Jurassic Park 30th Anniversary RealD 3D Review

MOVIE REVIEW

Well, what do you know? This year, 2023, is the 30th anniversary of one of cinema's most visually groundbreaking and constantly re-watched creature feature masterpieces, Jurassic Park. And it's back for a week-long engagement in 3D at most theaters. This Steven Spielberg classic is a simple story about a man named John Hammond. Hammond discovers dinosaur DNA, Hammond finds a way to use the DNA to create living, breathing dinosaurs in the current age (by current, I mean at least 30 years ago), and Hammond finds a way to turn living, breathing dinosaurs into theme parks attractions. However, when he brings several scientists and his grandchildren to the island of Isla Nublar where he sets up shop, he soon discovers that containing dinosaurs around before a time humans existed is not as simple as it looks. In between a sabotage attempt, a tropical storm, and a desperate lack of backup measures, what at first appears as fun and games quickly turns into a pressing matter of survival.

If you know anything about me, The 3D Dinosaur, you know about my profile picture of the famous t-rex from this film wearing the poorly edited on 3D glasses (I know it probably looks solid enough when viewed in a tiny corner of the webpage. But if you blow it up, you'll see what I'm talking about). If you've seen it and thought that the reason I chose a dinosaur from the film Jurassic Park to represent me is that it's one of my all-time favorite movies, well, you'd be right. I mean, what's not to love with this film? It's got terror, dinosaurs, a solidly-constructed story, a message that doesn't feel hammered in, great pacing, and likable characters (written in true Spielberg fashion). There's a reason it's held in high esteem even in modern-day culture. It's just a fun, expertly crafted film. Would I say it's my personal favorite of Spielberg's works? Probably not, but only for a couple small nitpicks. But on the whole, it's still an absolute blast.

If nothing else, what makes Jurassic Park the film what it is is the atmosphere. It starts out as whimsical and inspiring in the first half before plunging into terror and darkness in the second, and both halves of the film contrast and work off each other perfectly. The first hour of the movie does take a little while to truly get going as it takes us through the exposition as any good film should. But it's still charming and unique enough that you're never bored. And of course, it's here where the characters drop off seeds of wisdom that come back to bite Hammond a little later. But when the dinosaurs get out of their pens, it's a thrill ride. The sheer intensity the film delivers, especially in the famous t-rex break out scene, is staggering to say the least. The cinematography and shot compositions are something admirable even to this day. The CGI gets a lot of credit with this film and rightfully so. In fact, it's quite mind-boggling how not only does the CGI manage to be so realistic even when it was in its primitive stages of development, but also how 30 years later, modern CGI often doesn't even hold a candle to what this film presented. I guess that could spark a whole conversation about how the easier it is to create films, the worse they end up becoming. But that's beyond the scope of this review. The sound is also very well done. The John Williams score is fantastic, up there with some of his best works, capturing the majesty and awe of a theme park around dinosaurs while also capturing the horror when all that awe turns against our protagonists. The sound effects are also mixed incredibly well, especially during the scenes when the threatening creatures emerge. It all culminates into an unforgettable experience.

But while Jurassic Park is most known for it's style, it's also not devoid of substance either. The story is pretty basic, but there are more than enough twists and turns to make it memorable. The message about playing God and dealing with things you don't understand has been done ever since the release of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. But once again, it's not a heavy-handed message, but one that rather flows naturally from the story. The characters are some of the most likable, enjoyable, and somewhat relatable people I've seen since Jaws last year. I guess Spielberg has a knack for writing fun and compelling characters. I could make this whole paragraph into a deep dive on everyone's personalities. But once again, that would beyond the scope of this review. It may have helped that I've seen the film at least 20 times now and that I'm familiar with everyone's names, roles, and personalities. But still, every time I see it, going on this theme park attraction of a film along side these people is the glue that really holds the film together. Even in the recent Jurassic World movies that everyone can almost unanimously agree are inferior to the original film, Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, and especially Ian Malcolm all have plenty of charm that carry those films. One thing I quite appreciate about the performances in Jurassic Park is how even in the most intense of situations, characters can still make a one-liner or witty remark that'll draw a small laugh from the audience, but make it brief enough it doesn't take away from the drama and terror of the scene. This is the kind of thing I often see missing in modern-day creature features. All around, the performances are spot on (special mention to those child actors who sell the peril of being chased by velociraptors or spotted by a t-rex quite impeccably).

