I personally like Jurassic World, but it just felt surface level to me. Most of the characters were caricatures who really needed at least one more pass on their writing and motivation to be solid. I think Owen and Claire are really the only exception. Hoskins and Wu's point of view are an interesting outgrowth of the JP world building, but not explored enough.

The dinos were ok, but really were not allowed to do much. Also, I get tired of people in peril because of *reasons* to add drama. There were tinges of man trying to assert dominance over the dinos that could be seen as the "control" theme from JP, and in that, I credit JW.

In short, JW felt more like a first draft of a potentially excellent film, but just was very shallow, with only a couple of original ideas that I liked. But, the tone and style was similar enough to JP that I felt like it was more a spiritual sequel to the original than LW or JP III were.

It is definitely a thrill ride from beginning to end, with the score pulling you in from the get-go. Michael Giacchino does a great job with the score, carrying Williams' thematic torch with gusto.

But, you didn't come here to read about the score did you? Of course not. You came to hear about the dinosaurs.

I'll say this. I liked the dinosaurs, and what they did with them. It was a fascinating way to take the world and consequences of the previous films, and craft it in a way that feels for the most part believable. I've heard it stated that the dinosaurs feel CG, but, aside from a couple of specific parts, I didn't get that impression.

There is a great undercurrent of understanding nature and nurture, and the instincts that can be developed, and the ones that lie beneath the surface. Chris Pratt's character (Owen?) is by and far the most interesting because he has a whole different view on the dinosaurs, than everyone else on the island.

Likewise, D'Onofrio has a different point of view on the dinosaurs, and he has a good point. However, much in the way that the first Jurassic Park film underestimated the level of human control, so this film establishes that the control the humans think they have is in error.

Claire, the park runner and operations officer, is fun and interesting, and has a good variety of moments that make her both fallible and heroic. Her chemistry with Pratt is great, and the two definitely serve as an interesting tug-of-war of perspectives on the dinosaurs.

The rest of the characters are hit and miss for me. There is a control room coworker "couple" (in the sense that they work side by side and play off each other) who sometimes serve as a bit of self-aware humor for the film. They have some good jokes, and trope reversal moments, and are fun.

The kids are frustrating. They definitely play as siblings, because in one minute they are fighting and the next they are working together despite their differences. The problem is that their tension is surface level, and even with the underlying subtext of their personal life in turmoil, they still don't feel like they actually deal with anything. They go through a crisis, think their aunt is cool again, the end.

The owner of the park is a likeable enough guy that doesn't get enough screen time and meets an untimely end. He really could have been more interesting if they felt like they could give him more to do.

The story is, unfortunately, fairly predictable. the only differences being that Pratt has been training the raptors, and the park developed (genetically engineered) a dino who turns out to be too much to handle. Unfortunately, the movie treads too heavily on the concept that are hero is really the only competent one, and the rest of the park employees are either too dumb or something to handle a crisis.

The ending is epic, and well done. The battle is such that there really is a feeling of the unknown of who might win and who might lose.