THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK [1997 / 2013] [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy + ULTRAVIOLET] [USA Release] Return to the Adventure of Jurassic Park! Something Has Survived!
Director Steven Spielberg takes us back to the scene of Jurassic Park in ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK,’ the blockbuster sequel with even more dinosaurs, action and Academy Award® nominated for Best Visual Effects (Dennis Muren, Michael Lantieri, Randal Dutra and Stan Winston). Four years since the disaster at Jurassic Park, two groups are in a race against time that will determine the fate of the remote island’s prehistoric inhabitants. Featuring an all-star cast including Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Vince Vaughn and Pete Postlethwaite, this action-packed thrill ride will leave you on the edge of your seat...again!
FILM FACT: Awards and Nominations: 1997 Awards Circuit Community Awards: Nominated: Best Visual Effects. 1997 Golden Screen, Germany: Win: Golden Screen Award for ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK.’ 1997 The Stinkers Bad Movie Awards: Nominated: Worst Screenplay for a Film Grossing More than $100 Million Using Hollywood Math for David Koepp. 1998 Academy Awards®: Nominated: Best Effects and Visual Effects for Dennis Muren, Michael Lantieri, Randal M. Dutra and Stan Winston. 1998 Nominated: Best Fantasy Film. Nominated: Best Supporting Actor for Pete Postlethwaite. Nominated: Best Performance by a Younger Actor/Actress for Vanessa Chester. Nominated: Best Director for Steven Spielberg. Nominated: Best Special Effects for Dennis Muren, Michael Lantieri, Randal M. Dutra and Stan Winston. 1998 Grammy Awards: Nominated: Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television for John Williams. 1998 Image Awards: Nominated: Outstanding Youth Actor/Actress for Vanessa Chester. 1998 MTV Movie + TV Awards: Nominated: MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence for the T-Rex attacking San Diego. 1998 Online Film & Television Association: Nominated: Best Sound Mixing for Christopher Boyes, Gary Rydstrom, Gary Summers and Michael Silvers. Nominated: Best Sound Effects Editing for Christopher Boyes and Richard Hymns. Nominated: Best Visual Effects for Dennis Muren, Michael Lantieri, Randal M. Dutra and Stan Winston. 1998 Razzie Awards: Nominated: Worst Reckless Disregard for Human Life and Public Property. Nominated: Worst Remake or Sequel. Nominated: Worst Screenplay for David Koepp. 1998 Rembrandt Awards: Win: Audience Award for Best Director for Steven Spielberg. 2016 GoldSpirit Awards: Nominated: Best Edition of an Existing Score for John Williams and La-La Land Records for ‘Jurassic Park.’ 2018 20/20 Awards: Nominated: Felix Award for Best Sound Design. Nominated: Felix Award for Best Film Editing for Michael Kahn. Nominated: Felix Award for Best Visual Effects.
Cast: Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Pete Postlethwaite, Arliss Howard, Sir Richard Attenborough, Vince Vaughn, Vanessa Lee Chester, Peter Stormare, Harvey Jason, Richard Schiff, Thomas F. Duffy, Joseph Mazzello, Ariana Richards, Thomas Rosales Jr., Camilla Belle, Cyd Strittmatter, Robin Sachs, Ross Partridge, Ian Abercrombie, David Sawyer, Geno Silva, Alex Miranda Cruz, Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc, Bob Boehm, Bradley Jensen, Alan D. Purwin, Ben Skorstad, Rick Wheeler, Kenyon Williams, Gordon Michaels, J. Scott Shonka, Harry Hutchinson, Billy Brown, Brian Turk, Jim Harley, Colton James, Carey Eidel, Katy Boyer, David Koepp, Eugene Bass Jr., Bari Buckner, Patricia Bethune, David St. James, Mark Brady, Marjean Holden, Jacqueline Schultz, Domini Hofmann, Thomas Stuar, C. Ransom Walrod, David Gene Gibbs, Michael N. Fujimoto, Paul Fujimoto, Darryl A. Imai, Darryl Oumi, Bernard Shaw, Sean Michael Allen (uncredited), Paul Burke (uncredited), Christopher Caso (uncredited), Michael Chinyamurindi (uncredited), Tory Christopher (uncredited), Michael Fallavollita (uncredited), Elliot Goldwag (uncredited), Larry Guardino (uncredited), Brett Harman (uncredited), Henry Kingi (uncredited), Brian Lally (uncredited), David Lea (uncredited), Sali Lewally (uncredited), Linda Li (uncredited), J. Patrick McCormack (uncredited), Johnny Meyer (uncredited), Michael Milhoan (uncredited), Kenneth Moskow (uncredited), Mark Pellegrino (uncredited), Bob Quinn (uncredited), Chad Randall (uncredited), Eli Roth (uncredited), James Ryan (uncredited), Theodore Carl Soderberg (uncredited) and Steven Spielberg (uncredited)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Producers: Bonnie Curtis, Colin Wilson, Kathleen Kennedy and Gerald R. Molen
Screenplay: Michael Crichton (novel) and David Koepp (screenplay)
Composer: John Williams
Cinematography: Janusz Kamiński (Director of Photography)
image Resolution: 1080p
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: English: 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio,
Spanish: 5.1 DTS-HD Surround Sound
