With Jurassic World: Dominion now in theaters and expected to be the #1 hit at the box office this weekend, what better time than to rank all six films in this franchise. While most fans and critics tend to agree of what movie is the very best of the series, the rest of the rankings usually tend to be all over the place. Some have their fans and others have their haters but overall, opinions tend to vary. I did talk briefly about my thoughts on this series in my Dominion review but now it’s time to talk where I rank each one from worst to best.
6.) Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
This is about as bad as a sequel can get. Fallen Kingdom is somehow able to take everything that was wrong with all of the Jurassic Park sequels up to this point and put it all on steroids. While director J.A. Bayona does what he can to add some of his own unique directing style to the series, he is completely let down by a horrible screenplay filled with dumb characters, nonsensical motivations, absurd retcons, and some of the laughable plot twists imaginable. Unable to decide if it wants to be an over-the-top action thrill ride or some meaningful political themed exploration between humans and dinosaurs, Fallen Kingdom shows what happens when a franchise has long lost it’s way and only exists because of it’s profits. Again, why was the girl a clone again?
5.) Jurassic World: Dominion
The newest and (possibly) last entry in the franchise, Dominion is a mild step up from the last one. This mostly has to do with the returning cast of the originals joining along for the ride this time as well as a new character played by DeWanda Wise being a welcome presence. Unfortunately, that’s about the only things keeping it above Fallen Kingdom. The whole “dino among us” premise that the last movie set up is practically non-existent here with only a handful of nice, silent visual moments showing off the potential for it. Too much time is focused on research labs and having to rescue the little girl while too little time is focused on the actual dinosaurs themselves. The original and new cast don’t come together until way too late and by then, you will most likely be tuned out of the picture and just feeling numb. It will probably make it’s money and be enjoyed by moviegoers all around the world but I think it’s time to leave this once revolutionary series behind us.
4.) Jurassic Park III
The first film not directed by Steven Spielberg also seems to be the first one that seemed to be aware of the impossible standards it could not meet. At this point, it was painfully obvious that any sequel to follow the original was automatically gonna look bad by comparison and would at best, be taking home a silver medal for being in 2nd place. While Spielberg tried (and failed) to top the bar with The Lost World, Jurassic Park III simply tries to embrace it’s own cheese and camp value to make for a B-movie. Does it completely work? Definitely not but there can be some guilty pleasure fun if you can accept some absurdly ridiculous moments and the painfully obvious rushed script. It’s also nice to have Sam Neill back as Dr. Alan Grant in this as well. Joe Johnston basically takes what Spielberg did in the final half hour of the last minute and just makes that the whole movie. As a result, Johnston basically does what he can in the best of a clearly unwinnable situation.
3.) Jurassic World
After 22 years, someone was finally dumb enough to open up the park of dinos and the result is nothing but chaos and stupidity. The first of the “World” trilogy does admittedly has some enjoyable parts scattered throughout. It’s fun to actually explore the park as it opens for business, the final 45 minutes includes probably the most enthralling action of the entire franchise (especially the last bit with the Indominous Rex), and seeing Chris Pratt riding alongside the dinosaurs is cool stuff. That can’t quite make up for everything else that the rest of the movie lacks. The characters are all one-note and complete cartoons, there’s hardly any logic at play, nearly every major plot beat wouldn’t happen if anyone would just behave like an actual human being, and man, do the CGI dinosaurs stick out like an absolute sore thumb. There’s enough entertaining bits that can make this qualify as a guilty pleasure as compared to the other two Jurassic World movies but once the credits roll, you can’t help but think of the number of missed opportunities here. For a movie like Jurassic World where it’s main moral is “Don’t make Jurassic World!”, you can’t help but wonder if the filmmakers would have been better off listening to their own advice despite 1.6 billion dollar signs at the box office saying otherwise.
2.) The Lost World: Jurassic Park
Steven Spielberg deep down had to know that he was never gonna top the original when making this one and the fact he even tried to is admirable but also foolhardy. The Lost World sees Spielberg attempting to dive deeper into the dinosaur mythology by putting a bigger emphasis on animal rights along with more focus on family dynamics by making standout side character Jeff Goldblum the main protagonist this time out. The results are quite mixed. While Spielberg has executed similar themes brilliantly in other movies, here it comes across as half baked and at times, preachy. And with how action packed and tense the final 30 minutes is seeing the T. Rex causing rampage in the streets of San Diego, you can’t help but wonder if Steven would have been better off just making that kind of movie this time out. Still, even when Spielberg is not on top form, his movies are usually entertaining and engaging throughout and this one is no exception. The Lost World has enough things it does right to call it the best sequel but you can clearly tell how even the king of blockbuster filmmaking really struggled to make this one the perfect companion piece to the original standout with the likes of Aliens and T2: Judgement Day.
1.) Jurassic Park
Was there ever any doubt? I don’t know how many times I have to say it but the original Jurassic Park main advantage it has than any of the sequels is how being the first of it’s kind was complete lightning in a bottle that could just never be replicated again. Seeing the amazement of an actual possible theme park of dinosaur creatures can never it like it did the first time. The action sequences are all incredible, with the main highlights being the whole T Rex chase scene. The characters, while mostly simplistic, are all real likable throughout. The actors fit their roles like a glove. The dinosaur effects still mostly hold up pretty well today. And, who doesn’t get at least a little misty eyed when they hear that beyond beautiful theme by John Williams. There is just not a single part where Jurassic Park falters. Sure, you can make an argument that it’s simply blockbuster popcorn entertainment but there has arguably not been blockbuster popcorn entertainment quite as impactful as this movie. The fact this was made by the same man who released this and Schindler’s List in the exact same year says it all what an absolute miracle this movie is. The entire message that the original gets across is that perhaps it’s for the best that Jurassic Park doesn’t actually get made and while some of the sequels had their moments, I don’t think that many people would be hurt if the filmmakers remained committed to that sort of commitment.
So, that’s my ranking of the Jurassic Park movies? Let me know yours in the comments below and be sure to follow me on here and through my social media pages if you would like to see more content from me.
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