JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH

Director
Gareth Edwards

Starring
Scarlett Johansson
Jonathan Bailey
Mahershala Ali
Rupert Friend

Following the events of Jurassic World Dominion, Martin Krebs [Friend] of ParkerGenix has acquired the various files and documents belonging to the now defunct InGen. Going over the details, he charters an expedition to yet another research facility island to gather genetic data that could make heart disease a thing of the past – for a substantial profit, of course. Having recruited covert extraction agent Zora Bennett [Johansson] and palaeontologist Henry Loomis [Bailey], they make their way to the island, only to be attacked and marooned. With time running out, the group attempt to complete their DNA gathering mission before the emergency exfiltration team arrive to save them. Oh and there’s also a family on the island. In fact, if you can think of an already established Jurassic Park scenario, it’s likely in this movie.

Before we get into the meat of this critique, let’s talk about world building. Because before the script can have fun with the narrative and build out interesting characters, Jurassic World Rebirth’s first challenge is to make sense of the inherited status quo. At the end of Jurassic World Dominion, dinosaurs are freely roaming throughout the world but once you’ve squeezed out all the toothpaste, it’s next to impossible to dismissively put it back in the tube. So the writing falls back on a frankly bizarre Jurassic franchise statement, which is that people eventually grow bored and cynical with dinosaurs, only now with the added complication that dinosaurs simply can’t survive in certain climates. As such, due to these trappings, we’re once again dragged back to formula, namely a small group of survivors on an island inhabited by dangerous predators. Meaning, from the outset, this movie already feels like a tired rehash. Although, I will note that Alexandre Desplat’s score serves up a reasonable dose of his own signature flare without overly aping John Williams’ style too much – so at least there’s a sense of progression in one form.

Speaking of the characters, these individuals are all newcomers, with no returning cast or cameos… thankfully. Unfortunately, these new additions don’t actually feel like people. We have mercenaries with hearts of gold, a transparently evil businessman, an excitably naive scientist, and a thoroughly unlikeable family. All of whom suffer from the quipping problem of interacting with one another, and the situations they find themselves in, with the most ridiculous and asinine dialogue. And considering the calibre of acting talent, this is such a waste. Bailey emotes passionately but is also lumbered with the moralistic compass and every single science-driven conversation that made the first so impactful, Ali is charming but ultimately tethered to a flimsy and under-explored dead son trope, and Johansson fits the action-lead role with ease but her moral quandary over doing the right thing for humanity is feeble.

And then we have the family I mentioned earlier. Taking a good half an hour to properly get underway, the script pulls a handbrake turn to introduce us to the secondary human contingent. We understand the mission, we’ve met the team, we know the threat thanks to the cold open flashback, but now is apparently the time to give us a handful of additional characters. Sailing in a ship he designed, Reuben Delgado is on a trip with his two daughters (Teresa and Isabella) and Teresa’s irksome boyfriend Xavier. Their ship is attacked by a Mosasaurus before they’re picked up by our main protagonists before getting stranded on the island. As such, the film flits back-and-forth between both parties making their way to the extraction site. And this family is such a burden on the script. Whereas Krebs’ team are actively tracking certain dinosaurs, completing a mission, these four are simply making their way further inland, trying to survive. And while that’s a grim prospect, none of them are particularly fleshed out: Reuben sailed his daughters out into dangerous waters but never has to face the consequences of that choice, Xavier is remarkably stupid, Teresa is resourceful but hollow, and Isabella is there to be a scared child who befriends a small ceratopsian dinosaur that she dubs Dolores. Basically, take the frustrating arc of the Kirby family in Jurassic Park III but give them even fewer redeeming qualities. It’s not that they’re bad people, they’re just flat, underwritten avatars to be put into dangerous scenarios.

