Movie Review: Jurassic World

If you were to tell fans that there was going to be a fourth Jurassic Park movie after the let’s say not fantastic sequels I do not know if they would have agreed. However in 2015 the long awaited Jurassic World premiered, and in my opinion it was better than anyone thought it was going to be. Ok so the science wasn’t exact as anyone in that background has explained; I get it but this is called science fiction for a reason. As always spoilers will be ahead. I DO NOT OWN THE PICTURE.

Jurassic World has been open for many years and is still going strong. Despite dinosaurs still being “wow” many who invest in the park, including owner Simon Masrani (Irrfan Khan) want to see more; encouraging Dr. Henry Wu (B.D. Wong and the only original cast member to appear in the movie) to create more genetically modified dinosaurs, much to the annoyance of park control room employee Lowery (Jake Johnson). Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), the park operations manager and doesn’t seem to get that these are living creature, observes the newest addition to the park, the Indominus Rex; a creature created with T-Rex DNA and other parts deemed classified. At the same time her nephews Zack and Gray (Nick Robinson and Ty Simpkins) visit the park, after their parents Karen and Scott (Judy Greer and Andy Buckley) send them away possibly in order to avoid talking about their upcoming divorce, but are stuck with Claire’s assistant Zara (Katie McGrath). Another park employee, and one Claire had a bad first date with, is Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) a Navy veteran who is researching raptor intelligence. He works closely with four raptors, having built a bond of trust with them; however he refuses to train them for military use which is what head of InGen security Vic Hoskins (Vincent D’Onofrio) wants. Masrani wants Owen to look at the Indominus enclosure to ensure everyone’s safety; Owen believes that because she was raised in a cage alone she is going to be dangerous. Claw marks on the cage look like the Indominus escaped and Owen (along with two others) go in to check it out; and that’s when the “fun” begins. Because of the mixed DNA, the Indominus can mask heat, camouflage and is incredibly intelligent. Owen just barley escapes as the dinosaur becomes loose in the park, endangering many lives including Zack and Gray. Owen and Claire team up to find her nephews and must find a way to stop the Indominus. About as far as I should go without spoiling the rest of the movie.

To call Jurassic World a huge success would be a big understatement. Grossing 500 million the opening weekend, and one of the fastest films to reach a billion dollars, it was obvious how much people missed seeing good dinosaur movies. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are fantastic as the leads; Pratt is great at action and comedy while Howard’s character evolves from little miss perfect to running in high heels towards danger (p.s. that really impressed me I can barely even walk in heels.) The rest of the cast is spectacular; I personally enjoyed Johnson, Khan, Robinson, Simpkins, Wong and D’Onofrio performances. I thought the script was definitely better than the first two and lived up to but was not as great as the first one (obviously.) The special effects were much more improved; although you can still tell they are computer generated they still make the dinosaurs life like. The Indominus Rex was a very good monster, although the Mosasaurus was also impressive to look at. Of course it was good to see Rexy again at the end of the film. Overall I think Jurassic World did live up to the hype it had prior to the film premiere (and I may even call it a must see), and we can only wait and see if the sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom in theaters now can grow the story more. I will try and see that as soon as possible. In the meantime if you haven’t seen Jurassic World I would rent or DVR it as soon as possible.

TV Show Review: Melissa & Joey

While I won’t go so far as to say it is the funniest show I’ve ever seen, this ABC Family/FreeForm show was pretty hilarious when I started watching. Premiering in 2010 and lasting for four seasons, Melissa & Joey continued the chemistry between Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence from their TV movie (that may come up later on my blog) and with different characters had a crazy and fun ride. Spoiler alert as always. I DO NOT OWN THE PICTURE.

Mel Burke (Melissa Joan Hart), the daughter of a senator and former party girl, is a city councilwoman in Toledo, Ohio. After her brother in law runs a Ponzi scheme and flees leaving his wife to take the blame, Mel becomes the guardian of her teenaged niece Lennox (Taylor Spreitler) who is very free-spirited, and nephew Ryder (Nick Robinson) who is sweet but is not very bright as the series progresses. Joe (Joey Lawrence) used to work for Mel’s brother in-law as an executive and commodities trader and loses his job and money when the Ponzi scheme, which he didn’t know about, falls apart. As he needs the job and sees that Mel needs help, after confronting her a few times in the pilot asking about her brother in law, agrees to become the live-in nanny, or manny, to Lennox and Ryder. He often gives advice to not just them but to Mel as well. Throughout the four seasons Mel and Joe help each other out when it comes to careers or relationships, although it is obvious through their constant bickering (and trust me there is A LOT) that there is something more between the two of them. I probably shouldn’t go into anymore, but I’m sure it is not very hard to figure out.

I enjoyed Melissa and Joey when it was on the air. It was well written, funny, I liked the characters and it was just all around fun. Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence had great chemistry together; they really know how to banter (and yes there are many references to their past characters). Taylor Spreitler is fantastic as Lennox as she continues to be very free-spirited, not afraid to speak her mind and her relationships with boys (needless to say Joe turns into overprotective dad mood real quick). Nick Robinson is adorable as Ryder; I know many had not heard of him prior to his role in Love, Simon, but he was great as well in this show. I know this show was on Netflix streaming, probably not now, but it might be on FreeForm app or Hulu. This show is cute, funny and overall a great watch.