“Jurassic Park” remains monstrously good after 30 years
“Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should,” is the central thesis of 1993’s “Jurassic Park,” as said by the character of Dr. Ian Malcolm, portrayed by Jeff Goldblum. After 30 years between the film’s release and today, this idea has only become more relevant. Michael Crichton’s deliciously scary novel provides Steven Spielberg and his crew with a playground of ideas to work with. The very idea of a gigantic dinosaur zoo that goes wrong is ripe for film adaptation. With Crichton penning the screenplay and the cast picked out, “Jurassic Park” was well into production. By the time it was done and the film was released to the public, audiences around the globe were in awe of the spectacle, scope and groundbreaking CGI on display. Instantly and unsurprisingly, “Jurassic Park” became an instant classic.
The film’s story follows Dr. Alan Grant, played by Sam Niell, and Dr. Ellie Satler, played by Laura Dern as they receive an invitation from businessman and entertainment entrepreneur John Hammond, played by Richard Attenborough, to visit his brand new theme park with real, living dinosaurs, so as to get their approval to go ahead with the park’s opening. They agree, and are flown to the secluded island that houses “Jurassic Park,” along with Dr. Ian Malcolm and Donald Gerraro, a lawyer played by Martin Ferrero. After a lackluster and mostly dinosaur-less tour, the power eventually goes out due to meddling from Dennis Nedry, a two-faced computer scientist played by Wayne Knight who sabotages the tour in order to steal dino embryos to sell to Hammond’s competition. After the tour is stopped near the T-Rex paddock, they realize the tour has gone awry and are now realizing that they have to escape the island before they’re caught by the killer dinosaurs.
The film’s cast is pretty much perfect. Everyone always talks about Goldblum and Attenborough, yet Sam Neill as Alan Grant is incredibly slept on. He delivers not only one of the best performances in the movie, but also one of the film’s best comedic performances. His deadpan line delivery still cracks me up and the scene towards the beginning where he purposefully scares a snot-nosed kid with a raptor’s claw remains very funny. His chemistry with Laura Dern is totally palpable, and it’s a little disappointing the movie nor its sequels made their relationship anything official.
However, of course, Goldblum and Attenborough are the real MVPs of the film. Turning the character of John Hammond from a snide and greedy business tycoon like he was in the novel, to a wide-eyed dreamer with a massive naivete was a great decision on Spielberg’s part, and Attenborough is so perfectly cast for that role. He begins the film so infectiously joyous about his park, and as things start to go wrong, you genuinely feel terrible that this man’s dream is slipping away right before his eyes, however misguided it might have been. Everyone is similarly fantastic, as it’s clear that Spielberg and crew took special care with the cast in particular.
Something the crew especially excelled with, however, was the groundbreaking visuals. Seriously, I can’t stress enough how amazing this movie still looks. Even discarding the actual CGI, Spielberg is really at the top of his game here. The lighting in particular is so eye-catching, and the 3D admittedly finally made me realize just how well it’s set up. The framing, too, is simply sublime. “Every frame a painting” has never been truer. The scenes of grandiose wonder contrasted with the claustrophobic, nail-biting suspense of the later moments really brings to the forefront how dynamic Spielberg is as a filmmaker, and why he’s so revered.
Still, the effects are still really something to behold. To think that they were almost going to go with Ray Harryhousen-style claymation for the dinosaurs is a little unbelievable, since the CGI that they ended up going with worked so well. In fact, it’s so effective that I would argue it easily holds up 30 years later. I think it’s partly due to the use of animatronic puppetry used in tandem with the CGI, but I don’t want to discredit how real the computer-generated dinosaurs still feel. It’s almost embarrassing if you compare the tangible dinosaurs in this movie with the fake-looking CGI renders in its legacy sequel, “Jurassic World.” Put simply, every part of this film’s look is absolutely stunning.
As I took my seat in the sold-out theater, I was able to put myself in the shoes of someone witnessing “Jurassic Park” in all its glory for the first time in 1993. I love anniversary screenings, and watching Steven Speilberg’s magnum opus on the big screen truly feels like the best possible way to watch it. I got to clap when the iconic theme first boomed through the speakers, I got to laugh along with everyone when Jeff Goldblum did anything and I got to cheer when the hulking Tyrannosaurus Rex delivered her last amazing roar. It was a great experience, and a lovely chance to revisit one of my favorite movies in the medium that it was created to be seen in.
