Jurassic Park (Movie Review)

There are very few director's out there with the track record of outrageous success combined with an equally impressive resume. There are even fewer movies out there that as they age show little to no signs of said age. Jurassic Park is one of those films. A sublime hybrid of science fiction, horror, and action/adventure, Spielberg's dinosaur flick shines to this day in spite of its inferior sequels. 

A film that basically needs no introduction, but in an effort to cover all bases, follows Dr. Grant (Sam Niel) and a group of experts who are flown out to a secret attraction looking for the thumbs up in order to open to the public. While there, the dino exhibits prove to be breathtaking and surreal, but when the park begins to experience a series of electrified fences shutting down, the park guests and employees find themselves on the bottom of the food chain when the dinos escape and go on the hunt. 

Released in 1993, Jurassic Park was praised for its use of practical FX as well as an almost seamless blend of incredible CGI. Yet, even if one perceives the age of the special effects, the film's perfect pace and edge-of-your-seat tension to this day adds up to top tier entertainment. Add in the undeniable charm of Jeff Goldblum's chaos theory musings, Sam Jackson's "Hold on to your butts" line delivery, and T-Rex shenanigans there is nary a dull moment to be had and a dense amount of character depth from scene to scene. 

You can't throw a rock into a crowd without hitting someone who would recognize and hum along with John Williams' iconic score- even if you did hit someone who can't, they probably deserved it anyway. The theme in and of itself infects the brain and sticks there for days. The sound design is just as impressive, bringing to life the larger than life roar of the legendary T-Rex, dread inducing caw of the deadly Raptors, and terrifying screech of the dilophosaurus that gets up close and personal with poor Newman (aka Dennis as played by Wayne Knight). 

Jurassic Park hits every movie nerds sweet spot. It's a rare gem that nails every moment of excitement, terror, humor, and even emotion. One one hand, it's responsible for inflicting a pair of mediocre sequels, but on the other, it inspired the juggernaut blockbuster that was Jurassic World. All in all, Jurassic Park should and most likely will be remembered as one of the best sci fi/action/horror movies ever made and one that should be in every movie fans collection.