Reviewed by: Joe

Directed by: Joe Johnston

Produced by: Kathleen Kennedy & Larry J. Franco

Cast: Sam Neill, William H. Macy, Téa Leoni, Alessandro Nivola, & Michael Jeter

Released: July 18, 2001

Action/Adventure 1 hr. 32 min. Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill) was personally shaken by his encounter with live dinosaurs, but he remains determined to study them. Desperate to fund research for a new theory about velociraptor intelligence, he's particularly vulnerable when the wealthy Kirbys approach him, offering money for his presence on an aerial tour of Isla Sorna, adjacent to Isla Nublar, the site of Grant's nightmarish experiences. Once fate causes them to crash on the island, he learns that it was a scam concocted by the Kirbys to get an experienced guide to help them find and rescue their son, who vanished while vacationing... not realizing that Grant's prior visit was NOT to Isla Sorna. Marooned in a savage land, they have to struggle to escape from all sorts of new creatures with their lives.

Taking a page from The Lost World’s playbook, only one cast member from the original Jurassic Park film returns to the franchise joining a relatively undistinguished cast when one considers the demographic audience the studio is aiming for with this film. Sam Neill, who once again returns to the world of Jurassic Park in the role of Dr. Alan Grant, appears as though he is seriously contemplating where his acting career went wrong that he had to return to doing films like this. This isn’t to say that his performance isn’t up to par, in fact there seems to be little difference from the first film of how he portrays the character, but that he deserves better gigs then this. William H. Macy, who deserves so much more for his career then a starring role in a B-movie like this, works well with the material that is given to him and no one knowing the quality of the screenplay can ask for anything beyond that. Yes, the character is predictable, in the same light as the rest of the movie, but Macy gives him a charming, if not slightly bumbling, persona that makes the audience care about him. Unfortunately, this can not be said for the rest of the cast of characters. Jurassic Park III plays out in much the same way as Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection do when it comes to killing off characters, the audience simply doesn’t care. The group is barely on the island less then ten minutes and two characters, ones we don’t get any background on what-so-ever outside the fact that they are mercenaries, are killed right off the bat. The original two films, even the Lost World which, by all definition, was a disaster, gave each character a distinct personality and let the audience get a specific grasp on them so that when the killing started, we would know whether to root or fear for their safety.

Overall, Jurassic Park III, despite showing slight, if not trifling, improvements from the last installment, indicates the once vibrant franchise may be on its last leg and should go the way of the prehistoric beasts it was based on – to extinction. For those have no prior experience involved with the Jurassic Park franchise (what rock have you been hiding under?), JP3 can be an entertaining, if not enjoyable, B-movie experience with none of the usual burden of being the least bit memorable. On the other hand, if you happen to be one of those individuals who expects better from a highly-anticipated sequel then the same formulaic. Applause must be given to the filmmakers for at least attempting to relinquish to the requests of the franchise fanatics wanting difference and originality with the sequels. Sadly these improvements come too little too late. These simple changes to the series (namely new dinosaurs and more personality to the creatures) should have been made in The Lost World and by having them done here feels like a desperate attempt to breathe life back into this tired franchise. All in all, Jurassic Park III doesn’t handle itself like a original feature but rather it comes off as a regurgitation of all the great elements of the first film and the worst aspects (and there were many) from the second, all blended together in a syrupy mess that works alright but can be easily forgotten. With the success that met this film upon its opening weekend, there’s no doubt that another sequel is once again in the works over at Universal Studios. Let’s just hope that they get the message this time around and actually venture on something original with the franchise.