Then I went and saw it again.
And if anybody out there needs someone to go see it with, I'll go see it a third time.
It's true that, except for the beautiful views of the island of Kauai where the movie was filmed and the computer-generated dinos, "Jurassic World" isn't piece of cinematic art.
But then a few weeks ago I went to the Drexel, our local art film place, and saw "The Clouds Of Sils Maria", which got 4 1/2 stars and rave critical reviews and at the end of the movie I exclaimed to anybody close enough to hear, "What the heck was that about?" and the lady sitting in front of me turned to me and replied, "I don't know, but I want that two hours of my life back!"
I will admit, though, that there was an awesome scene in "The Clouds Of Sils Maria" of the Moloja Snake, which is a vast cloud formation that daily winds its way above the Engadin Valley in St. Moritz, Switzerland, so that from a distance it looks like a giant white snake is winding its way through the valley.
Eh, maybe it was.
"Jurassic World", on the other hand, was unequivocally worth the cost of the two tickets I've sprung for so far as well as the third I may yet end up shelling out for.
I mean, the characters in "Jurassic World" may not be emotionally complex or nuanced - well, at least not the human characters; the dinosaurs, on the other hand kind of are. Especially the raptors, who throughout the film appear to be struggling with nature-nurture issues,
...nor, thank goodness, does the smart, hyper-organized, uber-competent park manager played by Bryce Dallas Howard (Hilly Holbrook in "The Help"), who looks downright fetching throughout the movie, especially the scenes where she's running for her life from the terrible Indominus Rex with the speed and agility of an olympic sprinter while wearing a skirt and 6-inch heels. |
It wasn't funny. At all. There were lots of scenes that looked as though they were supposed to be funny but nobody in the theater was laughing. Still, I'm predicting the "The Overnight" will win an academy award even though it's just a big dull mess of a movie and far less believable than an amusement park full of cogitating dinosaurs running amok.
So whatever you do, when it comes to a theater near you, don't go see "The Overnight". Or "The Clouds of Sils Maria", either.
But if you want to go see "Jurassic World", give me a call.