From a young age, I have always loved sci-fi, thriller, and horror movies. My brother and I used to have a long-standing tradition of watching films with his projector on Christmas morning. One film that never failed to jump scare us was “Jurassic Park.” This exhilarating dinosaur franchise brings me great nostalgia.
In case you are unfamiliar with the series, the original film, “Jurassic Park,” was directed by Steven Spielberg and released in 1993. In this movie, an industrialist, Hammond, is able to scientifically revive dinosaurs from the dead. Taking place on the island of Isla Nublar, paleontologists, funders, and Hammond’s grandchildren are brought in to observe the theme park before it opens to the public. When all seems to be going well, utter chaos breaks out when the T-Rex escapes. The staff and their families must find a way off the island before it is too late.
Soon enough, the series became a hit and continued growing. I enjoyed the first movies — “Jurassic Park,” “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” and “Jurassic Park III” — as well as the turning point of the series, “Jurassic World.” Released in 2015, “Jurassic World” introduced audiences to the first hybrid dinosaur, Indominus Rex. As the series progressed, I did not enjoy “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” and I didn’t even bother to watch “Jurassic World Dominion.” Everything was starting to get out of hand, and there was no engaging plot anymore. However, at the beginning of the year, a new trailer dropped, leaving audiences to wonder what will happen next for “Jurassic Park.”
In July, “Jurassic World Rebirth” entered theatres. Directed by Gareth Edwards, the film’s most anticipated character, Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson), is approached by an employee of a pharmaceutical company, Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend), who is on a mission to extract dinosaur blood because it could reduce the risk of cancer. He is able to convince Zora, Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), and my personal favorite character Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali), to join him in going to the island of Ile Saint-Hubert. Along the way, the crew unexpectedly comes across a small family stranded in the ocean — Teresa Delgado (Luna Blaise), Reuben Delgado (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), Isabella Delgado (Audrina Miranda), and Xavier Dobbs (David Iancono). As they are all ambushed by a pod of Spinosauri, they are forced to crash land into the island. From there, it is a matter of survival. However, as any true “Jurassic Park” fan would expect, the scientists on this island have cooked up something completely unpredictable: the Distortus Rex.
According to some fan theories, the D-Rex is a combination of the T-Rex and Titanosaurus — with features inspired by the Xenomorphs from the movie “Alien.” This is the ultimate dinosaur, but I am disappointed by its low screen time. There are maybe two or three scenes the monster actually appears in. Martin is arguably a larger threat than the D-Rex throughout the film. Considering the long line of dinosaur legacies it has to compete with, the D-Rex just does not compare.
One positive aspect of the movie is Duncan’s bravery and determination to save the crew from the D-Rex at the end. As everyone is running towards a safety boat to escape the island, the
D-Rex emerges from a cloud of smoke not far behind. Zora and Xavier are struggling to get the
boat down into the water. They need to either start running, or find a way to hold off the D-Rex. Dr. Loomis notices the D-Rex is attracted to light, so they try to find a way to distract it. Duncan
pulls out a flare, telling everyone to get on the boat. There is no fear behind his eyes, a light smile appears across his face. There is no doubt that he was prepared to put his life on the line to
save his comrades and the family. Everybody rides off into the dark ocean, watching the red
spark from the flare. They all call out to Duncan, but the red light disappears into the jungle. I am
about ready to shut off my laptop, feeling disappointed in the film, but I hear yelling. Another
flare is set off from afar: Duncan is alive. Somehow he managed to escape the D-Rex with no
scars or injuries. His comrades embrace him, and they all smile together feeling utter gratefulness. Duncan’s character is the true superhero I have been waiting for — sorry Scarlett Johansson. Perhaps his character will return for a final battle with the D-Rex.
Overall, I believe “Jurassic World Rebirth” could have given viewers more action from the biggest star, the D-Rex. However, this movie also leaves us to ponder: if the D-Rex lives on, what will happen to humanity? Thus, the franchise is not yet over. I give this film a solid three out of five Big Oles.
