The Lost World: Jurassic Park

After releasing two major films in 1993, Spielberg took a hiatus from directing. It would be 4 years before he released another film, to date the longest gap in his directing career. The first film he decided to direct was a sequel to the box-office smash and cultural phenomenon, Jurassic Park. It’s hard to believe today, but in the 1990’s sequels and movie franchises were not as common as they are now. Sure, there were a some, but they were few and far between, and even some of those were for smaller films, not the mega-blockbusters. However the success of Jurassic Park practically begged for a sequel, since audience were anxious to see more dinosaur action on the big screen. I was one of those fans, and for me The Lost World was the first sequel I remember eagerly awaiting to see in theaters, devouring every bit of information I could about the film before it’s release because I was a kid obsessed with the first film.

Now, I don’t think any film stood a chance of matching up to the movie, even with a master like Spielberg back in the director’s chair. Still, there was a ton of potential with the concept of genetically engineered dinosaurs brought back to life in present day, so I never felt like Spielberg was returning just for a paycheck (keep in mind, he decided to not return for a Jaws sequel and had enough clout to prevent the studio from making a sequel for E.T.).
It helps that the sequel is a very different story from the first film, and really from the rest of the series. I think one of the biggest assets is that this is the last film in the series based on a novel from Crichton, and although ultimately very little from the book would be carried over into the film, there’s an underlying intelligence to the plot the I found lacking in some of the other sequels. Other aspects of the film also help it stand out.

Changing some of the shooting locations to the redwood forest, instead of the Hawaiian locations for the first film, gives the film a unique look and really establishes it as a separate fictional island. We get to see more dinosaurs, and another strong cast of primarily character actors. Spielberg’s eye for exciting action and set pieces certainly make this film stand apart from the other sequels.

One of the most memorable contributions to the first film was the magnificent score by Williams, and thankfully he returned for the sequel. At this point in his career, the sequel scores from Williams were those that either relied heavily on material from the first score (Jaws 2, Home Alone 2), or those that took themes and ideas from the previous score and expanded them into new directions (the Star Wars and Indiana Jones series). The Lost World was the first sequel score from Williams that really made an attempt to establish its own identity from its predecessor.

His new theme for The Lost World I think is one of his most underrated. Whereas his Jurassic Park theme perfectly captured the majesty, wonder, and awe of the first park, this new theme brings a sense of mystery and adventure appropriate for the new island. That whole vibe is really what the whole score is build around, as well as some of most aggressive action music ever penned by Williams. This is Williams at his most ambitious and energetic, and the wild percussive elements to the score bring a sense of danger. I get a feeling that if Williams were to score a Godzilla vs. King Kong film, it would sound a lot like this. We get a few call backs to the original park theme from the first film as well as the main theme making an appearance in the end credits, but otherwise this is mostly all new material.

The film was a big success at the time of it’s release, and if you can’t tell by what I wrote above, it’s easily my favorite film and score of the sequels in this series. Sure, it will always live in the shadow of the classic first film and score, but The Lost World is not to be overlooked because there’s a lot worthy to discover in both. The series continues to do well financially, and in a few months we have a new film and score in this franchise, and like most of you I’m curious to see and hear what new directions the Jurassic series will take.

Film: ****
Score: *****

> The Lost World: Jurassic Park

> After releasing two major films in 1993, Spielberg took a hiatus from
> directing. It would be 4 years before he released another film, to date
> the longest gap in his directing career. The first film he decided to
> direct was a sequel to the box-office smash and cultural phenomenon,
> Jurassic Park. It’s hard to believe today, but in the 1990’s sequels and
> movie franchises were not as common as they are now. Sure, there were a
> some, but they were few and far between, and even some of those were for
> smaller films, not the mega-blockbusters. However the success of Jurassic
> Park practically begged for a sequel, since audience were anxious to see
> more dinosaur action on the big screen. I was one of those fans, and for
> me The Lost World was the first sequel I remember eagerly awaiting to see
> in theaters, devouring every bit of information I could about the film
> before it’s release because I was a kid obsessed with the first film.

> Now, I don’t think any film stood a chance of matching up to the movie,
> even with a master like Spielberg back in the director’s chair. Still,
> there was a ton of potential with the concept of genetically engineered
> dinosaurs brought back to life in present day, so I never felt like
> Spielberg was returning just for a paycheck (keep in mind, he decided to
> not return for a Jaws sequel and had enough clout to prevent the studio
> from making a sequel for E.T.).
> It helps that the sequel is a very different story from the first film,
> and really from the rest of the series. I think one of the biggest assets
> is that this is the last film in the series based on a novel from
> Crichton, and although ultimately very little from the book would be
> carried over into the film, there’s an underlying intelligence to the plot
> the I found lacking in some of the other sequels. Other aspects of the
> film also help it stand out.

> Changing some of the shooting locations to the redwood forest, instead of
> the Hawaiian locations for the first film, gives the film a unique look
> and really establishes it as a separate fictional island. We get to see
> more dinosaurs, and another strong cast of primarily character actors.
> Spielberg’s eye for exciting action and set pieces certainly make this
> film stand apart from the other sequels.

> One of the most memorable contributions to the first film was the
> magnificent score by Williams, and thankfully he returned for the sequel.
> At this point in his career, the sequel scores from Williams were those
> that either relied heavily on material from the first score (Jaws 2, Home
> Alone 2), or those that took themes and ideas from the previous score and
> expanded them into new directions (the Star Wars and Indiana Jones
> series). The Lost World was the first sequel score from Williams that
> really made an attempt to establish its own identity from its predecessor.

