When the film adaptation of Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park first premiered in 1993, it changed movies forever. Not only did it go on to become one of the highest-grossing films of all time (via Box Office Mojo), but it ushered in a new era of CGI and visual effects in cinema. Since then, the franchise has seen some massive ups and downs, with some movies receiving praise, while critics and audiences have panned others.
Now, almost thirty years after the original film's release, the adventure is finally coming to a conclusion with Jurassic World Dominion. Serving as both the sixth film in the franchise and an homage to the original movie, Dominion is sure to be a box office hit, but whether it will end up being more successful than the original is still up to debate.
Jurassic World: Dominion - 30%
Jurassic World Dominion depicts a world after the destruction of Isla Nublar in the Fallen Kingdom movie. Now, dinosaurs have managed to populate all corners of the Earth and humanity must find a way to live in balance with the new reality they inadvertently created.
Some critics loved the return of Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum, and many feel that its underlying theme of humans' endless impacts on the planet serves as an important reminder of today's real-world issues. However, for others, they were a few criticisms, with some complaining about the "underwhelming finale" and the "uninteresting, unrelated stories." (via Variety).
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom - 47%
After Jurassic World became a box-office hit (via Box Office Mojo) and rejuvenated the dormant Jurassic Park franchise, its sequel was released to a much different reaction. Whereas Jurassic World's plotline was tight, contained, and worked, Fallen Kingdom decided to go completely off the rails and focus on a volcanic eruption, new breeds of genetically engineered dinosaurs, and a nefarious black market scheme.
Despite holding a sour 47% rating on Rotten Tomatoes (with an audience score that isn't much better at just 48%) the film still went on to be a global success, raking in $1.3 billion at the box office (via Box Office Mojo).
Jurassic Park III - 48%
Often cited as the worst film in the Jurassic Park series, Jurassic Park III brought back Sam Neill to portray Dr. Alan Grant and even brought Laura Dern back for a brief cameo as Ellie Sattler. The plot centered around Dr. Grant getting called in to help a family find their son, who went missing after illegally parasailing over the now-abandoned island of Isla Sorna.
The big selling point of the film was the introduction of new dinosaurs, especially the Spinosaurus, which filled the role of the T-Rex from the first two films. However, although it didn't do too bad at the Box Office (via Box Office Mojo), not even the Spinosaurus could save this dull movie. Critics and audiences agreed that Jurassic Park III was recycling too much of the same old formula (which is likely one of the reasons why it earned 48% on Rotten Tomatoes).
The Lost World: Jurassic Park - 53%
Crichton wrote a sequel to his Jurassic Park novel called The Lost World. The story brought back Ian Malcolm, who travels to Isla Sorna - the island where dinosaurs were bred and hatched before being transported to Jurassic Park on Isla Nublar. Like the book, the movie resurrected the role of Dr. Malcolm and brought back Jeff Goldblum, who became the only original character to return for the film (aside from a brief cameo by Richard Attenborough at the start of the movie).
Audiences and critics were left divided over the film. It was fun and exciting, but many felt it just reused the dinosaur trope without adding anything new to the mix, besides adding two T-Rex enemies instead of just one. However, retrospectives have been much kinder to the film (via Tor.com), and The Lost World is starting to gain its own fanbase.
Jurassic World - 71%
Released in 2015, more than twenty years after the original film, Jurassic World completely revived the Jurassic Park franchise, becoming a wildly successful film and earning almost $1.7 billion at the global box office. The movie was so successful that it kickstarted the new trilogy and finally brought dinosaurs roaring back into theaters, across the globe.
But more importantly, Jurassic World was a success because it was actually a good film. Critics and audiences agreed that the story was interesting, and the existence of Jurassic World felt believable within the JP universe. It took what worked so well in the original and remodeled it into something that felt familiar, yet fresh.
Jurassic Park - 92%
It would be hard for any Jurassic film to outdo the original. When it premiered in 1993, it completely revolutionized cinema. In fact, during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Jurassic Park was re-released into theaters since no new productions were able to be completed...and it once again topped the box office, almost thirty years after its original release (via Forbes). The movie is so good that it's universally agreed that Jurassic Park is a timeless classic.
The movie depicted a new theme park opening up on the island of Isla Nublar, but rather than being filled with rides, the attractions were actual dinosaurs brought back from extinction using genetic engineering. The concept was wild and outlandish, but in the hands of Steven Spielberg, it felt tight, concise, and real. The 1993 review from The New York Times even stated, "Anybody can stage a fight, but it takes Mr. Spielberg to show just how the pots and pans might go flying at the stroke of a velociraptor's tail, or how the children might trick their wily attackers."