Wolff rating: FAIR
Plot summary: Some startlingly stupid people drag a suffering Sam Neill to Isla Sorna.
Biased, pithy comments: So, the reason why this gets a ``FAIR'' as opposed to a ``MOSTLY HARMLESS'' is that the dinosaurs are extra-neato-cool. I mean, slickly-produced ILM dinos with bright colors and intelligent animations are just too neat. There's one part where a dinosaur falls down next to someone on wet ground and it's just absolutely perfect---the water jumps, the camera moves, the actor leaps out of the way, and a giant splash comes up. I had no idea if it was a puppet or CG or real, and I didn't care. At the same time, the story involved in this movie is so pathetic it hurts, really hurts. My wife and I ended up keeping score (hmm, so far, two deaths down to rescue two people...no, make that three deaths, one person...no...). We also leapt ahead to the plot ``twists'', which make those big 90mph banked curves on I-280 near San Mateo look like they're pretzels. So, what are you paying for? Are you paying for decent actors mired in a story where the characters are constantly shortchanged for frantic running-around? Or are you paying to see cool dinos and loud special effects? I was torn---I'd like a little of both, and I got only one. Your mileage may vary in proportion to your expectations.
Other Notes: SPOILERS---SPOILERS---STOP-READING--So, the morality of this movie is all wrong. The two parents kidnap the paleontologists, violate the no-fly zone, write bad checks, and even leave one of their hirelings behind, but they're supposed to be sympathetic characters? Except for the fact that I genuinely like Macy in everything he does, I found them all hateful. Sara was particularly miffed by Leoni, who just screamed, as compared to Dern and Moore in the previous movies.
How many times I have seen it: x1
Starring: Sam Neill, William H. Macy, Tea Leoni, Alessandro Nivola, Trevor Morgan.
Directed by: Joe Davis