In 1993, Dr. Ian Malcolm said to the dino-obsessed brain trust, "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should." It's a profound statement that lies at the heart of Steven Spielberg's seminal Jurassic Park (and Michael Crichton's novel). It's what made the film not just a visually captivating and tonally thrilling piece of work, but a thematically thought-provoking and philosophical story not typically seen in what would otherwise be a popcorn summer blockbuster.
The world director Gareth Edwards sets up in Jurassic World Rebirth builds beyond Dr. Malcolm's concerns. Years after dinosaurs are reintroduced to the world, the public has grown bored of the initial novelty. The extraordinary nature of what John Hammond began more than 30 years ago has become commonplace and dull — a probable reality given our pocket-sized attention spans.
It's a fascinating premise that updates the original story to 2025, and, in the opening minutes, there is a brief moment of hope that Jurassic World Rebirth will offer a damning mirror to a rapid news cycle and its effects on us. But the other shoe drops quickly and mightily.
Jurassic World Rebirth has little to do with society's normalization of dinosaurs; in fact, it's only really used as a device to introduce Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), a paleontologist who receives a visit from Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson) and Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend), respectively a mercenary-type and a pharmaceutical rep. Their visit to Dr. Loomis comes as he packs away his now-shuttered dinosaur museum exhibit, and is spurred on by Martin's desire to use the genetic material of the largest prehistoric creatures still in existence to create a drug that fights the real killer of 21st century America: heart disease.
Martin's plan is to enter some equatorial islands where dinosaurs now reside, and, with Zora's help and her crew, led by Mahershala Ali's Duncan Kincaid, track down the largest sea, land and avian dinosaurs with Dr. Loomis's expertise.
Speaking for the audience, Zora inquires why they need to find the largest dinosaurs. And without an ounce of comedy intended, it's explained that it's because their hearts are really big. This exchange is a far cry from the conversation between Dr. Malcolm, John Hammond and Donald Gennaro, but it perfectly encapsulates the quality and degree of intelligence permeating the entire film.
A saving grace of the film comes from various moments when Zora's team needs to escape the island, alongside the Delgado family, who are also on the island after being shipwrecked and saved by Duncan and Zora's crew. Edwards, known for creating high-octane and compelling action set pieces, provides the film with some excitement while also incorporating a few homages to Spielberg's classic. But these are only brief moments within the film.
The best part of Rebirth is its complete overuse of John Williams's transformative theme. Whenever possible, the iconic orchestration can be heard — a treatment that would prove insufferable with any other score, but, in this case, provides the audience with some reprieve to whatever generic nonsense happening on screen.
Every film since the original (yes, even The Lost World), has failed to make a cogent case for its existence alongside the perfection of the original, and while Edwards's attempt is better than the Chris Pratt/Bryce Dallas Howard films before it, Jurassic World Rebirth offers nothing of true consequence.
The elongated trampling of the Jurassic franchise only echoes Dr. Malcolm's wisdom: Hollywood is so preoccupied with whether it can, it never stops to think if it should.