Jurassic World: Rebirth – Big Dinosaurs, Small Stakes

Jurassic World: Rebirth Director: Gareth Edwards Writers: Michael Crichton, David Koepp Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, Johnathan Bailey

A rebirth that found a pulse was entertaining enough, but it’s not quite a version of “life will find a way.” There’s no denying the man behind ‘Rogue One’ has an eye for scale, and Gareth Edwards brings a cinematic weight and tone that’s immediately recognizable. Visually, this film is a step above its predecessors (Especially the last two, which I prefer to pretend don’t exist). Jurassic World: Rebirth is lush, beautiful, with interesting jungle shots, a world that hints at something bigger and stunning visuals. Combine that with the incredible sound design and score from Alexandre Desplat. With the original John Williams score rising in moments, and unique sounds from the mutated dinosaurs, as well as the most adorable little dinosaur, these elements could have been anchored together by a new, original storyline in the Jurassic universe. Honestly, I expected more from David Koepp, considering he is the same legendary screenwriter of the first film.

We are treated with a scientifically inaccurate, paper-thin plot about dinosaurs being segregated to a tropical island due to our Earth’s climate in this age. This is, at best, an oversimplification, but fossil evidence suggests that Dinosaurs roamed near the poles during the Late Cretaceous period, regions with long and dark winters in which Dinosaurs adapted to - shaky writing from when the first movie prided itself on accurate paleontological ideas for its time. In true Jurassic fashion, Rebirth leans into one of the franchise's most durable tropes: yet another return or visit to a dangerous island, which has been specifically forbidden for human entry for dinosaur-eat-humans reasons. It’s so familiar that it feels like less of a narrative choice and more of a contractual obligation. This time, a rich, white billionaire finances a group of specialists (mercenaries) and a Paleontologist who also works at a Museum, to extract biological samples from three specific breeds of dinosaurs so big Pharma can create a cure for heart disease. The first Jurassic Park said we shouldn’t play god, this one says, “Okay, we already played god, but maybe we should now sell our creations' blood in a syringe.”

Then there’s the human subplot, a family that is somehow managing to sail a boat around the most

dangerous island in the world, gets capsized by a water-dino, only to be rescued by the not-mercenaries, who have to not tag-along for their very dangerous mission. Rather than sticking with the armed professionals, they decide to jump ship in shallow waters and go off in their own DIY jungle adventure, which follows a series of near-death encounters that are held together by sheer dumb luck. Their whole portion of the film feels less like a near-action-horror and more like a Dino family adventure. They could have been utterly removed from the film, and nothing would have been lost from it.

The kills in the film unfold in a pretty typical manner, with minor characters picked off in. A neat, convenient order. There’s no surprise. No subversion, and certainly no stakes that feel earned. Pure carnage of characters who are introduced to be devoured. It’s hard not to compare it to Jurassic Park, where every death was earned through mounting tension, clever pacing and a genuine sense of dread. In Rebirth, the danger is present but rarely engaging, and the dinosaurs never build suspense. It didn’t help that the dinosaurs themselves, in particular the genetically mutated ones, rarely evoked the same primal fear Jurassic Park did 32 years ago. They are incredibly stylized, near-futuristic versions of dinosaurs that look like they would be nearly Star Wars canon or a Ridley Scott dream. Edwards himself even stated that the Distortus-Rex was taken from key elements of the original T-Rex, Xenomorphs from Alien, Rancors from Star Wars and the Femuto from Godzilla. If you’re allowed to design a new, terrifying creature, based on DNA structures and mutations of other dinosaurs that humans cloned, and/or animals here on Earth, why would you design a creature that mimics famous designs? Why not be original? Edwards' aesthetic worked brilliantly in Rogue One, beautifully in smaller productions like Monsters, but for Jurassic World, it just felt like there was a tonal dissonance. They looked cool. If one were in front of me, I’d surely cry, but it’s just one more element that strips away the Jurassic World feeling real.

This film is entertaining, sure, but at some point we have to stop giving Blockbuster films a free pass because they’re loud, expensive and the IP generates money and nostalgia. Jurassic World: Rebirth isn’t a bad movie, but that doesn’t mean it’s good. It’s too scary to be an action-adventure, too placid to be a horror movie. We know big-budget films are capable of being written properly. Top Gun: Maverick, Max Max: Fury Road, Star Wars: Rogue One, The Dark Knight the list goes on of films that blend jaw-dropping spectacles with proper emotional stakes, character arcs and ambitious storytelling to keep the audience captivated and invested.

Big fan of her though.

In the end, Jurassic World: Rebirth is a decent enough ride if you're in the mood for a mindless spectacle — big sounds, bigger creatures, and a familiar formula. But there's nothing here that will rewrite history, nothing that will etch itself into the legacy of the franchise. It's popcorn entertainment that forgets what made the original a classic: awe, terror, and a damn good story.

FAQ Section:

Q: Is Jurassic World: Rebirth a sequel or reboot? A: Rebirth functions more as a soft reboot, set within the same universe but with mostly new characters and a standalone plot that doesn’t require deep knowledge of the previous films.

Q: Who directed Jurassic World: Rebirth? A: The film was directed by Gareth Edwards, best known for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Godzilla (2014).

Q: Are the dinosaurs scientifically accurate in Rebirth? A: Not really. The film leans heavily into mutated, futuristic designs, which stray far from the franchise’s original roots in paleontology.

Q: Is Jurassic World: Rebirth worth watching? A: If you’re looking for a loud, visually polished dinosaur spectacle, sure. But if you’re hoping for a return to the awe and suspense of Jurassic Park, this may fall short.

Q: Will there be another Jurassic World movie after Rebirth? A: No official sequel has been confirmed, but based on box office performance and franchise potential, it’s likely Universal will continue the series.