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Rating: For some readers, it may seem almost offensive to come across a review of the seventh film in the dinosaur saga. This is especially true because the last three, where the "Park" became "World," were truly terrible.
But this reluctance overlooks a few factors: the direction by Gareth Edwards, who may not be a god, but managed to make a good "Godzilla" made in the USA, the screenplay written by David Koepp, author of the first two films, and also the fact that writing reviews that smell like a takedown is one of the joys of criticism. We must not surrender to trash: it must be explained why something is awful, or soon it will become the norm.
However, I will tell you, this work is not garbage; it has its own dignity that stems mainly from the qualities of the director.
Edwards chooses slow shots that linger on scenes and savor every aspect—landscapes, movements, tension—without hurry. The action is anything but frantic: it is well-paced, often ironic. The director shows the dinosaurs sparingly, in a subtractive work reminiscent of "Godzilla," and recaptures the sense of wonder, with sequences that openly pay homage to the 1993 film. And this wonder is not only in the creatures but also in the tropical, lush, breathtaking landscapes.
The story is a clear and linear adventure but enlivened by some well-played scenario insights. There's a large section set in the ocean, hunting the gigantic Mosasaurus, and another on the steep walls of the mountains where Quetzalcoatlus makes its nest.
Some credit should be shared with screenwriter David Koepp, who had already written the first two chapters, and his return is felt. But his contribution remains ambivalent: on one hand, he offers successful adventurous insights, while on the other, he stumbles over some forced dialogues and a few rhetorical passages.
The film takes its time to build the characters, who are all new: sometimes it succeeds (the little family, for example, is perfect), other times less so. But at least it doesn't disastrously fall into the most worn-out clichés of action films: it brushes against them, sometimes surrenders to them, but the attempt not to overdo it is clear.
The underlying environmental themes are unraveled without unbearable preaching, allowing them to emerge as facts. The planet is devastated by humans, and the dinosaurs cannot adapt, they die. But then the story dangerously approaches the "big pharma" issue, highlighting the challenge between those who want pharmaceutical innovations (thanks to dinosaur genes) only for their own economic gain and those who would like to share them with the entire world.
In short, framed this way, it risked becoming the usual fable.
Fortunately, Koepp doesn't dwell too much on these aspects, even though they seem almost inevitable in the "Jurassic" genre. Thus, it is much easier to enjoy the film with its breathtaking landscapes and music (taken from the first chapter), its adventure sequences, and the simple but effective character stories.
The dinosaurs are not everything, they are not always at the center of the action or around the corner ready to devour someone. And this is precisely the best novelty: quite a change for a franchise like this.
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