Some good movies get bad Blu-rays, and some bad movies get good Blu-rays. So it’s kind of nice that the Jurassic World Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray, and DVD for Jurassic World would be on the same level of the movie….or rather, it would be, if the movie hadn’t been disappointing and flawed.
Nearly fifteen years after Jurassic Park III, Isla Nublar is finally the home to the amusement park we first visited (and saw go awry) in the original movie. But in order to keep visitors coming, the park’s scientists have genetically engineered a new kind of dinosaur…which manages to get out, eat a bunch of people, and get into arguments with his fellow lizards.
But while this may sound Jurassic Park all over again, it sometimes feels more like a poor imitation. And not just because this has many of the same plot points. No, it’s more because of the characters. While Chris Pratt (Guardians Of The Galaxy) is normally rather likable and funny, here he’s more of a smug prick.
Then there’s whole shtick about how he can control the raptors by putting out his hands and talking slowly, as if they were temperamental babies on the verge of crying, not the lizard version of sharks. Granted, he doesn’t have as much control over them as the trailers implied, but it’s still rather insulting, especially when they run alongside him as he rides a motorcycle instead of eating him.
Though it also doesn’t help that two of the other stars of Jurassic World, the ones that are shown in danger of being eaten, are a bunch of kids, since this means they’re actually not in danger of being eaten because this is a big budget Hollywood movie, and big budget Hollywood movies would never piss people off by killing a kid.
Add in some plodding bits about a guy wanting to turn the raptors into soldiers, a park administrator who runs around in high heels, and some silliness with that new dino that doesn’t even make sense in a movie about an amusement park full of dinosaurs, and you have what is easily the worst film in this series.
And yet, it still ends up being somewhat entertaining if you can turn your brain off. Especially if you like watching dinosaurs go dino a dino, or you’ve always wondered what would happen if a shark, a raptor, and a whale had a three-way. Granted, the fun parts don’t make up for the aforementioned bad bits, but they make them seem annoying when taken in context.
As for how Jurassic World looks on the Blu-rays and DVD, the film is a good looking one, and that’s perfectly captured by these discs, especially the HD ones. The 3D Blu-ray also does a good job with the added dimension, though as with so many 3D movies, this doesn’t really add much to the experience.
Along with the film, the Jurassic World Blu-rays and DVD also have a ton of cool extras. It’s just too bad the DVD doesn’t have all of them.
For starters, the Jurassic World Blu-rays and DVD has “Dinosaurs Roam Once Again,” a fairly typical sixteen-minute-long making-of featurette that, as usual, includes interviews and behind-the-scenes footage.
Next, the Jurassic World Blu-rays and DVD presents “Chris & Colin Take On The World,” during which Pratt and director Colin Trevorrow chat for nine minutes. It’s rather entertaining for reasons I won’t spoil, though it’s hard not to think they may have left some of the funnier stuff on the cutting room floor.
But the most simultaneously fun and frustrating extra on the Jurassic World Blu-rays and DVD is the six minutes collection of deleted scenes. While the scenes themselves are interesting, and in some cases enlightening, it’s annoying that they’re presented without context or comment, so you have no idea why they were cut.
Sadly, if you just get Jurassic World on DVD, this is where your adventure ends. But if you get either of the Blu-rays, you get some even more interesting extras.
To start, the Jurassic World Blu-rays have “Welcome To Jurassic World,” in which Trevorrow, Jurassic Park and The Lost World: Jurassic Park director Steven Spielberg, and other members of the cast and crew spend half-an-hour talking about how this movie came together and how the two directors worked together to make it happen.
Next, the Jurassic World Blu-rays have “Jurassic World: All-Access Pass,” during which Pratt and Trevorrow talk about the action scenes alongside behind-the-scenes footage and concept art. It’s fairly rote, as these things go, though it does get a little more interesting when Pratt talks about the research he did for his role.
Pratt also turns up in the “Innovation Center Tour With Chris Pratt,” a quick, two-minute look at the park’s visitors center, during which Pratt makes a bunch of jokes. Though as entertaining as it may be, it seems like it would’ve been better if it just had been Pratt walking around the whole place, cracking wise, especially since he’s funnier and more personable here than he is in the movie.
Lastly, the Jurassic World Blu-rays present “Jurassic‘s Closest Shaves,” a three-minute montage of screens from all four movies in which people were almost being eaten by dinosaurs. But while it’s even cleverly presented by Barbasol shaving cream, it’s still just clips from four movies we’ve seen a bunch of times.
Sadly, this isn’t the worst thing you can say about the Jurassic World Blu-rays. Or the DVD for that matter. For starters, some of the making-of featurettes could’ve been combined into one, since they cover a lot of the same territory. This could also use a commentary, but only if Trevorrow was joined by members of the cast, especially Pratt, since actors always keep commentaries from becoming a dry film school class.
I also wish the Jurassic World Blu-rays and DVD had the original trailers because they’re an important part of the movie experience. Though I did appreciate that they included one for the game LEGO Jurassic World. Especially given how many movie Blu-rays and DVDs pretend like their corresponding games don’t exist.
In the end, if you enjoyed Jurassic World more than I did, you’ll like the Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray, and maybe even the DVD as well, since they’re thankfully on par. You just won’t enjoy it as much as you could’ve had they done a better job.
SCORE: 7.0/10
