25 years after dinosaurs roamed Isla Nublar, we bid adieu to the infamous island in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. The second in the Jurassic World trilogy, this film brings back the leads of the previous film, Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) and Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) back to the island for one last adventure.
An imminent volcanic eruption on the island threatens all life on the island but nefarious forces (ie wealthy rich men) make sure that the dinosaurs don't die. Benjamin Lockwood (James Cromwell), an old associate of John Hammond who created Jurassic Park, and his advisor Eli Mills (Rafe Spalls) rope back Claire and Owen to save a few of the dinosaur species, including Blue the raptor.
Directed by Spanish director J. A. Bayona, the film examines the dinosaurs' place in this new world. Man brought them back and now must deal with the consequences of that decision. There have been other choices - with cloning and the creation of new breeds of dinosaurs. What are the ethics behind all these god-like decisions?
But there isn't much time to discuss this all on the island. Owen, Claire and a team of mercenaries try to find as many dinosaurs as they can and take them to a sanctuary. But are these mercenaries to be trusted? Of course not!
With volcano on the island due to erupt at any moment, the action moves away back to California, on Lockwood's grand estate where he lives with his isolated granddaughter Maisie (Isabella Sermon). The smart little girl finds out what the two-timing Mills is up to - setting up an auction of the dinos on the black market.
Luckily, help is on the way. Claire and Owen have made it off the island and snuck aboard the vessel with the dinosaurs making its way to Lockwood's estate. Once there, they are caught and locked up, not before they realize their responsibility in bringing back the dinosaurs and creating them into the sharp, clever entities they are today.
They somehow find Maisie who aids them around the estate and they all try to derail the ongoing auction. They manage that spectacularly. The sequence that follows when the dinosaur species manage to escape and turn on the humans is frantic, gory and thrilling to watch.
The cat and mouse chase then develops between Owen, Claire, Maisie and a particularly persistent, Indoraptor (a cross species between the Indominus rex and a raptor). The stakes are high here and you'll definitely be on the edge of your sets.
Fallen Kingdom is the second film of this second Jurassic series and the addition of director Bayona is a great choice. He brings his editor and D.O.P. from The Impossible (2012) and The Orphanage (2007) respectively to the project and adds his own touch - connecting the series, 25 years apart.
Executive producer Steven Spielberg, who directed Jurassic Park (1993), set the template and others are carrying it forward. Bringing back the dinosaurs was an audacious move, 25 years ago, and it still remains an audacious move. Jeff Goldblum's Dr Malcolm is back in this installment to warn us again of the consequences. Like always, we never learn from history's past mistakes, do we?
Howard and Pratt are solid as usual. They have some close encounters with the cold-blooded reptiles. But it's the wide-eyed wonder and fear of Sermon's Maisie that will remain with you after the film. Maisie and that lone brachiosaurus waiting and wailing at the edge of the docks of Isla Nublar as the destruction and debris of the volcano is about to envelop her.
Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom is a great addition to the summer blockbuster season. Catch it if you can! My own quibble was there wasn't enough Jeff Goldblum.
Directed by J. A. Bayona; Written by Derek Connolly and Colin Trevorrow; Cinematography by Oscar Fuara; Editing by Bernat Vilaplana; Music by Michael Giacchino
22 years after Jurassic Park (1993) stormed its way into theatres, Jurassic World, the fourth in this gigantic franchise, is well on its way to make movie history itself. A new generation is experiencing the dino-mania that gripped the 90s when Stephen Spielberg and the talent team of VFX and animatronic artists showed us the forgotten world of dinosaurs. This time around, the whole experience feels a tad commercialised as we head back to dinosaur land in Jurassic World.
It was the dearly departed John Hammond's (the late Richard Attenborough) wish that the park be up and running at its finest for the public. In Jurassic World, it's all running smoothly until the newest attraction decides she's had enough of waiting in the wings for her big debut. Young brothers Gray (Ty Simpkins) and Zach (Nick Robinson) are our eyes and ears as we travel to Jurassic World for the first time. Their aunt Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) is the head of operations at the park and they've got an all-access pass to the park.