French: 5.1 DTS-HD Surround Sound
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish
Running Time: 258 minutes
Region: Blu-ray: All Regions and DVD: NTSC
Number of discs: 2
Studio: Universal Studios / Amblin Entertainment
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: It isn't the giant, carnivorous dinosaurs thundering through the jungle and pulling people apart like spaghetti that provide the scariest chills in ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK.’ Here we find their adorable miniature relatives known as “companies” (aka Procompsognathus) who scamper through the underbrush like a gang of famished street urchins playing cute, bloodthirsty games of hide-and-seek and follow-the-leader with their prey. In the film's stunningly creepy opening scene, a young girl wanders away from a British yachting party picnicking on the misty beach of a remote jungle island off the coast of Costa Rica. As she peers into the fringe of the forest, a bony little creature skitters out of the woods and gives her a pleading look. No sooner has she allowed her strange new friend to nibble on her roast beef sandwich than it is joined by a crowd of companions chattering and leaping around her, their sharp-toothed mouths gaping for treats. We don't see their attack; we only hear her as she screams, nice!
Unfortunately, this first sequel is proof that lightning rarely strikes twice, even for the likes of someone as highly-regarded as Steven Spielberg. ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ which shares only a title with the novel by the late Michael Crichton doesn't necessarily try to repeat the success of its predecessor, but it clearly wants to relive the same sense of wonder and exhilaration. It's doesn't quite succeed at capturing our imagination or sparking that same awe-inspiring level as the first film, but that isn't to say it doesn't come close at times. Then again, there's really only one scene which comes to mind, involving a pair of T-Rex’s, and their new-born dinosaur, a large, extended RV trailer and lots of loud crashing roars amid a rainstorm.
As for the rest of the film, viewers are forced to waddle and stumble through a clumsy display of what is essentially an explanation for why Dr. Ian Malcolm [Jeff Goldblum] returns but not the other two. And as before, one precocious youngster, but this time via Dr. Ian Malcolm's daughter Kelly Malcolm [Vanessa Lee Chester] joins an expedition team to another of John Hammond's [Sir Richard Attenborough] dinosaur resorts, a top secret location where the extinct animals live freely, until now of course. Dr. Ian Malcolm's group, which brings Julianne Moore, Vince Vaughn, and Richard Schiff together, is there merely to explore and observe. John Hammond's nephew [Arliss Howard], however, has his own plans, and hires a separate team of big game hunters lead by the wonderful Pete Postlethwaite, who as we know, sadly passed away a few years ago and is a very sad loss to the acting world.
What distracts from enjoying a second trip through prehistoric fantasy is a very apparent lack of characterization. The make-believe CGI creatures and animatronics often display more personality and charisma than their live-action co-stars. It is strange seeing characters so underdeveloped and two-dimensional in a film that really requires the human aspect to sustain believability. Audiences are continuously reminded that corporate greed is bad and sometimes just as selfishly ravenous as the Velociraptor depicted on screen, but rarely are they allowed to connect emotionally with a particular character, which greatly diminishes the film's attempts at suspense. Nevertheless, the sequel has its moments of fun action with a silly, purely for the visual whimsy conclusion in San Diego. The key to the film’s success is that the dinosaurs are more varied and lifelike than ever before. Their interaction with the actors is astonishingly realistic. There are sights here that are unforgettably strange and scary, such as the grassland trails left by velociraptors hunting their human prey. Steven Spielberg shows once again why he has made six of the top twenty highest-grossing films of all time. This will probably join that list as the seventh. It is far more frightening than ‘JAWS’ and certainly among the most spectacular motion pictures ever made.
‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ never takes itself too seriously. Yes, it can be seen as a fiendish millennial fantasy of our prehistoric past catching up with us. But it also doesn't pretend to be much more than a messy, full-blooded adventure yarn with cardboard characters and a story that doesn't track. It winks at the acknowledgment, as much in a throwaway moment when the escaped Tyrannosaurus Rex is shown rampaging through a video store. On one wall is a gaudy poster for a non-existent film of '’King Lear’' starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ knows it's coming from roughly the same angle and place.
