Triple Whammy - Jurassic World - Does it have enough teeth?

Dan - In terms of childhood memories, particularly those of a cinematic pedigree, the Jurassic Park series was one that I never wholly took to and thus never really had a set place in my heart like other childhood films such as Back to the Future, Star Wars and even Lord of the Rings, a trilogy of movies that did, and still does, have a secure place in my love of cinema. Sure, I recall watching Jurassic Park and even remember watching Jurassic Park III in the cinema as a child, but the sheer wow factor of the "dinosaur dystopia" in which Spielberg and co. had created never really excited me in ways that other films did. I recently watched the trilogy once again after years of them being in the category of just "seen it", in order to discover whether my childhood had in fact been a complete disgrace, yet my feelings still remain the same. From a a much more mature and critical standpoint also, it was clear to see that the first Jurassic Park was clearly the best out of the trilogy, with it to this day still having moments of pure excitement and tension, but it then all being spoilt by its' predecessors The Lost World and Jurassic Park III which were, let's just say, nowhere near as good. So now, 22 years after the original movie, we have Jurassic World starring Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy), Bryce Dallas Howard (Spider-Man 3), Vincent D'Onofrio (Daredevil) whilst being directed and partly written by Colin Trevorrow of Safety Not Guaranteed fame. Before entering my local multiplex, I was cautious of Jurassic World maybe carrying on the torch of another mediocre dinosaur film but as soon as the credits rolled it was clear to see this was definitely not the case. In fact, its' almost as good as the original. Almost.

When scientists at the world famous Jurassic World theme park, located on the Isla Nublar, disobey rules clearly laid out in the first three Jurassic Park films such as DON'T MESS WITH DINO DNA, their new creation, the aptly named Indominus Rex, decides to go AWOL, leading to mass panic and mass murder on the island, forcing park manager Claire (Dallas Howard) and trainer Owen (Pratt) into finding a solution to prevent the death of not only themselves, but the 20,000 tourists stuck on the island with them. Seems like a pretty straightforward Jurassic Park style plot doesn't it? And it most definitely is, but one of the things that I loved about Jurassic World was that it didn't stop long enough for you to really care about the weakness of its' plot with it constantly ramming up the dinosaur action up to eleven, leaving you continuously with a sense of breathlessness and feelings I probably should have felt when I watched the first film as a child. Not only does the tension hit home due to the surprising amount of bloodshed and death on-screen throughout, but also due to the expertly crafted dinosaurs that we are faced with. Each and every scene in which a dinosaur appeared was genuinely jaw-dropping and deserves a round of applause for the amount of precise detail that those tasked with the creation of such have adhered to. Top marks.

Of course, the film does have weaknesses, and weaknesses that have been current in the franchise from the start such as having quite a few incidental characters whom are used simply as cannon fodder for death-by-dinosaur on screen, and having an annoying tendency for making human beings seem actually quite stupid in the line of fire, but these weaknesses are glossed over by the sheer spectacle that is presented, with likable leading characters in the form of Pratt and Howard also doing well in solidifying Jurassic World as one of the forerunners in the 2015 blockbuster race. In a nutshell then? Miles better than the two previous Jurassic Park entries but maybe just below the original in terms of quality, Jurassic World is a bigger, bolder and cooler entry into an inevitably ever-growing canon of movies. Jurassic World, you have my endorsement. 

Dan's Score - 8/10

Josh - When I first watched the trailer for Jurassic world I was psyched. I had a lot of hopes for this film. Little did I know that what I was watching was the bloody highlights of the film!  Which did partially spoil the film. Yes this is done so often nowadays and I will always rant about it.

Yes being a Jurassic park film you can immediately tell the plot of the film, dinosaurs get loose, people get eaten, as the cast try to escape the island. That's just what the films are about fair enough it's good, however when it gets to the point you can tell who is going to get eaten  and by what it just loses all of the thrill and almost horror side which made the previous films all so enjoyable.