The introduction to the park via the brothers is breathtaking and very real. Gray's infectiousness at wanting to visit everything at the park is heady. It's Disney World meets Universal Studios with vicious prehistoric creatures. But everything here is treated as a commercial enterprise so there's a petting zoo with baby dinosaurs, a Sea World-esque splash zone where the mosasaurus eats a large shark like it's an appetizer (a not-so subtle ode to Spielberg's Jaws) and a gyrosphere which allows you to roam amongst the apatosaurus and the stegosaurus. I sorely missed Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum), from the first two films, who would have never allowed this to happen, he would have been the first to point out there's a looming disaster in the wings.
As a substitute, we have Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), the former Navy man turned Velociraptor wrangler, who believes that the dinosaurs aren't just park attractions but animals with a mind of their own. He leads the raptor pack (featuring Blue, Charlie, Delta and Echo) who've established a bond with him. When Jurassic World's latest dinosaur, Indominus Rex, outsmarts her handlers and escapes her paddock, a exhaustive search and rescue is set upon the island.
Of course, everyone underestimates how smart the dinosaur is. The Indominus Rex is hellbent on a mission to be the last dinosaur standing and the humans are helpless to stop it. Throughout the film, there are flashes of nostalgia with nods to the original Jurassic Park, a destroyed banner on the ground, the old jeep, the scene with the gyrosphere echoing the first encounter with the T-rex and then there are the original dinosaurs who let the Indominus Rex know who's boss. Seeing T-Rex stomp through the park in the climax gave me a big thrill; she's the real lead of the film.
Before the film released, it received a lot of flak for not having a strong feminist character. Howard's Claire started out the film dressed in all white, ran around in heels and according to Grady "has control issues". I'd like to point out that not only does she save Grady's life when he's been attacked by a dimorphodon, she also bravely leads the T-rex to the fight with the Indominus Rex. I guess that's not strong enough for everyone!
The rest of the Jurassic World features some known faces. Jake Johnson from New Girl plays the long-suffering control room support guy Lowery, Vincent D'Onofrio as the InGen representative Hoskins who only sees the dinosaurs as weapons and finally Irrfan Khann as the park's down-to-earth charismatic owner, Simon Masrani; they all stand out in their scenes. Director Trevorrow, in only his second film, was given a mammoth task of reviving a franchise. I really enjoyed his debut film Safety Not Guaranteed and I thought he was a odd choice to helm this film. However, Jurassic World hit all the right points for me as it deeply echoed the first film in the franchise.
The special effects really bring home the whole idea of dinosaur adventure park. You end up wishing for a place where you could canoe down a river or ride a safari amongst the dinosaurs. The final dino-on-dino fight is something else altogether and it's all enhanced by Michael Giacchino's soaring score. Building on John Williams' instantly recognizable Jurassic Park theme, Giacchino gives the thrills and chills of exploring the long-long world. Williams' music still gives me goosebumps to this day.
Jurassic World became the first film to gross $1 billion worldwide in 13 days and edged out the debut record previously held by The Avengers back in 2012 and it's easy to see why. Many of us have a some of kind of fascination with dinosaurs over the years and to see them come to life onscreen is astounding. Jurassic World has replicated the Jurassic Park in spades and it's wonderful to see them on the big screen. Easily the film of the summer!
Directed by Colin Trevorrow; Screenplay by Amanda Silver, Rick Jaffa, Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly; Edited by Kevin Stitt; Cinematography by John Schwartzman; Music by Michael Giacchino
The Hollywood summer season kicked off in style with Avengers: Age of Ultron last Friday, but things are just heating up now. With franchises old and new, book adaptations, comedies and dramas, this Hollywood summer has a lot of up its sleeve with films from Meryl Streep, Chris Pratt, Tom Cruise and more. Here's a quick list of summer movies I'm looking forward to.
15. Ricki and the Flash
Director: Jonathan Demme
Starring: Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Audra McDonald, Sebastian Stan and Mamie Gummer
Meryl Streep stars as Ricki Rendazzo, a mother who left her family to pursue her dream of being a rock singer. Years later, Ricki returns to help her daughter (played by real life daughter Mamie Gummer) recover from a breakup and reconnect with her family. While most of us would watch Meryl Streep recite the phonebook, Ricki and the Flash features a screenplay by Oscar winner Diablo Cody (Juno) and is directed by Jonathan Demme (Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia). The film releases August 7, 2015.