Is Jurassic Park a full on masterpiece of filmmaking? In many ways, yes. That being said, I believe it falls just a little short of being quite on the same level of emotional investment and ingenious storytelling as something like Jaws or Schindler's List. But don't get me wrong. That takes away nothing from what's otherwise a groundbreaking technical achievement and simultaneously a good-old fashioned thrill ride that gives you just enough dinosaurs and delivers the right amount of fun. A bit like Jaws, it's a simple movie that works splendidly for some pretty simple but brilliant reasons. The result, a film that stands the test of time and that kids nowadays can enjoy just as much as their parents did 30 years ago.

OVERALL FILM RATING: 4.5/5

3D REVIEW

Jurassic Park is not only hitting the big screen again this weekend, but it's also hitting it in 3D. The 3D conversion on display here was actually done back in 2013 when the film got re-released for its 20th anniversary. Back in those days, 3D re-releases were pretty common with films such as this, Monsters Inc., Titanic, and even Stars Wars: The Phantom Menace (which I've heard some people call one of the flattest 3D presentations they've ever witnessed). However, 3D conversions were still a bit hit or miss, so discernment was still needed somewhat when deciding between a 3D or a 2D showing. Luckily, Jurassic Park 3D was one of the hits. And even nowadays when we're pretty spoiled on great 3D conversions, it still holds up thanks to the fact that the creators "spared no expense" in making sure the 3D experience from one of the most revered adventure-thrillers ever created was more than worthwhile. Does it have a few minor drawbacks? Sure. But they're easily outweighed by all the extra dimension adds to this classic film.

A lot like Jaws's 3D conversion from last year, the main reason this film works in 3D is simply because of the direction and composition of the majority of camera shots taken throughout the film, even though 3D wasn't in mind when the film was created. Not only that, but the conversion team did very solid job of allowing as much depth in the frame as possible. There aren't a ton of scenes that really allow you to look off far into the horizon. But the ones that do are staggering. There's one moment where three characters are sitting in a high tree and looking off over the jungle and you can see dinosaurs' heads poking out from over the many trees. That's probably the greatest example fantastically choreographed depth, but the movie still has plenty of other highlights as well. Scenes such as the dinosaur dig from early on the movie to the part where Alan Grant and Hammond's two grandkids run from a herd of fleeting dinosaurs to the electric fence climb allow you to see off into far away mountains. There are even a few shots of a helicopter flying over the oceans which lend themselves well to a couple of fairly deep shots of the ocean horizon. One thing the 3D really adds to the picture is the size and scale of the dinosaurs themselves. When our heroes enter the park and see the Brachiosaurus for the first time, the 3D really lets you feel like you're truly looking at an enormous dinosaur. And that quality especially comes into play later with scenes such as the t-rex breakout and the finale in the visitor's center.

But with most shots in the film, it isn't exactly what's far away that's most impressive, but rather the stuff that's right in front of us. There's plenty of 3D shots that utilize the composition of objects in ways that are highly effective but still subtle enough to feel engaging. The most frequent examples of this involve the jungle and its foliage. Right when the film starts, we're treated to some shots of trees, limbs, and leaves getting pushed back as a vehicle moves through it carrying a gigantic box with a velociraptor in it (it is also in this scene when we get a neat 3D close up shot of a man's mouth as he yells "Shoot her!"). We get these kinds of shots throughout the film whether someone is out hunting raptors, whether we're looking into a raptor pen and the plants in it start moving violently as the raptor devours a cow, whether Alan Grant is climbing a tree to get young child out of it, and whether Ned is driving through the jungle at night trying to get out of the park. Scenes are these are ripe for interesting viewing in 3D. Besides just the jungle itself, there's still much to take in with the environment. There are some mesmerizing moments with an electric fence, including a few top down and even one bottom up shot where the fence is composed very well for 3D. Other fences throughout the film also benefit greatly from the added dimension. The aforementioned raptor pen is prime example, especially late in the movie when two characters discover it's been torn through.

