Category Archives: Films released in 1997
THE RELIC
THE RELIC-United States/United Kingdom/Germany/Japan/New Zealand-1997
Penelope Ann Miller as Dr. Margo Green
Tom Sizemore as Lt. Vincent D’Agosta
Linda Hunt as Dr. Ann Cuthbert
James Whitmore as Dr. Albert Frock
Directed by Peter Hyams
Screenplay by Amy Jones, John Raffo, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver
Based on the novel by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
If there is one thing that I have learned in the 40-plus years that I’ve been watching movies it is this: if you have an idea people will steal it and turn it into something of their own. It doesn’t matter how great an idea it is and it doesn’t matter how old it is and it certainly doesn’t matter if it was successful in the first place. For example, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” was written by Ambrose Bierce in 1890; yet I can think of two movies, Jacob’s Ladder (1990) and Sucker Punch (2011) that blatantly steal its premise.
Another idea that seems to be ‘borrowed’ from a lot is one that I like to call the “Jaws Syndrome”. Let’s use The Relic as an example to break it down. First, you have a place; in the case of The Relic that place is the Chicago Museum of Natural History. Then you have a gala, party or celebration in that place that must occur no matter what. In The Relic it is the occasion of the grand opening of the spectacular “Superstition” exhibit that’s going to make the museum all sorts of money. Now, Jaws had a shark; but we can’t really put a shark in the middle of a museum to wreak havoc, now can we? Enter the Kothoga, a Chimera of a creature that loves to rip the heads off of its victims and suck out the hypothalamus. It’s a big, nasty juggernaut of a beast. Let’s move on to the characters now, shall we?
Dr. Margo Green (Penelope Ann Miller, Carlito’s Way, The Artist); Margo is the Matt Hooper of The Relic. She’s a scientist who knows the inner workings of the Kothoga and what she doesn’t know she’ll gladly interpolate on her super cool interpolator.
If we have a Hooper, then surely we must have a Sheriff Brody. That would be Lt. Vincent D’Agosta (Tom Sizemore, Natural Born Killers, Saving Private Ryan). Lt. D’Agosta is the superstitious type who doesn’t pick up a penny if its head down on the floor, will not step over a dead body and he carries around a lucky bullet to remind him why he’s alive. He’s in way over his head with Kothoga, but by golly he’s going to save the swimmers, I mean museum attendees from that awful Great White shark, I mean that nasty head-chomping monster whether the Mayor (Robert Lesser) likes it or not. That, ladies and gentlemen, is an example of the “Jaws Syndrome”. If you need further references, then I direct your attention to Piranha, Grizzly, and Dante’s Peak.
I liked The Relic, in case you were wondering. It’s one of those movies that remind me why I love horror movies in the first place; and that is because I love monsters. The Kothoga is big, mean, fast and it can climb on walls, so don’t even think about escaping through the skylight like that hapless S.W.A.T. team member tried to do.
The movie does have its flaws; the main one being that its way too dark in several key scenes and I found myself straining to figure out what was happening. I find this flaw surprising seeing as how director Peter Hyams is also the director of photography. Perhaps he assumed that ‘dark’ means ‘mysterious’ when in this case ‘dark’ means ‘dark’ and that is all. Fortunately the more illuminated scenes allow us to see Kothoga in all its glory as I’m sure SFX master Stan Winston intended us to.
If you want a dumb, mindless and fun movie then you can’t go wrong with The Relic. It’s the Jaws of museum monster movies.
TRIVIA
One of the sound effects is a floppy disk drive access sound from an Apple Macintosh computer (not the Silicon Graphics computers).
Harrison Ford was director Peter Hyams’s first choice for the lead role of Vincent D’Agosta (played by Tom Sizemore).
Audra Lindley’s last feature film.
The preparation of the fictional elixir given to John Whitney by the Amazon tribesmen, and the ceremony surrounding it, strongly parallels the real-life consumption of ayahuasca, a psychoactive tea used religiously by numerous Amazon tribes.
The improvised explosive Margo makes using two jars is very similar to the one made byJean-Claude Van Damme’s character in Sudden Death, director Peter Hyams’ previous film.