14. Southpaw
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams, Forest Whitaker, 50 Cent and Naomie Harris
Jake Gyllenhaal is Billy Hope, the headstrong, reckless boxing Junior Middleweight Champion who had it all. When his wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) dies in a senseless accident, Billy falls down hard only to climb his way back to the top. Co-starring Forest Whitaker as a former boxer Tink who helps Billy along the way, Southpaw is directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day) and co-written by Kurt Sutter (Sons of Anarchy). Releasing on July 24, 2015, the main talking point of the film is lead actor Gyllenhaal who has absolutely transformed his body to play Hope. His role could be an early contender for Best Actor this summer.
13. Pixels
Director: Chris Columbus
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Peter Dinklage, Josh Gad and Michelle Monaghan
When a capsule to find extraterrestrial life is sent out as a message of peace and later interpreted the wrong way, real video games characters like Pacman and Donkey Kong descend upon Earth to attack us. Oh, did I mention it was up to Adam Sandler and Kevin James to save us all? Al least they have Tyrion Lannister on their team. Will it be game over for Earth? We'll find out on July 24, 2015 when Pixels releases in theatres.
12. Trainwreck
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Amy Schumer, Bill Hader and LeBron James
If you don't know who Amy Schumer is, then this film is probably a good place to start. The hilarious comedienne plays a commitment-phobic writer who meets a guy who could probably be 'the one'. Featuring LeBron James (yes, that's right, the Cleveland Cavalier) in a hilarious supporting role, Trainwreck is produced by Judd Apatow and written by the multi-tasking Schumer. It releases on July 17, 2015.
11. Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner and Simon Pegg
Tom Cruise aka Ethan Hunt is back with more death defying stunts in this latest instalment of the Mission: Impossible film series. From hanging off a plane to zooming past baddies on a motorcycle, Hunt's at it again, tracking down the mysterious Syndicate who's out to destroy him and his team. With co-stars Jeremy Renner and Simon Pegg, the spy gang is back again to make it count this time. Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation releases in theatres on July 31, 2015.
10. Aloha
Director: Cameron Crowe
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, John Krasinski and Bill Murray
Director Cameron Crowe's first feature in four years, Aloha features an all star cast with recent Oscar nominees Bradley Cooper and Emma Stone along with Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray and John Krasinski. Apart from this extremely amiable cast, the film is one of the few rom-coms this summer. Could this bring back a push for the genre? Fingers crossed! Aloha releases in theatres on May 29th.
9. Paper Towns
Director: Jake Schreier
Starring: Cara Delevingne and Nat Wolff
Building on the success of last year's The Fault in Our Stars, this adaptation of John Green's novel features Nat Wolff (who played Isaac in The Fault in Our Stars) and model turned actress Cara Delevingne in her first lead role as the mysterious Margo. When she suddenly disappears, will Quentin (Wolff) pick up on the cryptic clues she leaves behind? I can't wait to watch Paper Towns when it releases on July 24, 2015.
8. Magic Mike XXL
Director: Gregory Jacobs
Starring: Channing Tatum, Amber Heard, Elizabeth Banks and Matt Bomer
I could just type the name 'Channing Tatum' over and over here and that's all that is needed for most people to check out this sequel to the 2012's surprise hit Magic Mike. The guys are all back (minus Matthew McConaughey) for one last epic road trip. Brace yourself ladies, the temperature's about to get real hot! Magic Mike XXL hits theatres July 1, 2015.
7. Me and Earl and the Dying Earl
Director: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon
Starring: Thomas Mann, Olivia Cooke and Ronald Cyler II
Keep your eyes peeled for this year's Sundance darling, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, about three high school students and the year that changed their lives. This could be the indie breakout hit this summer. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl releases in theatres on June 12, 2015.
6. Minions
Directors:Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin
Voice Talents: Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin
This standalone movie is the first step in the overall minion takeover of the world. A word of advice, don't try to resist these feisty, inarticulate little yellow beings. Their cuteness is irresistible and I don't care about the plot of the film, I'm watching it anyway. Banana! Minions begins their world domination in theatres July 10, 2015.
5. Pitch Perfect 2
Director: Elizabeth Banks
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Hailee Steinfeld
The Bella Bardens are suspended after an 'incident' in front of the President of the United States. But these girls run the world and they won't rest until they've defeated the rest of the aca-competition. With returning stars Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson, mashups will never be the same again. Directed by Elizabeth Banks, Pitch Perfect 2 lands in theatres on May 15, 2015.