You would think after all the deaths and accidents from the previous films they would make more safety precautions to deal with the protection of guests. nearly all the way through the film I was face palming, if there was a desk I would be slamming my face into it I mean the stupidity of  characters its like they don't realise that the dinosaurs eat people! Yes I can see them lowering the intelligence of the human characters in an attempt to make the "indominus rex" and the Raptors seem smarter but not like this! Also they know clearly state that the "indominus rex" can see thermal heat yet they still try hiding 2 inches away from it *face palm*. Also, little side note, Bryce Dallas Howard's character, Beth somehow manages to cross all terrain from muddy grasslands to concrete while running faster then a T-Rex in high heels now I don't wear high heels (in public) but I'm quite sure this is actually impossible. There are a lot more weird plot holes but I weld be here all day to mention them all. Honestly I feel the whole kids characters to be slow and pointless and an attempt to copy the kids from the first movie. Also the character development was relatively poor to non-existent I mean the Nick Robinsons charter Zach's whole thing with him staring at all the girls at the park was ridiculously boring and brought no plot development and if anything made him seem creepy. And the whole their parents getting divorced was already used in Jurassic park 3. It all just seems recycled. I will give it props to relating to the first movie at some parts to the film with the kids finding the old Jurassic park banner and driving the old Jeeps.

Though I do agree with Dan in that the first was by far the best out of the previous trilogy, however I would disagree with him in that Jurassic world is on par with the first. If anything I would say that Jurassic world has made Jurassic park look even better and they should have created more suspense in being hunted or made it seem more like a thriller.

So far I have been biting chunks out of this film, but I did enjoy it aside from all the plot holes and annoying characters it was good to watch. As mentioned by Dan when the dinosaurs were on the screen it was amazing to watch. The detail and action scenes were superb and thrilling to watch with impressive use of the surrounds such as the use of the holograms in stalling the Raptor. The magnitude of the dinosaurs are impressive and that's exactly what I came to see, so much so I would actually like to watch it in 3D.
Josh's Score - 6/10

Pete - Josh and Dan both bring very valid points to the table. I myself sit on the fence. As I was raised on these movies, they have a special place in my heart. They are so fondly remembered that I can't help but watch them whenever they're on. So perhaps my view of the latest is one of a spoilt critic with an expectation of greatness. Jurassic World lacked. It lacked the tension and the heart pumping excitement that made the classics, classic but it had throwbacks to the past that gave the sense of nostalgia. Yet here I am, with my ass on a white picket fence.

It lacked the tension for many reasons. The build was not long enough and the pay-off was a generic, predictable mess and happened instantaneously. It feels that the movie is a children's one with an attempt to keep their minds focused on one thing for more than a few seconds without them pulling out their Iphones and playing Candy Crush. The need for the instant gratification ruins exactly what Jurassic Park is known for. Sure, the originals were PG but at the time, they were legitimate, scary thrillers. Now we have a 12A which sparks no fear or excitement. In many years time, I will show my kid(s) all of these movies and I could almost guarantee that the 4th will fade into their memory without a second glance. The only scene to really make me recoil was the abuse the kid's guide got from a multitude of dinosaurs which was actually overzealous. Although the CGI was on point I would enjoy seeing more practical effects throughout.

Josh rightly pointed out the issue with the plot holes and this is really significant. Things are happening everywhere, but we never really finish anything up. No one talks about the women murdered by the Mosasaurus or the fucking owner of the park! The group that try to weaponise the creatures are whisked in and the need to classify information from the owner just confuses the plot even more. By claiming they have to use other creatures DNA to breed the dinosaurs, why is it that the hybrid has Raptor DNA? and why do I need to know about the childrens parents getting a divorce, how does that change anything and why is this child so fucking annoying? Among a host of continuity errors, I find myself mad that this happens so much and it was let out of the gate. Its either that the cut way to much, or more likely, they never finished. With production being back and forth for years, many ideas have floated about and some genius had the idea to smash them all into one and hope it did something. The general production suffers, not only the visuals but also the script and the music. With a script written by a child and music probably crafted prior to the film, nothing fits. Its all disjointed and doesn't flow or create something magical and special.

I may be attacking this like a rabid dog but the reality is, this is a movie that has been created for the commercial reasons. They may claim its for the fans with a short appearance of the T-Rex but rather than targeting the original audience, you bombard them with more product placement than the Super Bowl ad break and pander to the child market so you can squeeze more money from the merchandise. Its feels cheap. As if they no longer value the franchise and want to abuse it like its into some sick dino BDSM. 

