when they saw this movie first, because it was that awe inspiring of an experience. I remember that it was the first pg-13 movie I was allowed to watch, and what a way to start my grown up movie experience!!! Everything in this movie screams adventure, from the opening scene where the jungle leaves rustle, the shot of mysterious sparkling amber, to the landing of the helicopter on a remote rainforest island, the movie sets the tone for the greatest adventure movie ever made. As you hear John Williams glorious theme start to swell, and you see Alan remove his glasses and start to tremble, you know you're about to witness one of the most magical moments ever put on cinema. I can't go into detail on all the incredible scenes, from the T-Rex reveal, to the kitchen scene, but each one of them revolutionized what we thought movie magic could take us. Thank you Spielberg for making this enchanting piece of art for us, an entire generation is indebted to you.

It's hard to believe that it's 6 years since this film appeared at the cinemas. At the time it was a truly ground-breaking film, managing for the first time to portray dinosaurs in an extremely realistic manner, unlike those plasticine monsters that we were forced to watch in previous monster movies. Jurassic Park will also be remembered as the movie that finally made George Lucas sit up and realise that it was possible for him to make his prequels.

In hindsight, while it is still an extremely well directed and tension filled movie, the script did seemed dumbed down in order to appeal to as many people as possible - but that's really irrelevant since this film is all about dinosaurs. One of Spielberg's brilliantly directed films, it even managed to make me forget Spielberg's previous disaster of a movie - do you recall HOOK?

8/10.

What can I say? Jurassic Park is one of the most underrated movies ever. Yes, I did say underrated. True, it is the fourth highest grossing movie ever (for the time being) and was a motion picture bible for eight-year-olds across the country, but it has never been regarded as artistically superior. When, in reality, it is one of the most artistically inventive movies ever. It contains all of Spielberg's magical strokes of genius from fantastic art direction and wonderful camera techniques to astounding technical quality ( which comes from his well known control over technology). The minor flaws of a theme park are masterfully embedded into the art direction, script etc. and the acting is superb. This is one of the only movies I've seen with great acting by children. Spielberg's camera usage ranges from foreshadowing the appearance of dinosaurs with extreme up-angles to exquisitely composed scenes of the dinosaurs' "interaction" with the characters. Aside from technical quality, Jurassic Park bears powerful social messages of human intrusion and destruction of natural environment and the self-revering nature of man. Also, it had an undeniable effect on cinema being one of the first movies to use CGI at such a large scale. However, the most ingenious aspect of the film is the portrayal of the dinosaurs as animals rather than ruthless monsters. At many times throughout the movie, the humans are portrayed as antagonists and the respect and appreciation of the dinosaurs is wonderfully developed. And, best of all, like star wars you can analyze the movie all you want or just sit back and enjoy the ride.

JURASSIC PARK was the film that ignited my interest in filmmaking and drove me to get a degree in it, so I will always have a soft spot for it. I was eleven when I read the book, but all the technical stuff lost me and I never finished it. A couple years later when I heard the movie was coming out, I decided I would just see it instead. With advance tickets selling out fast, my mom was lucky enough to get some a few days before it's premiere. We stood in line for roughly thirty minutes before we finally got in. Even as the lights were dimming, I still had no idea what to expect. Within moments I was glued to my seat. The opening sequences remains one of my favorite scenes in any film and continues to give me goosebumps to this day. For the next two hours, I sat in my seat just staring at the screen as these marvelous, life-like creatures that were unlike anything I had ever seen before. The film was full of awe and scares. I walked out of the theater virtually trying to catch my breath. What a thrill ride the film had been, and I eventually went back and saw it a few more times. The film was a turning point in my life, as I said, because I walked out saying to myself, "That's what I want to do." Sure the characters aren't deep and the dialogue isn't great, but who cares when the film is this entertaining? The actors are good in their parts, especially the always great Sam Neill, and the dinosaurs are incredibly life-like. The action is great, and the pacing (after a slow start) is relentless. The film has a few continuity flaws, but none of them matter. This film is great entertainment.