Elsewhere, there are also a few large metal gates, the entrance to Jurassic Park on the tour looks big and grand in 3D, and the scene where the t-rex pushes the Jeep over the edge of a cliff leads some well choreographed shots that are immersive as well as dizzying. There are a couple interesting diagonal top-down shots of the ground which feature it at two levels and the story characters somewhere in the middle of them. The Jeep also are composed in ways that lend themselves incredibly to 3D. You can feel a sense of claustrophobia inside them, but you can also look outside the windows into the surrounding environment. That especially comes into play halfway through the film when the t-rex breaks out of his pen and our characters are powerless to do anything but sit still and hope for the best. And the added bonus of rain on the glass adds just another interesting element to the 3D experience. When a lamb's bloody leg falls on the sunroof, the t-rex places his eye right next to the granddaughter holding a flashlight, and when the t-rex straight up breaks through the clear roof of the car, leaving him with only a thin barrier between him and his midnight snack, you don't just feel the terror, you're part of it. There are a few pretty great reflection shots where the 3D is serviced well. There is also t-rex chase scene that feels all the more engaging when you're placed alongside the main characters, and in it is also a fun little view of a rear-view mirror reading "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear". It was already a clever and fun enough shot in 2D. But in 3D when you can actually see into the mirror, the shot just hits differently, and in a good way.

Even indoors, the 3D views don't cease to be interesting. From the smaller side of things, there are several close up shots of amber with a mosquito trapped inside from 65 million years ago. But there are also bigger shots such as that of the visitor's center with a huge banner and some hanging dinosaur skeletons, a moving auditorium that shows you the genetic doctors at work, some corridors that appear quite claustrophobic at times, some fences, and the spacious control room with ample monitors. And when the terror picks up in the last 20 minutes of the movie, the kitchen and control room become tense 3D environment with a couple of neat reflection shots, shots of desks, doors with glass windows, and other surrounding object in their own 3D space. Funny enough, even during moments of almost complete darkness, such as when they have to turn the power off, the brightness levels remain up to snuff throughout the film and never leave you squinting at anything.

On par for a movie that wasn't created with 3D in mind, Jurassic Park doesn't contain an ample amount of gimmicky pop outs. In fact, the 3 minute dinosaur sequence in Journey to the Center of the Earth probably contains more shots of dinosaurs poking their heads out of the screen than you get in the entire duration of this flick. However, that doesn't discredit what pop outs this movie does have. They, just like the depth in-screen, are a lot more on the subtle side when it comes to 3D. Things like logs, tree branches, leaves, jeeps, rain, people's heads, dust, amber, a pair of night-vision goggles, and even guns are the things that you see really protruding the screen. They don't really draw attention to themselves while do it, but that's what helps make them effective at drawing you into the environment. But that doesn't mean there are a few pretty decent moments involving dinosaurs. The aforementioned scene of the t-rex bursting through the roof is quite exhilarating and has some decent screen protrusions. Later, the t-rex bites down on the lawyer and swings his body into the audience. During the jeep chase with the t-rex, he runs into a fallen tree which pulverizes it into splinters that fly out of the screen. But the best pop outs in the movie, though, occur in the last 20 minutes with the velociraptor twins. There's a shot where the camera is placed right behind the raptor's legs as he chases a boy, a shot where the raptor sticks his head out at you and looks into the audience with malicious intent, several shots where the t-rex grabs ahold of a raptor and swings him around just like the lawyer, and there's actually one very effective jump-scare that occurs when a raptor jumps into the roof of the control room (it also utilizes a tense top-down shot of a girl almost falling into the control room herself).

