100 Movie Days: Day 26 - Jurassic Park (1993)

The passing of Sir Richard Attenborough prompted me to rewatch this movie but I didn't get to it until today. Attenborough was five days short of 91 when he died this August so at the very least, he lived a long life. Unfortunately I haven't seen him in any role other than John Hammond, the creator of Jurassic Park, but he will be remembered for great things.

If you haven’t seen this movie after more than twenty years, you should be ashamed of yourself. I hadn’t rewatched Jurassic Park in close to ten years and I wondered if it still held up visually. For the most part I would say yes. The CG was a little bit sloppy in 1993 but can you blame them? They were probably working with technology that we would use as doorstops. The animatronics are still as amazing as ever and can even rival some visuals in film today.

Although in general a very serious film there are a few scenes that really stick out due to their tension relief. The one that always gets me is when Alan scares Tim and Lex by pretending to be electrocuted when he grabs the inactive electric fence. Also whenever Laura Dern screams or cries she contorts her face to the limits and for some reason that makes me laugh. I like to rag on Dern only because I've only liked her in October SkyJeff Goldblum eases the tension with his quick quips yet he doesn't add much of his expertise as the Mathematician on the tour. 

Director Steven Spielberg and composer John Williams are long time collaborators and this is one of their best works. For some other ones check out this article. I am a bit worried for Jurassic World coming in 2015 because trading in Spielberg for relatively inexperienced Colin Trevorrow could hurt the film. Fortunately with Chris Pratt as your lead and great music from Michael Giacchino you can't go wrong. Giacchino may best be known for his work on the new Star Trek film series, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Lost, and Up.

Jurassic Park is still a phenomenal film that is still beautiful visually and has some of the most iconic music in history. If it's been a while maybe it's time to revisit it.  

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