Blu-ray Image Quality – This ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ sequel to the mega-blockbuster arrives on Blu-ray in pretty much the same condition as the first is in good shape, but showing its age. Because it features more CGI effects than its predecessor, the 1080p encoded image and with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio also brings with it more scenes of blurriness and poor resolution. Digital composites are probably the worst, since they come with plainly visible black crush and very soft outlines, especially at night-time. Nevertheless, the transfer does offer plenty of nicely detailed sequences in daylight, with sharp, clean lines and great visibility of background info. Contrast and brightness is well-balanced, with crisp whites and deep, rich blacks throughout. Colours are bold and vibrant, while flesh tones seem quite natural. The picture is far from perfect, but it's still an upgrade from its inferior DVD counterpart.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – Much like the first film, the 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack for ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ is sure to wake up the neighbours. Because the majority of the film takes place within a jungle setting, the back speakers are almost-always alive and kicking with various sounds of birds, creatures and movement amongst the trees. Directionality and pans are flawless, creating an enveloping sound field that's highly engaging. The front soundstage is spacious, with excellently balanced channel separation. Vocals can, at times, feel a bit drowned out by the all the commotion, but it's rather clear for the most part. Dynamic range exhibits exceptional, room-penetrating clarity and strong differentiation of the upper frequencies. No surprise, low bass is deeply powerful, delivering an effective force to every gunshot, dinosaur stomp, and roar. 'The Lost World' is lots of exhilarating fun in high-resolution audio.
Blu-ray Special Feature and Extras:
Special Feature: Return to Jurassic Park: Finding The Lost World [2011] [1080p] [1.78:1] [28:00] This new documentary from Laurent Bouzereau picks up where the first film’s materials left off. Steven Spielberg, Jeff Goldblum and other key creative team members discuss the making of the sequel, which Steven Spielberg sees as the first direct sequel he was involved in and gives his views on the Indiana Jones film franchise as an adventure serial, a different animal altogether. Jeff Goldblum is the only actor other than Peter Stormare to participate here, but Jeff Goldblum makes up for it by telling some very funny stories about the film’s production. On-set video footage is shown, and there is a discussion by several of the principals about how the San Diego coda came about. Spielberg mentions having had a different idea about the genesis for a sequel (he wanted to see what happened to the shaving cream can lost in the first film) until he read Michael Crichton’s second book on this subject and went with that. Spielberg admits that the “Something Has Survived” idea was really just a promo line that didn’t have anything to do with the actual story in the movie. He also admits that the first film really had less than 65 CGI shots in the film that something he quickly topped with the second film. There’s some really fun stuff in this piece, particularly the admission that the big cliffside scene was filmed on a covered area of the Universal Studios parking structure!
Original Feature: Return to Jurassic Park: Something Survived [2011] [1080p] [1.78:1] [17:00] The fifth segment focuses on the more technical aspects of the production, particularly the film's conclusion and how it was essentially written into the story on a whim. The digital and practical effects are also talked about extensively, often closely looking at specific action sequences, while several interviews mention the great deal of fun everyone had. Like the previous pieces, viewers also learn quite a bit about the sound and effects, which is amusing.
Special Feature: Deleted Scenes [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] [7:09] Two deleted scenes are included here from the initial DVD of ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK.’ The first scene shows Peter Ludlow [Arliss Howard] usurping control of InGen from his uncle at a boardroom meeting. The second scene gives a proper introduction to Pete Postlethwaite’s character as he beats up a tourist out of both honour and boredom before agreeing to go on the film’s expedition. These scenes cannot be accessed on their own, so to watch them, you’ll need to select the menu item and then fast-forward or rewind as needed.
Special Feature: Original Documentary: The Making of ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] [53:41] This documentary is the earlier work by Laurent Bouzereau, and it’s just as thorough as his more recent pieces elsewhere on this Blu-ray disc. And some of the footage from here is recycled from other pieces. The interviews for this piece date back to the time of the production. Contributors include: Steven Spielberg, Michael Crichton, Sir Richard Attenborough, Jeff Goldblum, Gerald R. Molen, Julianne Moore, David Koepp, Vince Vaughn, Pete Postlethwaite, Rick Carter, Colin Wilson, Michael Lantieri, Stan Winston, Jack Horner and Kathleen Kennedy.
Special Feature: Original Documentary: Making of the Film ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] [13:17] This is a much shorter documentary and it is mainly a sort of filler, but it’s still interesting to see the some of the cast at a younger age.
