Five out of
Five stars
Running time:
130 mins
Twenty years on and Spielberg's dino-classic has lost none of its impact, while the 3D conversion is state-of-the-art and genuinely enhances the film.
What's it all about?
Directed by Steven Spielberg, Jurassic Park is based on the novel by Michael Crichton and stars Sam Neill as palaeontologist Dr Alan Grant, who's invited to a preview tour of Jurassic Park, where billionaire philanthropist John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) has cloned dinosaurs for a safari theme park.
Tagging along for the tour are Grant's paleobotanist girlfriend Dr Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) and Hammond's grandchildren Lex (Ariana Richards) and Tim Murphy (Joseph Mazzello). However, during the tour, something goes horribly wrong and, after a power outage, the visitors are attacked by the now free-roaming dinosaurs, including a Tyrannosaurus Rex and a pair of vicious Velociraptors.
The Good
The 3D conversion on the film is nothing less than astonishing and genuinely enhances the film, especially during the scene towards the end where the Velociraptor leaps up at the open hatch (already a leap-out-of-your-seat moment, now a leap-out-of-the-way moment). The sound has also been given a tweak or two, so seeing the film in IMAX is a thoroughly immersive experience.
That said, even without the newly added 3D effects, the film would still be worthy of a re-release, as it has lost none of its impact and wonder in the last twenty years. Indeed, despite the leaps and bounds made by CGI technology in the interim, the extraordinary (and Oscar-winning) special effects still stand up and don't look remotely dated.
The Great
Needless to say, there's plenty to enjoy here, from the performances (Mazzello and Richards in particular – Spielberg really puts them through the wringer) to the fabulous set-pieces (T-Rex attack, Velociraptors in kitchen), to the designs of the dinosaurs themselves (notably the poison-spitting Dilophosaurus that attacks Wayne Knight's Dennis Nedry) to John Williams' magnificent score.
Worth seeing?
The state-of-the-art 3D conversion makes Jurassic Park (3D) a thoroughly welcome and genuinely unmissable re-release – it almost feels like watching the film for the first time again. See it in IMAX if at all humanly possible.