The reviews for the highly anticipated sequel, Jurassic World Dominion, are now in. So, is the franchise finale a worthy conclusion? Or should the Jurassic series simply be left to go extinct? Well, according to the critical response, it’s a little bit of both. We shall begin where all good things do, with the positives, as USA Today critic Britan Truitt found a lot to like in Jurassic World Dominion — even calling the sequel the best in the franchise since the iconic 1993 original.
“Although overly familiar, Dominion boasts everything you’d ever want in a “Jurassic” film and is the best in the series since the original 1993 movie.”
Rohan Patel of ComicBookMovie.com, meanwhile, equally found lots to love in the return of the dinosaur menace, heaping praise on its unashamed summer movie fun.
“Jurassic World: Dominion is pure dinosaur mayhem, 100% fueled by nostalgia and amplified by epic dinosaur action, making it one of the most chaotic and unquestionably fun films of the summer.”
ScreenRant’s Ben Kendrick continues the applause for the Jurassic follow-up, finding the same fun within the movie’s messier elements.
“Jurassic World Dominion is a messy but fun end to the Jurassic Park sequel trilogy, bringing franchise themes, characters, and nostalgia full circle.”
Many of the reactions to Jurassic World Dominion refer to the movie’s chaotic nature, with our own Julian Roman making mention of the “terrible script,” but still finding value in the dinosaur rampaging action.
“Jurassic World: Dominion has a terrible script but achieves thrilling, CGI-fueled action. My issues are mitigated by pure entertainment value. Who doesn't enjoy watching a Pterosaur rip a plane out of the sky?”
These sentiments continue with Empire’s Ian Freer, who says, “Jurassic World Dominion is scattershot but entertaining, delivering fun, familiar set pieces.” Peter Debruge of Variety adds, “Of the three “Jurassic World” movies, “Dominion” is the least silly and most entertaining. But that’s not saying much.”
Finally, Neil Smith of Total Film found that Jurassic World Dominion sparks into life when it attempts to do something different, rather than just stomp all over the past.
“Less triumphant send-off than passable retread, the newest Jurassic only approaches classic when it ventures into uncharted territory.”
Not Everyone is Satisfied with Jurassic World Dominion
Unfortunately, this is where the positives end, with the negative responses to Jurassic World Dominion coming thick and fast. Joshua Rothkopf of EW felt that not even the return of the legacy characters could save the sequel from itself.
“Even with the original cast on board, there's surprisingly little chemistry or humor, and the movie makes repeated pit stops to stress family values.”
David Crow of Den of Geek even deemed it necessary to compare Jurassic World Dominion to some of the worst that 90s blockbusters have to offer.
“It evokes less the splendor of '90s era Jurassic Park than it does the excess of '90s summer catastrophes like Wild Wild West or 1998's Godzilla.”
CinemaBlend’s Eric Eisenberg gives Jurassic World Dominion a shameful 1.5/5 saying, “Orchestrating two bland, wholly disconnected plotlines, Jurassic World Dominion reduces all of its legacy characters into blank sheets of paper walking through plot developments.” While Ross Bonaime of Collider evokes one of the most memorable lines from the 1993 classic, “Jurassic World Dominion is an exhausting slog, a legacyquel that doesn’t seem to recognize where the power of that legacy comes from, and overarching idiocy that permeates every scene. To quote Dr. Malcolm, “That is one big pile of shit.”
Summing things up well, Chris Evangelista from Slashfilm rates Jurassic World Dominion a mere 4/10 before concluding:
“Please let this series go extinct.”
Directed by Colin Trevorrow and starring Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Sam Neill, Jurassic World Dominion is due to be released on June 10, 2022, by Universal Pictures.