Life always finds a way and after almost 30 years the Jurassic Era finally gets the conclusion it deserves in Jurassic World: Dominion.
Four years after the destruction of Isla Nublar, dinosaurs now live and hunt alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures.
The Jurassic Park series has always a bit of comedy to help balance out the darker parts of this world. Dominion goes a little more into this, but it works to make it very funny and occasionally in the modern style, more is better. Chris Pratt and Jeff Goldblum are the main comedians in the film, while the others get their moments to sneak in some laughs themselves throughout the movie. But, some of my favorite moments were how they managed to make the dinosaurs a little more human to deliver some comedic punches themselves. Although the comedy seemed forced at times, it really was decently executed and felt natural and well-placed like the original films.
Now, these are movies about dinosaurs, and well you definitely get dinosaurs and Dominion really makes it feel like the final act by giving us all the dinosaurs that we could possibly want. Dominion has some of the classic monsters we know, but they introduce other species from various eras and most of them feel just as sinister and destructive as you could possibly imagine. So, for those who are tired of seeing the same monsters over again, you will be in quite the treat with the variety this movie brings to the screen.
The musical score is hands down one of the best things about these movies and still gives me goosebumps when I hear it over the loudspeakers. Much like the sound editing that brings the roars to life, the sixth installment has the powerful orchestra work to add to the emotional moments and pulls you into the full experience. The softer tones really accompany and/or proceed the heart-pounding orchestra that blasts through this series so well.
Dominion is far from perfect but does a decent job keeping the entire cast involved throughout the entire film. While you have all sorts of characters to try and pull into one final act, there are a lot of stories, actors, and teams to try and keep integrated into this final chapter. The legacy cast may not be as involved at times, but they hit the moments that matter and gives loyal fans the conclusion they so desperately deserve. As for the newer cast, they do get more screen time, but they do a great job at expanding the story.
Speaking of the cast, the movie’s cast of characters accomplishes the fun we like to see in these movies. Chris Pratt is goofy but action-hero epic as he does his best to tame the monstrous beast that is on the screen. Pratt is the typical hero we’ve come to love and has some great moves to finish off this series. Bryce Dallas Howard gets the most dynamic range in this film, with her character getting a lot more screen time and scenarios than other characters. Howard accomplishes a lot in her character’s growth and abilities and really sells the more emotional moments while trying to avoid going too far down the stoic warrior path. Laura Dern is a master of her craft and this new Ellie still has the same quality components from the first movie but adds new qualities to show what she has been up to over the last 30 years. Sam Neil was great but felt a bit underutilized at times and Jeff Goldblum accomplishes the same steal-the-show moments that we love.
The ability of the studio to make dinosaurs come to life is still something that, to quote Ellie Sadler, “you never get used to.” Finding the right balance between computer graphics and animatronics to bring these creatures to life is amazing and with modern technology, they have never looked better in texture and stationary shots. While the animatronics are still impressive, at times a little more artificial, they still do a phenomenal job making them pop off the screen.
Jurassic World: Dominion was entertaining and fun, with the effects being the main thing to enhance the movie theater experience. The film juggles the cast decently, uses the various species quite well, and breaks open the music and technology to really craft this world. It handles the cast pretty well and keeps that engaging pace we like to see in these movies. However, it does at times lack the bite of the original series, almost putting too much into one film that it spreads the quality across its two-hour runtime unevenly. But, overall, it was still an exhilarating and fun film to watch and a nice conclusion to the beloved franchise that will make fans new and old very happy.
Jurassic World: Dominion is now playing only in theaters.
What did you think of the film? Let us know in the comments below.