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THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE
THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE-United States/Germany-1997
Keanu Reeves as Kevin Lomax
Al Pacino as John Milton
Charlize Theron as Mary Ann Lomax
Jeffrey Jones as Eddie Barzoon
Judith Ivey as Mrs. Alice Lomax
Craig T. Nelson as Alexander Cullen (Image not from “The Devil’s Advocate“)
Directed by Taylor Hackford
Screenplay by Jonathan Lemkin and Tony Gilroy
Based on the novel by Andrew Niederman
Keanu and Al’s Hellish Adventure…
(Conversation between two slackers)
“Dude, have you ever, like, seen The Devil’s Advocate?”
“No, Dude; is it, like, missing?”
“Dumbass, The Devil’s Advocate is a movie.”
“Oh yeah? Who’s in it?”
“Keanu Reeves… (Both dudes achieve a ‘more stoned than usual’ look on their faces and begin to bow and raise and lower their hands in reverence)
(Simultaneously at the same time) KING KEANU, WE’RE NOT WORTHY! KING KEANU, WE’RE NOT WORTHY!
“Dude, that’s so righteous! Who else is in it?”
“Al Pacino.”
“Dude, the Godfather?”
“You know it, dude.”
“Oh, that is so awesome.”
“Charlize Theron is in it, too.”
“Oh dude, I had the most awesome dream about her. We were at my place and we were gettin’ it on so hot and I knew that I was gonna get so lucky and she says ‘come and get it, big boy’ and I was getting ready to come and get it and I took off my shirt and my pants and I…
“Dude, stop!”
“Nah dude, it’s cool; my mom woke me up. I was mad at her for a week.”
“Thank her for me.”
“Yeah, right. So, what’s this movie about?”
“Well, Keanu plays this totally successful lawyer in Florida. I mean, dude, this dude is like 640-0. He’s never lost a case. He’s the dude you go to if you’re a dude in serious shit.”
“Whoa.”
“Anyway, this other dude, played by Pacino, takes notice of our dude and invites him to work for him at his way cool fancy law firm in New York City. Our dude Keanu and his ultra-hot babe of a wife Charlize travel all the way from Florida to New York so he can work with this dude.”
“Wow. Wait, dude, that doesn’t sound like much of a movie.”
“Nope.”
“Then what’s the point?”
‘Well, that other dude, the one in New York?”
“Yeah?”
“He’s the devil.”
“No way!”
“Way.”
“No freakin’ way!”
“Yes freakin’ way.”
(Dude 2 has to sit down for a moment. Oh wait, he’s a slacker; he’s already sitting.)
“Okay, so what happens next?”
“All kinds of freaky shit; There’s demon’s and people that look like people but are really demons. Charlize goes totally bonkers and gets totally naked and…”
“Whoa, Charlize gets naked?”
“Dude, it’s not a pretty sight, trust me.”
“Yeah, but she wouldn’t even get naked for me in my dream. Oh, and then there was that whole Monster thing. That was worse than when I saw my grandma coming out of the shower.”
“Dude, push your ‘off’ button.”
“Sorry. So, is the movie any good?”
“It doesn’t totally suck if that’s what you’re asking. I mean it’s got Keanu in it and, let’s face it, he may be our righteous king, but he so cannot act.”
“Blasphemy, dude!”
“Dude, reality check.”
(Dude 2 ponders for a moment; images of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Speed and numerous other Keanu-tastrophes come to mind.)
“Yeah, you’re right.”
“Dude, if you see this movie, you gotta see it for Pacino and Pacino only. Charlize is good, but not as good as she was in Monster. Pacino is so convincing as the Devil that I think the devil himself saw him and said, “Whoa, that dude is me! I mean, Pacino doesn’t just chew the scenery like he did in Scent of a Woman, he totally swallows it whole.”
“Oh, that is so awesome! I am so gonna check this one out.”
“Alright, dude.”
(Dude 2 ponders again as he often does.)
“Dude, I just had the most totally weird thought?”
“Oh yeah? What?”
“Dude, what if you and me were the figment of some dude’s imagination? What if everything we just talked about was because some dude said, “I’m gonna write about these two dudes having a conversation about a movie and he created us just for that purpose. Oh shit, I’m getting brain freeze just thinking about it.”
“Okay dude, chill out. We are not the figment of some dude’s imagination?”
“Oh yeah? Well riddle me this, Batman; do you remember what we did yesterday? How about last week?”
(Now they both ponder with confused looks upon their faces. Then they look at the space in front of them as if they can see something or someone visible only to themselves.)
