Right at the beginning of JURASSIC WORLD: REBIRTH there is a hint that this is a break from the increasingly lackluster sequels to which we have been subjected. It is the moment when we see that Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson), the upbeat mercenary of the piece, is recruiting paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey) for a mission that is not just morally questionable, it’s also illegal in every country on the planet. There she is in a smartly tailored suit, professional hair, and a prominent pair of sneakers. Unlike her immediate predecessor, this heroine will be sporting sensible footwear when running to, around, and from prehistoric behemoths. As the over two hours of running time zip by, that hint comes to fruition in a film that has the Speilbergian touch (he’s Executive Producer) and musical annotation based on John William’s original. This is a film about very large animals and and even larger emotions that never forgets its humanity while enchanting as well as inducing adrenalin rushes of epic proportions.
That mission would be setting out to take genetic samples from the only dinosaurs left on said planet, who, we learn, have been doomed by our modern climate, air, sunlight, and a public for whom the magic of reconstituting the extinct has dwindled to nothingness. Henry, who will be correctly described by Zora as an interesting nerd later on, hesitates for many reasons, including the fact that he is the bookish type, not someone who has been shot at regularly. But the call of the wild, cleverly invoked by the ever-resourceful Zora, convinces him, much to the delight of Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend), the dastardly Big Pharma guy with deep pockets and no morals. No, there is no doubt about Krebs (as in cycle, nice touch), which makes the way Zora toys with him once they get to the jungle even more fun.
Before you can say Apatosaurus, they are floating in the equatorial Atlantic hot on the trail of a Mosasaurus, the first of the triad of sea, land, and air dinosaurs from whom they need those samples. And because the goal of Big Pharma is to develop a drug that will prevent cardiac disease, these samples can only come from the biggest dinosaurs in each category for reasons that make sense, at least in the context of a sci-fi adventure.
The boat is owned by Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali), an old pal of Zora’s, who loves money, but loves doing the right thing even more. So, when a mayday comes in as they are tracking a conveniently low-jacked mosasaur, he turns the boat around to rescue them. They are a father Reuben Delgado (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), two his daughters, teenage Teresa (Luna Blaise) and curly haired moppet Bella (Audrina Miranda) and Teresa’s slacker boyfriend, Xavier Dobbs (David Iacono), and theirs was not just any emergency while attempting to sail across the Atlantic. No, it was an attack by just the sort of dinosaur Zora and company are hunting, adding to the distress levels of the newly rescued people, who must also be kept in the dark about the illegal operation.
Gareth Edwards directs with an infectious energy, making each dinosaur reveal more spectacular than the one before while pacing the action such that the momentum continuously builds without a single misstep or lag. It’s not just the rampages, of which there are many, but also, and most notably, when we meet the Titanosaurus. The reveal is slow and almost mystical, becoming moreso as the camera follows the improbable length of the creatures to reveal the unexpected. It is mesmerizing even without Henry’s quiet elation about finally being able to not just see a dinosaur in the wild, but also to be able to
touch one. The sense of wonder washing over us is a reminder what it was like to be a kid discovering the world. Not that the rampages aren’t great, but in the grand scheme of things, wonder is far more difficult to achieve than fear.
As for those rampages, they take place on land, water, and in the air with each cliffhanger somehow being even more jaw dropping than the last one, rife as they are with near misses and the satisfaction of learning that sometimes a misbehaving dinosaur can be too big for its own good.
For all the CGI involved, it is the stories on the human scale that resonate most effectively. There is time allotted for the characters to have, ahem, heart-to-heart conversations that reveal backstory with impressive brevity that makes regrets palpable, especially in a film that understands the power of understatement. It’s not the screams that haunt after someone is dragged aways by a dinosaur, it’s the bandana that a friend picks up, the camera lingering on the copious drops of blood falling from it. Kudos especially to Miranda, who makes Bella cute but not cloying, and as intrepid as the adults despite a well-defined sense of the trauma expected when seeing someone’s role in the food chain be reassigned to light snack. It would not be JURRASIC, of course, without some kids along for the ride, but these are not window dressing. They’re as indelible as the adults are.
Notable, as well, are the call outs to the original-Henry studied under Alan Grant-and the butterfly effect appearing via an errant candy wrapper and chance. New this time are a cute baby ceratopsid that charms without resorting to saccharine, and the discovery that a sleeping T. Rex can be as terrifying as one that is awake.
JURASSIC WORLD: REBIRTH lives up to its name and then some. For all of us who have slogged through derivative flicks that served only to the sully the original, here is a sequel that is as awe-inspiring as the first one. Good deeds are rewarded, the element of surprise never flags, and a novel use of an irritating slacker as comic relief all make for a perfect entertainment that begs to be seen on the biggest screen you can find.
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