Special Feature: Original Documentary: The Jurassic Park Phenomenon: A Discussion with Author Michael Crichton [2001] [480i] [1.37:1] [15:27] Here we get to view a really good interview with author Michael Crichton is included here, and it may be the most interesting extra on any of the discs. Michael Crichton talks about how he was once known as the author of The Andromeda Strain but that Jurassic Park thankfully changed that. Crichton recounts a story of being shown around the Universal back lot by a then-young director named Steven Spielberg. Michael Crichton also discusses the differences between books and films, even when the movie is an adaptation of a book. He mentions having spent 10 years writing ‘JURASSIC PARK,’ which only makes sense if you realise he was actually working three different films and another book before putting his focus here. The differences between characters in the books and these films are also discussed, with the main focus being John Hammond, who Michael Crichton describes as a dark Walt Disney. There’s a brief coda to the piece. Shot in 2000, this bit shows Michael Crichton enjoying that a new sub-type of dinosaur has been named after him and it is known as Michael Crichton’s Ankylosaurus Reptile, or more scientifically known as Crichtonsaurus Reptile. The interviews were conducted by Laurent Bouzereau, and one of his first interviews that were used in his more recent documentaries.
Special Feature: Original Documentary: The Compie Dance Number: Thank You Steven Spielberg from ILM [2001] [480i] [1.37:1] [1:38] This is a quick CGI dance number performed by a kick line of compies. I can’t say that I think much of the music, but the compies look like they’re enjoying the steps.
Special Feature: ILM & The Lost World: Before and After the Visual Effects [2001] [480i] [1.37:1] [20:44] This is another collection of before/after shots where CGI dinosaurs were added to live action. This batch is presented in a different way than the first film. Here we have a split screen, where the top frame has the live action and the bottom frame has the live action infused with CGI. Contributors include: Rick Carter, Dennis Muren and Steven Spielberg.
Special Feature: Production Archives: [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] Here we get to view a collection of archival material divided into multiple sections: “Production Photographs,” “Illustrations & Conceptual Drawings;” “Models,” “The World of Jurassic Park,” “The Magic of ILM” and “Posters & Toys.”
Special Feature: Storyboards [SPOILERS ALERT] [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] Here we get to view a collection of Storyboard assemblies and are presented for the following sequences: “Stego Attack,” “The Round Up,” “Eddie’s Death,” “Death in the Waterfall,” “Malcolm vs. Raptor,” “Sarah Harding vs. The Raptors,” “Getting the T-Rex Off The Island,” “The Cargo Ship Sequence,” “The T-Rex Visits San Diego,” “The Revenge of the T-Rex,” “Omitted Air Attack” (an abandoned Pteranodon Reptile sequence) and “The Original Ending” (another sequence that would have involved flying dinosaurs, abandoned in favour of bringing the T-Rex stateside for a quick bite…).
Theatrical Trailer [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] [1:58] Here we have a standard definition copy of the theatrical trailer for the film ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ as presented on the earlier DVD edition. Why couldn’t they have shown it in its right aspect ratio?
BD-Live: The more general BD-Live screen is accessible via the menu, which makes various online materials available, including tickers, trailers and special events.
My Scenes: The usual bookmarking feature is included here.
D-BOX: D-Box functionality is available for those home theatre enthusiasts who have the proper equipment.
Finally, just when you'd think that scientists would realize dinosaurs and humans don't mix, then along comes ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ to prove you wrong. In this sequel, John Hammond [Sir Richard Attenborough] summons chaos theorist and onetime colleague Ian Malcolm [Jeff Goldblum] to his home with some startling information so, in the final analysis, where ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ has more dinosaurs, better dinosaurs, the realms of FX seemingly limitless. It has thrills like no other film. It has moments of directorial mastery, sublime visual notations that catch the breath and it delivers great fun and definitely T. Rex-sized fun. For that, any sized queue is worth it. The special effects and dinosaurs are bigger and better and for the rubbish ending there are lots of redeeming directorial set-pieces. This sequel to ‘JURASSIC PARK’ boasted even more impressive special effects than the first film, though the acting and screenplay aren't always at the same level, so all in all, despite ‘THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK’ not being quite up to the first film in this trilogy franchise, I am still glad I have this in my Blu-ray Collection, as it has its moments now and again and it gives your Home Cinema a real treat and will have your friends hiding behind the couch, as they will feel the Dinosaurs will be invading your living room. But one sad fact is why they couldn’t have brought this film out in 3D like the first film and especially with the computer wizardry of modern technology today, very strange. Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