(Again, simultaneously) “Dude?”
What?
TRIVIA
Sculptor Frederick Hart and the Episcopal National Cathedral in Washington, DC, sued Warner Brothers over a sculpture that appears in the film and closely resembles Hart’s “Ex Nihilo”, which is situated above Milton’s desk in his apartment. A last-minute deal was negotiated to allow the sculpture to remain in the film.
Connie Nielsen‘s character speaks Spanish in the Italian release of the movie, and Italian in all the others. Nielsen is in fact Danish, and this was her American film debut.
Joel Schumacher was originally set to direct the film in 1994 with Brad Pitt to star as Kevin Lomax. Christian Slater, John Cusack and Edward Norton were then considered for the role.
The character of John Milton is named for John Milton, the author of “Paradise Lost,” the classic epic poem about man’s fall from God’s grace. When Lomax is in Milton’s office at the end of the film, he says “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven,” from Book I Line 263 of the same work.
Each time Mary Ann (Charlize Theron) tries a different color of green on the apartment walls, only to be discouraged by her “friend” Jackie (Tamara Tunie), Jackie is wearing some article of clothing or jewelry that is the exact same shade of green.
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I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER
I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER-United States-1997
Jennifer Love Hewitt as Julie James
Sarah Michelle Gellar as Helen Shivers
Ryan Phillippe (with Sarah Michelle Gellar) as Barry Cox
Freddie Prinze Jr. as Ray Bronson
Johnny Galecki as Max Neurick
Bridgette Wilson as Elsa Shivers
Directed by Jim Gillespie
Written by Kevin Williamson
Based on the novel by Lois Duncan
So “I Know What You Did Last Summer” is the first in a trilogy of films that also include “I Still Know What You Did Last Summer” and “I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer“. I will be reviewing the first sequel at a later date; but as far as I’m concerned one movie would have been enough. That’s not to say the movie isn’t good; more like average. The film does have a few scary moments as well as a few legitimate jump scares. I just don’t think it warranted two more films. In fact it was my wife who pointed out a small plot hole at the beginning that would have made the necessity for even one movie obsolete. I am proud of her; she sat through a reasonably gory horror film and I never once heard her go ‘oh yuck’.
It’s the Fourth of July in the fishing town of Southport, North Carolina. That means fireworks and the annual Croaker festival and with that comes the annual beauty pageant to crown Miss Croaker County or some other stupid sobriquet. After Helen (Sarah Michelle Gellar, The Grudge and The Return) wins the contest she goes out with her best friend Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ghost Whisperer and The Client List), Julie’s boyfriend Ray, (Freddie Prinze Jr.,She’s All That) and Helen’s boyfriend Barry (Ryan Phillippe, Stop-Loss and The Lincoln Lawyer) to celebrate. Barry gets wasted, Ray drives, Barry acts like a drunken ass while Ray is driving and Ray takes his eyes off the road long enough for the plot to thicken and to run over some poor shmuck crossing the highway. Barry the Jock convinces Ray the rich-kid wanna-be, Helen the beauty queen and Julie the good girl to help dump the guys body and never speak of it again, Of course that’s not how it works out and pretty soon they’re all getting notes that say “I know what you did last summer” and are stalked and killed by a fisherman in a rain slicker with a hook. It kind of reminds of the dream I had where I was stalked by the guy on the Gorton’s fish sticks box because I switched to Van De Kamp’s.
So anyway that’s “I Know What You Did Last Summer” in a nutshell. The movie is based loosely on the novel by Lois Duncan. I wondered why this wasn’t acknowledged in the opening credits. It wasn’t until I researched the trivia for the movie that I found out the reason why. As I stated before there was really no need for two more movies. They should have let me title the two sequels. I would have called them “I Don’t Give a Rat’s Ass What You Did Last Summer” and “Nope, I Still Don’t Give a Rat’s Ass What You Did Last Summer”.
TRIVIA
The group goes to “Dawson’s Beach”. This is a reference to Dawson’s Creek, also written by Kevin Williamson.
Sarah Michelle Gellar auditioned for the role of Julie.
Jennifer Love Hewitt auditioned for the role of Helen.
Lois Duncan has stated openly that she hates the movie, because the filmmakers turned her book into a slasher film. She especially detested it in the wake of her 18-year-old daughter’s murder in 1989.