There were parts I'm okay with. It was a blast from the past. It was something that I was raised on and even though it has Chris Pratt in it, the rest is just a bit meh. Its one of those films that don't stick. It lost its edge and for the love of god, stop using child actors whose character and acting suck. I feel too generous awarding it a 7 so I feel that a 6 is far more appropriate. Bring on the Lego game!
Pete's Score - 6/10

Overall - 6.66/10

ARK: Survival Evolved - Early Access Review

Since I heard about a survival MMO with dinosaurs, my interest was peeked. After debating long and hard about my interest in joining the Alpha process, I held back until it came to Steam on the early access program. With Jurassic World just around the corner, its safe to say that this release is a big one which has seen almost 50,000 people on at this very moment. One of those being myself and I've thoroughly enjoyed myself. Its nature as an early access game means that the review is based on what I saw from day 1 onwards but it has seen a few gigs worth of updates since then to improve its optimization issues.

So ARK is a game you may have heard about. In fact, you should have heard about it. The game is a survival world dominated by dinosaurs. Your aim is to live, tame creatures and make your way to the end game bosses. Now its been a week since I started this review. Why I've taken so long? I got incredibly involved with the game. I'm now sitting on around 30 hours of gameplay with a crew of about 10 people starting out on a new server and we are no where near the end game. As an online experience, it is one of the best I have ever had. From starting off with a humble straw hut as I wandered around solo trying to navigate the map, my area and the gain a general understanding of the creatures that rule over the land. Its safe to say that you will spend some time trying to level up and gain better access to food. Although a little punishing to begin with, once you get a feel for the lay of the land, starting up is an easy task, as long as you don't wander near any of the carnivores.

So, for its early access release, there is just over 50 creatures in game from the little Dodo to the end game Dragons. With towering Brontosaurs and T-Rex there is a wide variety to see all across the map. So the work that has gone into them is extreme and stands to reason why the game is so poorly optimized. With a minimum requirement of 4GB of RAM, the understanding is that it should run at a fairly decent quality at that point, however, this is not the case. To run the game at medium settings,

my 8GBs are having trouble keeping up at times. Framerates can fluctuate at 10-15 with background processes or windows in the background or 15+ without it but no where near a decent 25FPS to give smoothness to the lower qualities. Even those with extreme PCs struggle with its epic scaling. Alongside this we have characters never leaving the server. Unconscious bodies litter small huts and bases, ripe for the picking. Without a wooden hut or a secure base, don't expect to be alive when you come back. Raiding is rife and you are a prime target when near a spawn.

Its not the only bug, but this is a game that only appeared officially to the public on the 2nd and is already blowing other games out of the water. With a plan that looks towards the groups developing a console version for the Xbox One and PS4 in a little over a year, early access is only a step at drawing attention and hopefully will become the first survival game to actually come out of early access without suffering from the DAY-Z syndrome.

ARK is incredibly fun. Taming creatures and working together as a group to achieve a goal is great but its so much more than that. The exploration and online community make it that much better. Unofficial servers draw the better groups of people and these people instantly talk to you and give you a helping hand if you're out and about on your own walking for 30 minutes with nothing but a Dodo to keep you company. RIP Billy, you fought that Megladon like a champion, you will be remembered. They share food, dive in to help you fight something or invite you to their tribe. As a tribal unite, the game only exceeds expectations. Never fight alone again and wage a war with a rival faction and enjoy the company.

Get this game, participate in an online community that are excited and passionate. Play in a world where you can ride a T-Rex into battle and fly a giant eagle across the skies, who wouldn't like it!? 8/10!

Jurassic World - GLOBAL TRAILER

As you've probably noticed by the sudden influx of posts hitting the page, we've been inundated with trailers for the biggest hits on route.

Today we see the launch of the long expected Jurassic World trailer and finally catch a glimpse of Chris Pratt in his element among the Raptors and a quick flash of our big bad hybrid.

With a 190 million dollar budget, the CGI looks to be worth every cent.

Jurassic World arrives in UK cinemas this June!