Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park is rated PG-13: for intense science fiction terror.

Jurassic Park is the brainchild of wealthy entrepreneur John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) who is creating what he believes will be the world's most unusual theme park. Hoping to calm nervous investors, he invites a group of carefully selected people, along with his two grandchildren, to come and experience then endorse his attraction, which is filled with live, genetically engineered dinosaurs.

Amongst the visitors are palaeontologist Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill), and palaeo-botanist Dr. Ellie Satler (Laura Dern). After years of studying fossilized remains, it is little surprise that the two scientists are wonder-struck by seeing these creatures living and breathing (as will the audience). However, they have some reservations regarding the wisdom and incurred responsibility of introducing the global co-habitation of dinosaurs and man. And well they should, because a plot to steal Mr. Hammond's research is about to bring these two species a little too close for comfort.

As in all good monster flics, the script includes several characters destined to be devoured. You can rest assured that the stereotypical nerdy computer technician (Wayne Knight) and whiney lawyer (Martin Ferrero) are on the top of the list. Some of the others are less obvious choices, which helps add to the suspense.

While many of the scare tactics (like the dark and stormy night) are typical for this genre, director Steven Spielberg uses a scientifically plausible premise, good pacing, and incredible special effects to achieve a very convincing, action packed adventure which capitalizes on the dinosaur craze.

Despite the marketing strategies that may suggest otherwise, this is not a film for children. Although it is true that the violence is derived from characters fighting for their lives, portraying that conflict is the only motive for making the movie. Even with a minimal amount of gore and a smattering of profanities, there are still many intense and frightening depictions sure to elicit nightmares in young viewers. While this may be an acceptable risk for older teens, those with dino-crazy little ones need to remember that they won't find any cuddly purple plush critters at Jurassic Park!

Studio: (pictures (c)1993 Universal Pictures).

Overall: B
This sure-to-be-classic monster flic provides amazing live action dinosaurs, and plenty of thrills and chills, but parents should heed the “strongly cautioned” advice of the MPAA PG-13 rating when determining its acceptability for older children.

Violence: D
Unseen beast drags man by his legs into cage. Men prod at creature. Man verbally details how a velociraptor would attack a young boy. Cow is violently eaten alive by raptors, only sounds are heard. Scientist digs through pile of dino droppings. Man steals embryos. Bloody goat leg shown. Dinosaur attacks and crushes car that has people inside. Man is picked up and eaten by dinosaur, legs seen dangling from mouth. Building falls on man, causing injury. Car with passenger is pushed off wall, gets stuck in tree. Falling car threatens characters. Driver crashes car, but is not hurt. Man sprayed with poison and eaten by dinosaur - not seen. Dinosaur chases car with people inside. Carnivorous dinosaur kills other creatures; rips off head, bites through abdomen, some blood shown. Several intense scenes where dinosaurs surprise characters, chase and snap at them, and destroy property. Severed arm shown. Character receives electrical shock. Men use guns to shoot at dinosaurs. Man eaten by dinosaur - not shown. People fall from ceiling.

Sexual Content: A-
Character asks if someone in the park pulls up the dinosaurs’ skirts to check if they are female. Woman in bikini seen on computer screen.

Language: B
At least: 15 mild and 2 moderate profanities, and 8 terms of Deity used as expletives.

Alcohol / Drug Use: B-
Man opens bottle of champagne and adults drink it. A couple of characters are shown smoking, one of them smokes constantly.

Universal Studios’ marketing department has capitalized on the dinosaur theme with all sorts of paraphernalia bearing the Jurassic logo. Most of this merchandise is aimed at young children. How does this strategy help to create the false impression that this is a film appropriate for all ages? Do you think that studios should do this?

Dr. Ellie Satler tries to explain to Mr. Hammond that controlling his creation is impossible, and that he should have considered the moral and ethical implications of what he had unleashed. Why do you think he neglected to weigh the responsibility of his decision? What factors may sometimes tempt you to overlook the consequences of your choices.

This movie has spawned two sequels. Check our reviews of The Lost World: Jurassic Park, and Jurassic Park III. If monster films tickle your fancy, you may enjoy Godzilla, or Godzilla 2000. Richard Attenbourough, who portrays Mr. Hammond, plays a similar role as a circus proprietor in the very family friendly 1967 Doctor Dolittle (which features animals that are a lot more cuddly too).

You’d expect a pivotal movie like Jurassic Park to be accompanied by a plethora of DVD extras. Unfortunately that was not the case. The picture and sound were certainly everything you would expect from the format (although we unwittingly grabbed a DTS sound copy to review, leaving us with only Dolby Surround on our non-DTS receiver), but there was little else on the disk with the exception of the above average “making of” documentary. A too-concise dinosaur encyclopedia, trailers from the three Jurassic movies, and printed production notes made up the sparse remains. What we really wanted was to sit down with Spielberg through a director’s commentary, and hear how and why he did each and every scene-a feature that would have added great value to this disc.

DVD Release Information:

• Studio: Universal Studios
• Theatrical release date: June 11, 1993
• DVD release date: October 10, 2001
• Runtime: 127 minutes
• Production company: Universal Studios
• Package type: Keep case
• Aspect ratios: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.85:1
• DVD encoding: Region 1
• Available audio tracks: English (DTS 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Available subtitles: English
• Captioning: Spanish, French
• THX Certified

• Production notes
• “Making of” Documentary
• Industrial Light & Magic Dinosaur Encyclopedia
• Theatrical trailers for Jurassic Park, Lost World, and Jurassic Park III