by A.J.
Night 2: Sam Neil Memorial Night
An Adventure 65 Million Years In The Making
Jurassic Park
Earlier this year, the great Sam Neill passed away at the age of 78 leaving behind an eclectic decades-long filmography. He could play many different kinds of characters with ease whether they were supporting roles, villains, or the lead. I’ve previously recommended what I think are his best horror movies (In the Mouth of Madness and Possession), so this year my Sam Neill Memorial recommendation is his most famous movie: Jurassic Park
Is Jurassic Park a horror movie? Well, No, not really. Is it a monster movie? Spielberg says, no. He purposefully did not want to make a monster a movie and was determined to make something more than a "genre" picture [horror movie]. Jurassic Park is certainly something special, but I might argue that it is secretly a monster movie. Is it a nature run amok movie? Absolutely. Is it scary? Yes. Certain scenes are as frightening as anything from the best horror movies. Is it a Shocktober movie? Yes, most definitely.
Even with a cast that includes Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Richard Attenborough, and Samuel L. Jackson, the real stars are the dinosaurs. It might be hard to explain to younger viewers just how groundbreaking and awe-inspiring the dinosaur effects were, but then again, maybe not because the CGI effects in today’s mega budget blockbusters does not come close to looking as good as even Jurassic Park's test demo footage from 1993. Jurassic Park may be one of the few movies where the reactions from the characters truly mirror that of the audience, whether they are wonderstruck or frightened.
Even though the movie has two kid characters, Lex (Ariana Richards) and Tim (Joseph Mazzello), the excitement and childlike wonder and joy of seeing living dinosaurs is conveyed most effectively through Sam Neill. The moment of him fumbling to get his sunglasses off is the perfect set up for the first time we see a dinosaur, a brachiosaurus eating from tree tops. In the shot of him lying on the belly of a sick triceratops feeling and listening to it breathe, Neill shows such genuine joy that of course the modern internet turned it into a meme. Even after the T-Rex attack and everything with the park goes wrong, Grant is still fascinated by the dinosaurs; by brachiosaur that surprises them in a treetop (“Just think of it as a big cow,” he tells Lex, who has had enough of being around dinosaurs); by the dinosaur eggs that prove life does indeed find a way; by the galimimuses that move like a flock of birds. Yet, Grant is also the main source of skepticism about a dinosaur theme park. His reaction to the very idea of velociraptors at the park tells us how dangerous, and clever, they are.
The Tyrannosaurus Rex attack is terrifying. It seems to go on and on the way that real moments of terror feel like they will never end. The scene of Nedry (Wayne Knight), the park’s traitorous computer programmer, and the dilophosaurus in the rainy wilderness is a lot scarier than any scene of a teenager coming across a slasher in the woods. The scene of the raptors stalking Lex and Tim through the park’s large industrial kitchen really is like something out of a horror movie, specifically The Shining where axe wielding Jack stalks Danny through the Overlook Hotel’s large industrial kitchen. I think the scariest scene is the opening prologue where park workers load a new velociraptor into the raptor pen only for it to attack one of the workers. It is done very simply and we see very little, but it is very intense nonetheless.
Even with two direct sequels and a multi-movie reboot franchise, the original is not diminished; it does not feel quaint by comparison. If anything, it holds up better than the sequels and reboots. Jurassic Park still holds wonder and adventure and thrills.
Jurassic Park is currently available to stream on Starz, rent on Prime Video and other sources. It's also available on DVD/Blu-ray/4K and probably at your local library.
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