Stars: Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Pete Postlethwaite
After the runaway success of, ’’Jurassic Park I’’, the pressure was on director Steven Spielberg to produce a fitting sequel.
’’The Lost World’’ will disappoint fans of the novel hoping to see a proper film adaptation --- the silver screen edition has virtually no resemblance to Michael Crichton’s work, but that’s not to say it isn’t worthwhile.
Indeed, a glowing cast that, in addition to those with top billing, includes the sizeable acting talents of Arliss Howard (Full Metal Jacket), Vince Vaughn (Swingers), Richard Schiff (The Arrival), & Peter Stormare (Fargo) should be enough to get any movie across the line. There’s also a small role fulfilled by Richard Attenborough (Jurassic Park I), back from the original.
But The Lost World offers much more than just an opportunity to star gaze --- it’s a well-written, quality piece of cinema, with plenty of everything to carry what has become a legendary Hollywood franchise.
Following it’s own storyline --- quite apart from the novel --- but nonetheless entertaining, this one is peppered with excellent forays into a long-forgotten world abandoned by genetics corporation InGen, where the cloned animals roam freely & reproducing.
You can naturally expect some brilliant cast performances here, & it is the inexorable Pete Postlethwaite (The Usual Suspects) who nearly steals the show with his sound rendition of a great white hunter with his eyes on the ultimate prize.
Stan Winston’s live-action animatronics & the boys at ILM have remarkably improved upon the stupendous effects of the first film, adding greater depth to the animals themselves, & the film’s brooding island environment has been superbly achieved.
With no shortage of provocative characters here, The Lost World serves as a genuinely engaging story as well as a dinosaur-sized adventure. Quite a film.