4. Spy
Director: Paul Feig
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Jude Law, Rose Byrne, Jason Statham and Allison Janney
Bridesmaids co-stars Melissa McCarthy and Rose Byrne are reunited in this rollicking spy comedy from director Paul Feig. McCarthy plays CIA analyst Susan who goes into the field to find her missing partner (Jude Law). McCarthy's also the undisputed queen of comedy in the summer season when she returns with Spy in theatres on June 5, 2015.
3. Tomorrowland
Director: Brad Bird
Starring: George Clooney, Britt Robertson, Huge Laurie and Raffey Cassidy
I'm longing to find out the secrets of Tomorrowland, a place somewhere in time and space in director Brad Bird's follow up to Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, co-written by Damon Lindelof (Lost). With actors George Clooney and Hugh Laurie, this long-in-the-works mysterious Disney project finally hits theatres on May 22.
2. Inside Out
Director: Pete Docter
Voice Talents: Amy Poehler, Diane Lane, Mindy Kaling, Bill Hader, Lewis Black
It's been far too long that we've seen a Pixar film in theatres. It's actually only two years but feels much, much longer. The inner workings of your mind are now five distinct characters in this incredible, innovative film from director Pete Docter (Monsters University, Up). Featuring the voice talents of Amy Poehler, Mindy Kaling, Bill Hader, Lewis Black and more, Inside Out takes us inside our minds on June 19, 2015. Be prepared, guys, I'm carrying extra tissues to the theatres with me.
1. Jurassic World
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jake Johnson
They're back!!! 22 years after Steven Spielberg's Jurassic World, bigger, meaner and smarter dinosaurs take centerstage in the fourth film of the Jurassic Park series. Jurassic World stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard in the newly updated park on Isla Nublar. Jurassic World roars back into theatres on June 12, 2015.
Well, that was my list! What summer movies are you most looking forward to?
It's been quite a while since we've gone around the world with posters, but with all the summer films gearing up for release, I found some posters that have caught my fancy. Let's have a look.
Jurassic World wants to scare the crap out of us with these enormous, and I mean, enormous dinosaurs inhabiting the park in the latest sequel.
This view from The Walk featuring Joseph Gordon-Levitt takes us over the edge.
Channing Tatum is back to the grind in this poster from Magic Mike XXL.
Melissa McCarthy channels Goldfinger in this new Spy poster.
The Bella Bardens get up close and personal in the Russian poster for Pitch Perfect 2.
The Japanese poster of Tomorrowland shows the past and present coming together in the futuristic city.
And finally, on the heels of its first trailer, Dil Dhadakne Do revealed two new posters featuring the ensemble cast.
Football? Was there any played yesterday? All I know is a lot of new ads and movie trailer had their premieres last night.
1) Somebody just turned back the clock and suddenly it's 1993 again because Jurassic World situated in Jurassic Park is set to be the most anticipated film of the summer. My Everwood crush Bright, I mean, Chris Pratt is the lead actor, commanding freakin' velociraptors (so badass!) and battling alongside Bryce Howard against the new dinosaur created just for the park. "This will give the parents nightmares," intones Irrfan Khan. Ya think? Is it June already? Jurassic World, directed by Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed), releases June 12, 2015.
2) "What if there was a place where nothing was impossible? Where you could build whatever you were crazy enough to imagine? A place where you could actually change the world... you wanna go?" Ummm, let me think about it? Yes! Disney's Tomorrowland, directed by Brad Bird, has been under wraps for years and each trailer only fuels our thirst to know more. With George Clooney, Hugh Laurie and Britt Robertson (in her first big studio film), Tomorrowland promises to be grand adventure. We hope! The future arrives on May 22, 2015.
3) I cannot get enough of these Minions. Guaranteed to make you laugh, no matter how bad your day is going. The Minions invade theaters on July 10, 2015.
4) I am mesmerized every time Anna Kendrick sings, she can sing in all her films and I'm golden so I'm beyond thrilled that Pitch Perfect 2 is happening. And that Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) is back! I'm convinced that is the best character name ever, she owns it completely. Anyway, long story short, Pitch Perfect 2's Bellas will be back May 15, 2015
5) That foul-mouthed teddy bear is back and this time around, he thinks he's qualified to raise a child. Writer-director Seth MacFarlane's sequel to the wildly successful Ted of a man and his teddy bear who never leaves hopes to recreate the magic the second time around. Co-starring Mark Wahlberg, Morgan Freeman and Amanda Seyfried (filling in for Mila Kunis who doesn't return to the sequel), Ted 2 brings the laughs back again on June 26, 2015.
