A fun yet forgettable action-adventure flick.
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Jurassic World Rebirth centres itself on the promise of a fresh start to a franchise already bloated with two trilogies. Does it live up to rebirthing the same magic that once held audiences captive? Or will it be forgotten, like the dinosaurs in the movie, after the novelty has worn off?
For starters, Rebirth does distinguish itself with an entirely new cast and timeline, set five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion (2022). The planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs, and those that remain now thrive in isolated islands, away from the public eye. The world’s love for these prehistoric beings has waned over the past few years, leaving lesser support for dinosaurs to survive in urban landscapes.
In comes Zora Benett, a skilled mercenary played by Scarlet Johansson, hired to secure genetic material for a cure to cardiac disease. She recruits the best men she knows and venture deep into the earth’s equator, extracting DNA from the world’s largest dinosaurs belonging to three distinct environments – land, sea and sky. It’s a premise that lends itself well for a schlocky, simple adventure with gorgeous environment changes and heavy on screen-popping action. The kind of movie that knows exactly what it is – fun and uncerebral.
There's a fleeting moment of awe when the team watches a herd of Titanosauruses as the iconic original music score encompasses the room. It's a moment that'll sweep you into an optimistic mood that the movie has potential to be greater, more lasting, more something.
But, alas, as quickly as the scene took place, it flickered away, switching to a subplot featuring a family – a father of two girls, plus the boyfriend of the elder daughter.
It's the bloated cast and rushing of emotional arcs that Rebirth falls flat, failing to be invested in anything that’s going on. The movie seems uninterested in allowing anything to happen, choosing to thrust into action and comedy without giving gravitas to anything, despite its premise having potential.
Jurassic World Rebirth may not have held up to its promise but it's still a fun and harmless action-adventure flick you can shut your brain off to enjoy.
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