> His new theme for The Lost World I think is one of his most underrated.
> Whereas his Jurassic Park theme perfectly captured the majesty, wonder,
> and awe of the first park, this new theme brings a sense of mystery and
> adventure appropriate for the new island. That whole vibe is really what
> the whole score is build around, as well as some of most aggressive action
> music ever penned by Williams. This is Williams at his most ambitious and
> energetic, and the wild percussive elements to the score bring a sense of
> danger. I get a feeling that if Williams were to score a Godzilla vs. King
> Kong film, it would sound a lot like this. We get a few call backs to the
> original park theme from the first film as well as the main theme making
> an appearance in the end credits, but otherwise this is mostly all new
> material.

This feels spot-on. This film is more of a monster movie and Williams does speak to that more with the main theme. I remember it being a very pleasant surprise hearing Giacchino wheel that out at the end of Jurassic World. I should try and find the expanded version of the score, I've only ever heard the OST.

> The film was a big success at the time of it’s release, and if you can’t
> tell by what I wrote above, it’s easily my favorite film and score of the
> sequels in this series. Sure, it will always live in the shadow of the
> classic first film and score, but The Lost World is not to be overlooked
> because there’s a lot worthy to discover in both. The series continues to
> do well financially, and in a few months we have a new film and score in
> this franchise, and like most of you I’m curious to see and hear what new
> directions the Jurassic series will take.

> Film: ****
> Score: *****

Seems like I need to rewatch the film sometime. Or at least the trailer on the cliff scene, that's up there with Spielberg's best action/suspense sequences.

> At this point in his career, the sequel scores from Williams were those
> that either relied heavily on material from the first score (Jaws 2, Home
> Alone 2),

Uh, those two scores are nothing alike IMHO.

Is this his worst film? IDK, but it’s the worst one I’ve seen. Somehow I hated it more as an adult.

It goes so dark it makes Temple of Doom seems like The BFG by comparison. What is it about Spielberg doing this in his first sequels? I sense the director might’ve had some anxiety about this late in post-production because Williams’ new adventure theme is temped into several scenes it wasn’t written for.

The Rex and The City climax goes on and on in the worst way. Is this supposed to be scary? Funny? Exciting? A rare moment of tonal indecisiveness for the director.

In the first film characters make dumb decisions, but they seem to be driven by noble intentions or high stress. But some seemingly smart characters - namely Julianne Moore’s - make dumb decisions directly connected to their vocation in the sequel, and it’s brain-breaking. There’s blood on your coat, ma’am!

But not as brain-breaking as gymnastics. Not a lot of underlying intelligence there.

Are we sure there aren’t two characters called Ian Malcolm? Where’d the guy Jeff Goldblum played in the first movie go? Not this movie!

The only things that work are Pete Postlethwaite, the cliff-dangling sequence, and the fake movie posters.

I dig the angry jungle jazz nature of the action music, but the Williams score - even in its better full presentation - has always struggled to be more than the sum of its parts. It’s a work of singular highlights yet also, in a rarity for the composer, an underdeveloped thematic narrative.

> Is this his worst film? IDK, but it’s the worst one I’ve seen. Somehow I
> hated it more as an adult.

As a Spielberg film I can understand your views, and obviously there's a lot of takes on the internet that would agree. Yet, in comparison the sequels that came after it, I respect the film more now.

> It goes so dark it makes Temple of Doom seems like The BFG
> by comparison. What is it about Spielberg doing this in his first sequels?
> I sense the director might’ve had some anxiety about this late in
> post-production because Williams’ new adventure theme is temped into
> several scenes it wasn’t written for.

I figured it was more of a situation where Williams' theme was so good, it would feel wrong to just limit it to a couple of book ending scenes for the arrival and departure from the island.

> The Rex and The City climax goes on and on in the worst way. Is this
> supposed to be scary? Funny? Exciting? A rare moment of tonal
> indecisiveness for the director.

And yet still better than most of the Godzilla movie in the next year, which really tried to rip of these films as much as anything from prior Godzilla movies.

> In the first film characters make dumb decisions, but they seem to be
> driven by noble intentions or high stress. But some seemingly smart
> characters - namely Julianne Moore’s - make dumb decisions directly
> connected to their vocation in the sequel, and it’s brain-breaking.
> There’s blood on your coat, ma’am!

Valid complaint.

> But not as brain-breaking as gymnastics. Not a lot of underlying
> intelligence there.

Again, yeah, this scene isn't great, but compared to what we get into some of the other sequels, not that bad.

> Are we sure there aren’t two characters called Ian Malcolm? Where’d the
> guy Jeff Goldblum played in the first movie go? Not this movie!

My thoughts are that he was dramatically impacted by the experience from the first film, that he's a little more cynical and anxious this time around. It's been ages since reading the books, so I'm not sure if some of it is covered more in the novel.

> The only things that work are Pete Postlethwaite, the cliff-dangling
> sequence, and the fake movie posters.

Agree about Postlethwaite, who plays one of the best characters in the whole series. A shame he passed away, b/c it would have been so awesome to have him pop up in one of the other sequels.

Not sure what you mean by fake movie posters?

> I dig the angry jungle jazz nature of the action music, but the Williams
> score - even in its better full presentation - has always struggled to be
> more than the sum of its parts. It’s a work of singular highlights yet
> also, in a rarity for the composer, an underdeveloped thematic narrative.

From a narrative standpoint it's not as strong as some other Williams score, but it's so big and ambitious that I'm ok with that trade-off.