Five years post-Jurassic World: Dominion, an expedition braves isolated equatorial regions to extract DNA from three massive prehistoric creatures for a groundbreaking medical breakthrough.
There’s always a bigger… dinosaur?
Jurassic World Rebirth explores yet another mysterious island of the Jurassic-verse, this time one that is home to an InGen research facility that creates hybridized dinosaurs. And who are the lucky ones to travel there in this 7th Jurassic installment? Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend) from pharmaceutical company ParkerGenix recruits Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson), paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), and Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali) & his team of mercenaries.
While this sequel bears the “Jurassic World” moniker, it has almost nothing to do with the World films and actually better resembles a “Jurassic Park” film. It felt like it could have even been JP4… possibly as a result of writer David Koepp, who co-wrote the original Jurassic Park film (1993) & The Lost World (1997)! And tonally it actually felt similar to JP3, especially with the exploration of the abandoned island, the heavy civilian involvement from the characters of the Delgado family, and the (mis)adventures of the mercenaries & escape.
If you enjoy this franchise for dino-action, then you won’t be disappointed. There were plenty of edge-of-your-seat moments including close-call chases, dramatic reveals, and, of course, dinos chomping on people. And since the plot revolves around hybridization, wait until you see the all-new terrifying Mutadons (flying raptors) and the monstrous D-Rex (Distortus rex).
Though it takes a while to ramp up to the action (in fact, the movie’s almost half over before we even reach the island), the build-up felt deserved and the pacing leading up to the island itself was well-done and well-shot. Even though there weren’t a ton of practical effects for the dinosaurs, the rest of the film was still beautiful on the big screen thanks to director Gareth Edwards, who insisted on shooting in 35mm. Combined with music by award-winning Alexandre Desplat, Jurassic World Rebirth is a pretty refreshing & satisfying watch after all these years. Scarlett Johansson & Jonathan Bailey steal the show but it’s the entirety of the new ensemble cast that really glues the whole thing together.
Jurassic World Rebirth is a very straightforward movie and one of the better Jurassic installments. Even though you’ll walk in already knowing what you’ll get, it’s still a popcorn movie meant to be seen on the big screen this summer!
Overall: 7.5/10
P.S. While there’s no post-credit scene per se, there is a little island ASMR at the very end of the credits. Plus, keep your eyes peeled for a fun Michael Crichton (author of the Jurassic Park novel) Easter Egg early on in the film!
Jurassic World Rebirth is rated PG-13 with a running time of 134 minutes and hits theaters on July 2, 2025.
Directed by Gareth Edwards and Written by David Koepp.
Starring Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, Jonathan Bailey, and Rupert Friend.
lesdudis.com 