With all the good stuff out of the way, I think I should mention the one small caveat that I had with the 3D. And that would be that I got a small amount of eye-strain throughout the film, especially early on. It's not terrible and I think most audiences will endure it just fine. But I guess being how we're spoiled nowadays with 3D releases that don't turn your eyes into goo, the small amount of eye-strain I did get felt a little jarring.

With all I've said about the greatness of Jurassic Park in 3D, I think it's fair to say this ranks up there as one of greatest 3D legacy conversion efforts to hit the silver screen. That being said, I don't know if I can quite call the film necessary 3D viewing. While the composition is certainly top-notch throughout, the action doesn't get started until about halfway through the film. And quite honestly, there were quite a few times in the movie I almost forgot I was watching a 3D film. But when the 3D did kick up, man does it kick up. I have to disagree with Cinemablend's take on this 3D conversion. I don't believe the cinematography works against the 3D. On the contrary, I don't know if it can work any better with the 3D. If you're a 3D fanatic, this legacy conversion will more than satisfy your cravings for depth and a great immersive experience. And even if you're just a casual moviegoer, I'm sure you'll like how this 3D conversion puts this classic film in brand new light.

3D RATING: GREAT

OTHER SOURCES THAT REVIEW THIS MOVIE'S 3D:

Cinemablend's To 3D or Not Review: https://www.cinemablend.com/new/3D-Or-3D-Buy-Right-Jurassic-Park-Ticket-36717.html

High Def-Digest's Review: https://bluray.highdefdigest.com/8585/jurassic_park_3d.html

Tommy Boy 3D's Review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmI6h8WtF_0

3D Blu-ray Bunker's Review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuRft7heIQQ

Go Find Fun's Review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThvLYD5yTDo

FINAL THOUGHTS

What more can I say about Jurassic Park than "What more can I say about Jurassic Park?" It's simply a fun, thrilling adventure with great characters, a solid message, and creative direction. There's a reason it stands the test of time. It remains just as awe-inspiring and intense the first time as it is the twentieth. No doubt about it, it'll go down in movie history as one of the most beloved dinosaur movies ever put to the silver screen. Now does the 3D version of the film do it justice? You'll be happy to hear yes, it does. From beginning to end, the direction which was already immersive and dreadful enough in 2D makes an even bigger spectacle of nature's most intimidating creatures in the third dimension. Is it required that you go see Jurassic Park in 3D? Not exactly. Though with the way this 30th anniversary re-release is going, you probably have no choice but to see it in 3D. But even still, you're certainly going to get more out of it in 3D than you will seeing it in 2D. The conversion team really put a lot of care and effort into making sure every ounce of this 3D-ripe classic from 1993 will impressive just as highly as you'd expect, and maybe even a little bit more. And even 10 years after the conversion was finished, it still ranks up there as one of the most admirable 3D legacy conversions there is. There's very little to be disappointed with. The only real drawback I had with this 30th anniversary re-release is that there are virtually no IMAX 3D showings anywhere, at least not in my area. That's a real shame because Jurassic Park is a film that really deserves the biggest screen and best quality sound system it can get its hands on. And because of the film's 1.85:1 aspect ratio, it would've done like E.T. did last year on its IMAX re-release and fill up the entire IMAX screen. Sadly, I guess that's just an experience I'll have to live without. But still, even on your standard movie theater screen, Jurassic Park coming back to cinemas is one trip that's certainly worth the cherry red ICEE and a pair of 3D glasses. What are you waiting for? Check out this masterpiece in all its 3D glory on the big screen while you can.

DID YOU LIKE "JURASSIC PARK 30TH ANNIVERSARY" IN 3D?

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