Jurassic Park (1993) | 100 Movies Every Catholic Should See #148
Directed by Steven Spielberg. Based on the novel by Michael Crichton.
(There’s a nice little preface to my thoughts on this film in my introductory post for this series, found here.)
Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should. - Dr. Ian Malcolm
When the main cast of Jurassic Park finally enters Jurassic Park- Dr. Grant, Dr. Sattler, Dr. Malcolm, Tim and Lex, and the hapless lawyer Gennaro- they are disappointed that for almost the entirety of their trip they see no dinosaurs. The one dinosaur they see- a Triceratops- is sick and barely moving.
So it is for the audience as well: you don’t get a full look at a dinosaur for 32 minutes, and the T-Rex doesn’t appear for exactly 61 minutes!
And yet why is the first act of the movie so entertaining?
Screenwriter David Koepp- who would go on to collaborate numerous times with Spielberg- takes the characters from Michael Crichton’s 1990 hit novel1 and breathes new life into them, introducing all the major players in about 45 minutes.
The real magic of Jurassic Park isn’t getting you to believe dinosaurs were brought back to life, it’s getting you to fall in love with all the characters who you must later care for if the movie is going to have any meaningful thrills and suspense. In this day and age of the “mega-cast” Avengers blockbusters, this is a hard feat, especially when your characters are not superpowered metahumans.
The central protagonist of Jurassic Park is paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant, played by Sam Neill, and like all of the characters in this film, he gets a pretty memorable introduction that tells us everything we need to know about him.
Dr. Grant’s confrontation with the annoying kid is not just meant for laughs, it sets up the core theme of this film: the fear of becoming a parent.
It’s made clear after this scene that Dr. Sattler (Laura Dern)- Grant’s partner- loves kids and its implied that she wants to have kids with him someday, but Grant is not interested. It isn’t until he must take care of children later in dangerous circumstances that he learns that he might not be a
Recently on The Big Picture Podcast (one of my favorite podcasts, check it out), host Sean Fennessey interviewed Steven Spielberg and asked him what movie he enjoyed making the most, and he answered very quickly that it was E.T., explaining:
‘E.T.’ was a joyful time making a film because I discovered my love for parenting, not just directing. 'E.T.’ made me want to have kids. I was such an opportunist…I didn’t have much of a personal life. And I remember after making ‘E.T.’…I think I discovered how great it must be to be a parent.
This transition from making art as a “son” to making art as a “father” could not be clearer in the films that were to follow. Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade introduced Indiana Jones’ father, and Hook delved into what it means to be a father who must regain the ability to connect with his children.
For those who don’t know, Spielberg was a child of divorce, and did not learn until decades later- shortly before they both passed away- that it was his mother who cheated on his father and not the other way around. For decades, he had resented his father and his films displayed an implicit distrust of authority figures: the main two characters of Sugarland Express are on the lam, the mayor in Jaws is an idiot, and in E.T. the government is the primary antagonist. At the time of the making of Jurassic Park, Spielberg did not yet know this revelation about his parents, but he had married Kate Capshaw after Temple of Doom and they had their first child together in 1985: so by that point he had been a father for almost a decade.
Contrast Grant with Ian Malcolm, who is introduced en route to the island:
Another common theme of Spielberg’s films revolves around the protagonist as outsider: Elliott is unpopular amongst his peers in E.T., Frank Abagnale in Catch Me If You Can must bend the system to get what he wants, and even Brody in Jaws finds himself the sole voice of reason against the forces that be at Martha’s Vineyard.
The outsider protagonist is often contrasted with an older, “cooler” character who is more seasoned in the world, much akin to George Lucas using Luke and Han Solo to represent his friendship with his mentor, Francis Ford Coppola.
Brody has Quint, Elliott has his older brother, and even Indiana Jones bases his entire persona on some treasure hunter he met who gave him his hat. For Spielberg, this was embodied by fellow filmmaker Brian de Palma, who was part of the “New Hollywood” movement that included Spielberg, Lucas, Martin Scorsese, and Coppola.
In Jurassic Park, this is embodied by Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum), who is a steadfast proponent of “chaos theory”. Grant believes in facts and empirical data whereas Malcolm embraces a more cavalier, impulsive attitude. During their tour of the park, Grant has to suffer Malcolm making moves on Ellie, who is charmed momentarily by the chaos mathematician. It is no wonder that in the sequel, when it is Malcolm’s turn to be the protagonist, Spielberg makes him more like Grant, even going so far as to give him a teenage black daughter to reflect Spielberg’s own adopted black daughter.
When Malcolm and Grant both face the T-Rex when it escapes its paddock, Malcolm embraces chaos and acts impulsively, leading the dinosaur on with a flare to momentarily distract the creature, causing him to almost get killed and doing nothing to help those still remaining in the cars.
It is now up to Grant to save Tim and Lex (the “blood-sucking” lawyer Gennaro does not make it), the grandchildren of park founder John Hammond (Richard Attenborough), who remain trapped in their stalled tour vehicle. Grant is able to calmly use his knowledge of T-Rex behavior to avoid being eaten and escort the children to (relative) safety.
While Malcolm does eventually make it back in one piece (being rescued by Ellie, no less), he is pretty much out of commission for the rest of the movie. Dr. Grant proves to have the skills it takes to be a father and to protect his family, moreso than Malcolm, and not only proves this to Ellie but to himself.
Jurassic Park could have easily been a “monster movie of the week”, and while it could have been very entertaining, it’s long-lasting status as a beloved film is due to the attention both Spielberg and Koepp pay to the characters of this film. I could write an entire essay on the technical aspects- on the work Stan Winston’s team did on the animatronic dinosaurs in this film and how the revolutionary CGI would not work without them- but the “Spielberg touch” is the heart and soul he adds to the characters of his films.
Spielberg actually shot this movie back-to-back with another film which was tonally completely different but is just as much a classic nonetheless…stay tuned for next week’s post!
Highly recommend checking out the book, although be warned its way darker and more violent than the movie