Despite the themes of evolution and primacy of nature over man, Jurassic Park stands as one of the iconic defining films of a generation. As it happens, it also has some oddly prescient discussion of animal theme parks and the ethics of genetic modification. Both a rollicking story with tons of action and an incredible soundtrack, AND a story that quietly and unashamedly faces deeper questions and concepts.
Concerns to be aware of include a complete adoption of evolution as confirmed fact along with the millions of years dialogue and terrifying dinosaurs. Multiple characters are killed and children are in danger at a number of points. Minor language, no sexual content warnings.
9.5/10 stars, masterful production that easily stands up to the test of time. Fantastic themes of family and responsibility, with insightful discussion on topics like ethics of animal theme parks, extinction, cloning, and genetic modification. Not for the faint of heart, dinosaurs are rightfully terrifying.
The soundtrack is honestly beyond incredible in my eyes. There is a brilliant repetition of the main theme of wonder and joy, but shaded by the moods and thoughts of the story. The soundtrack themes are definitely in my top 5 soundtracks of all time.
Story-wise Jurassic Park ties together a fairly cohesive story that deals with dinosaurs at every turn, and yet the story is not a Dino story. I would argue that the story just happens to be set in this Dinosaur Theme Park, the real tale is a story of humans facing the unknown on several levels including family and children, nature both archaic and modern, and finally greed and human ego.
For more information and discussion, listen to the podcast episode below.