“Dominion” has many plots going, and at times they almost seem too convenient and work against each other. But suffice to say it continues the arc of the previous two movies in having a) dinosaurs living in the natural world, and b) many of them being exploited by human beings. However, in lieu of the tired “lets weaponize the dinosaurs” sub-plots from the previous two films, here we have an old villain (Lewis Dodgson, played here by Campbell Scott) running a habitat for dinosaurs on its front, and ecological disaster-causing science on its underbelly. Along with him are Dr. Henry Wu (BD Wong, reprising his role) and Ramsay Cole, a higher up in the company, named Biyosn.
New Enemies, New Dinosaurs, but Familiar Plots
The film finds a workable way to bring back its “Jurassic Park” cast, namely an ecological disaster Biyosn seems to be at the heart of. We have the reunion of Dr. Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill), and Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum). The new cast plays on sub-plots destined to unite them all, such as Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), and Maise Lockwood (Isabella Sermon), a human ‘clone’ from the last movie whom Owen and Claire have adopted. Of course Owen is still looking after the velociraptor Blue; in the film she has a baby who ultimately gets kidnapped alone with Maise.
We can talk about the film’s negatives first. For one, with a 2 hour and 26 min run-time, it’s too long, and there’s too many plots and sub-plots to fit in. Sending Grant, Sattler, and Malcolm on one arc, and Grady and Claire on another, it seems often that “Dominion” takes too long to get to the point. Additionally, some arcs can seem tired. For instance, while Dr. Wu is more a moralist this time around, he’s been at the forefront of every duplicitous decision the film’s scientists have ever made, and it’s a little hard to trust him.
There’s also the issue that “Dominion” is very big…too big, in fact, to explain how most of its happenings occurred. We last saw Maise letting a handful of dinosaurs out into the wild to avoid their exploitation. But here dinosaurs are sharing the world with humans; and the film quickly glosses over the string of events that led to the scope of this occurrence. Sometimes dinosaurs and humans get along, such as the film’s baby herbivores, which are cute and cuddly. However, sometimes they don’t, as multiple carnosaurs devour people during this film out of hunger, aggression, or whatever reason extinct dinos have to eat people.
‘Dominion’ Starts off Slow but Redeems Itself
However, oddly, “Dominion” is a film that starts off awkward and then redeems itself throughout. Firstly, the film is an all-out appreciation of dinosaurs; lovers of paleontology or dinos in general will appreciate the absolute litany of species the film includes. It’s too many to keep track of. But what the film does well is not focus on the ferocity of certain species as other films in the series have done, but treat them like animals. There’s one tired scene of weaponized dinosaurs; but aside from that, “Dominion” feels like watching a prehistoric ecosystem co-mingling, and it’s a treat to the eyes.
Second is the fact that the film doesn’t overdo the reunion of its “Jurassic Park” cast. Sattler and Grant have history together; the film takes the time to explore this, and their connection to Malcolm makes sense. Further, they have kinship with Owen, as all (save Malcolm) have a thing for dinosaurs and are at awe at the world around them. It’s nice to see the old cast back together, and the film develops rewarding endings for them. Grant and Sattler are scientific and commanding; and Malcolm is up to his usual portents of the doom of messing with the natural world and cheeky responses. It just works.
Visual Effects that Are a Treat to the Eyes
The SFX are a wonder, and the visual designers have nailed the look of dinosaurs in the wild. Things get a bit clunky when dinosaurs wander through cities like Milan (one motorcycle chase scene through the streets of said city looks like something cut from a Bond film), but overall the prowess and majesty of the dinosaurs is kept in tact. The film also brings back some old favorites like T-Rex and dilophosaurus, while adding some new ones that are menacing and fun like deinonychus and giganotosaurus, the film’s apex predator.
All-in-all, “Jurassic World Dominion” is okay. It bites off more than it can chew, which shows in its run-time, but makes the most of its massive scope and has some fun scenes throughout. It’s fun to see the old cast back together again, and the end scenes with old and new together aren’t overdone. The plot suffers at times, but luckily the film shies away from the military and mercenary angles that plagued the first two. “Dominion” lands as my second favorite of these new films (behind “Fallen Kingdom”), and is a fitting end to the franchise. Let’s just hope Hollywood leaves well enough alone and stops the series here, finishing with the closure it desperately needs.
“Jurassic World Dominion” is currently only available to watch in theaters.
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