After directing and co-writing 2015’s Jurassic World, which is among the highest-grossing films of all time, Colin Trevorrow was in a position to do whatever he wanted to do and through this success, he would go on to direct the tonally-shifting The Book of Henry and was given the keys to conclude the Skywalker Saga. However, due to creative differences, Trevorrow’s Star Wars Episode IX never came to be, and even though he never lost touch with the franchise that he rebooted, Trevorrow finally gets the chance to conclude the Jurassic Saga with Jurassic World Dominion.
After the events of the J.A. Bayona-directed Fallen Kingdom, dinosaurs now live and hunt alongside humans worldwide. As Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) are determined to keep Maisie (Isabella Sermon) safe, due to being variable as the first human clone, the three are reunited with Blue the Velociraptor, who has given birth.
When Maisie and the baby Raptor are kidnapped, Owen and Claire go off on a globe-trotting adventure to bring back what they lost. Oh, and the original trio that is Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler and Ian Malcolm (Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum) are reunited to stop yet another evil corporation that is weaponizing the prehistoric.
There are essentially two narratives going on, that eventually have to collide. One of which builds on the great idea of dinosaurs walking among us, which was set up not only at the end of its predecessor, but Battle at Big Rock, Trevorrow’s eight-minute short that is arguably better than any of the Jurassic World series. Despite the few moments of wonder of seeing dinosaurs co-existing alongside us, the film is more driven by its plot, which is very much “we have to get one place to the next”, just to find a thing. Considering how all the sequels delayed on the idea of our world being changed if dinosaurs were added to it, Dominion could have delivered, but wastes its potential of showcasing the world-building, such as black-marketing the prehistoric, and instead cuts straight to the action.
No doubt for those who grew up watching Steven Spielberg’s 1993 classic will feel nostalgic towards the reunion of the three original stars, who do have some fun interactions. However, as we learned from The Rise of Skywalker, you need more than just nostalgia. The callbacks are there, but neither is the characterization as no one ever goes through an arc throughout this trilogy. Sure, Owen and Claire are now parents, but that is rarely explored.
And as for newcomer DeWanda Wise, who plays Kayla, a former Air Force pilot who aids Owen and Claire on their mission, because she likes redheads? Whilst Campbell Scott portrays the main villain Dr. Lewis Dodgson – a character who appeared in the original movie – to quote the late Dennis Nedry: “Nobody cares.”
Taking into account how divisive and outright silly the previous Jurassic World instalments were, there was at least memorable, whilst giving up the pretense and just embrace a B-movie aesthetic. That said, the scripts that have Trevorrow’s name of them are always a mess and whatever interesting ideas he has, he doesn’t always know what to do with them. With Dominion, Trevorrow feels more concerned about delivering one set-piece after another, with a variety of different dinosaurs for the humans to confront, leading to some comical deaths, despite the film taking no risks and thus no tension. Even the climax feels like a re-tread of Jurassic World’s, which felt triumphant, whilst this one feels more “been there, done that.”
Join the AIPT Patreon
Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:
- ❌ Remove all ads on the website
- 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
- 📗 Access to our monthly book club
- 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
- 💥 And more!