Speaking of danger, a huge issue with this movie is that the threats are never truly threatening thanks to plot armour and the disposability of smaller supporting roles. In other words, if you don’t recognise the actor, they’re only surviving one encounter to be eliminated later. At first, this isn’t a problem, especially as there’s a named actor who gets surprisingly dispatched quite early on. But as the film progresses, and these unarmed, largely untrained individuals manage to luck their way out of inescapable situations, you start to simply accept the fact that nothing is actually going to happen; the terror is entirely manufactured. Now, I appreciate that’s very much true and on display in the other Jurassic Park films too – even the first movie only kills 5 people – but the difference is, it was done in a way that felt like death was a heartbeat away. Once you’ve got to the other side of the T-Rex/dinghy encounter, it becomes clear that certain individuals are going to make it all the way to the finish line, which robs the film of any real suspense.

**Spoilers in this paragraph**
If we look at the skeletal structure of this story, we have a really straightforward three part objective for our main team, and a single survival-based objective for the secondary group. And this makes everything quite bland and predictable. Not to mention, there are countless distinct parallels and poor recreations from other movies – the kitchen scene with Lex and Tim is mirrored in the petrol station, Krebs driving madly through the jungle with the samples is no different to Nedry racing to the dock, and Duncan Kincaid [Ali] luring with the main threat away with a flare is just Malcom/T-Rex 2.0. But it’s also worth taking the time to talk about Edwards’ directorial style. Going back to films such as Godzilla or Rogue One, he’s gone on record explaining that he likes to shoot different reactions and scenarios to have options to play with in the edit. This means a character could deliver a menacing line as written in the script, and then they shoot a few more improv takes. Same line, different delivery. One more timid, one uncertain, one brazen, etc. And while this can save time and money on potential reshoots and adjustments, it also creates complete inconsistency and a lack of overall defined vision. The most notable and contested example in this release being the fate of Duncan Kincaid. As mentioned above, our heroes are trying to make a last-ditch escape via boat but are set upon by the monstrous hybrid abomination Distortus Rex (dumb name). In an attempt to save lives, Duncan lights a flare and leads the beast away. While sailing off, another flare is seen and it turns out Duncan is fine. So they rescue him. This is evidently a prime example of “we shot two endings, one where he dies and one where he lives, and we picked the latter.” But it’s so undercooked. We see this man trapped in an inescapable situation, only to appear moments later, unscathed. It’s laughably dismissive and insulting to the audience, and is damning evidence of this movie being constructed from a series of disconnected parts.

At some point in every review of a Jurassic Park sequel, I can’t help but state the obvious: the original is one of the most important and influential pieces of blockbuster cinema, and everything that followed after pales in comparison. Rebirth isn’t a complete write-off however, I admittedly got through the whole thing without being outraged or inconsolably infuriated and the time passed quickly. But I have almost no desire to return to this outing. It’s a film that has been rushed into production without consideration for a genuinely gripping story that needs to be told, and as such, fails to gain traction or ensure lasting impact, which, considering your movie is a big budget spectacle about dinosaurs, is frankly criminal.

Release Date:
04 July 2025

The Scene To Look Out For:
There are plenty of forced moments of humanisation for our lead characters throughout. Rather than wrestling with their motivations and overarching predicament in a logical manner, our heroes are simply perplexed for a scene and then dive straight back into the action. Nowhere is that more apparent than Zora and Duncan sharing a heart-to-heart moment about how “we’ve lost people in this terrible line of work.” To reiterate, none of these characters are particularly likeable. Their motivations are largely selfish and shoe-horning in a moment of reflection over dead colleagues to generate some empathy and relatability, feels perfunctory and hacky.

Notable Characters:
Xavier is a deplorable douche. Introduced as lazy, ungrateful, and has some of the movie’s absolute worst lines, we’re actively rooting for him to die early on. He is the very embodiment of an entitled, disrespectful teenager. Yet, bafflingly, he is gifted a redemption arc and allowed to bond with his girlfriend’s father. Do I blame the actor, David Iacono? Not for a second, if anything, I should praise him for bringing to life such a displeasing individual.

Highlighted Quote:
“Science is for all of us, not some of us, have you thought about that?”

In A Few Words:
“Despite its attempts, all the awe, wonder, and majesty are lacking in this forgettable adventure.”

Total Score: 2/5

Linked Reviews

JURASSIC WORLD JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM JURASSIC WORLD DOMINION