The set relocated from North Carolina to California for the scene where the 4 teenagers run over the man. Producer Erik Feig said that North Carolina was the flattest state and they needed a more ‘curvy’ and ‘dangerous looking’ road.
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CUBE
CUBE-Canada-1997
Julian Richings as Alderson
Maurice Dean Wint as Quentin
Nicole De Boer as Leaven
Nicky Guadagni as Holloway
David Hewlett as Worth
Wayne Robson as Rennes
Andrew Miller as Kazan
Directed by Vincenzo Natali
Written by Andre Bijelic, Vincenzo Natali and Graeme Manson
One man (Julian Richings, “Wrong Turn“, “Supernatural”) is in search of an exit. He is in a cube shaped room with no furnishings; only an opening on the sides, floor and ceiling. He proceeds through an opening and is killed before he can take two steps.
Five people are in search of an exit. A cop (Maurice Dean Wint, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”), a student (Nicole De Boer, “The Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy“), a doctor (Nicky Guadagni, David Cronenberg’s “Crash”), a nihilist (David Hewlett, “Splice”), and a fugitive (Wayne Robson, “Wrong Turn 2: Dead End“, “The Red Green Show”). They don’t know why they are there. They don’t know who put them there. They know that they must escape. Working together, they find a way around the traps; but only for a while. One down, four remain.
Four people in search of an exit meet one more in search of an exit. An autistic (Andrew Miller, “Last of the Dogmen”), he is innocent. Why is he here? What did he do to deserve this punishment? Questions, questions and more questions and not an answer to be found.
As a movie, “Cube” goes against the grain of what I believe makes a movie entertaining. I believe that a movie should at least try to answer some of the questions that arise from it and “Cube” doesn’t even try to do this. We know nothing about the characters except what they tell us and what their personalities reveal. We have no idea who built the cube or for what, only that one of the characters was responsible for the outer design. Was entrapment and death its initial purpose? “Cube” is truly a mystery wrapped in an enigma.
Yet, as I was watching “Cube” I found myself holding my breath at certain moments in the film. I began to care for the characters; some I liked and some I loathed. The charm of “Cube”, for lack of a better term, lies not in its refusal to provide easy answers; but in its refusal to provide any answers at all. At least that’s what I get out of it. You want anything deeper and more profound than that then you need to see a psychiatrist or something. This is the best that I can do.
TRIVIA
All of the characters are named after prisons: Quentin (San Quentin, California), Holloway (England), Kazan (Russia), Rennes (France), Alderson (Alderson, West Virginia), Leaven and Worth (Leavenworth, Kansas).
Not only are the characters named after prisons but they reflect the prisons themselves. Example: Kazan (the mentally challenged character), in Russia is a disorganized prison. Rennes (the “mentor”) was a jail that pioneered many of today’s prison policies. Quentin (the detective) is known for its brutality. Holloway is a women’s prison, and Alderson is a prison where isolation is a common punishment. Leavenworth runs to a rigid set of rules (Leaven’s mathematics), and the new prison is corporately owned and built (Worth, hired as an architect).
Director Vincenzo Natali directed a follow-up short film in which we see what is outside the cube. Natali has made a solemn vow never to reveal what was outside the cube, and destroyed the video years ago.
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SCREAM 2
SCREAM 2-United States-1997
Courteney Cox as Gail Weathers
Sarah Michelle Gellar as Casey Cooper
Jamie Kennedy as Randy Meeks
Laurie Metcalf as Debbie Salt
Jerry O’Connell as Derek
Jada Pinkett as Maureen Evans
Liev Schrieber as Cotton Weary
Directed by Wes Craven
Written by Kevin Williamson
Ninety-five percent of the time sequels are inferior to the original film that spawned them in the first place. They either go in a completely opposite direction to the first film; or else they completely rehash the plot of the first film with the same characters and a few new ones thrown in for good measure. Scream 2 is no exception to that rule. Neve Campbell returns as Sidney Prescott, the ‘final girl’ with what appears to be a magnet in her ass when it comes to killers in black robes and ghost faced masks. David Arquette reprises his role as dorky Dewey ‘My name is Dwight’ Riley, and Courteney Cox is once again opportunistic news reporter Gail Weathers. Change the setting to a college campus and begin the whole thing over again for a 100% brand new same old experience. Boring! I say boring! The entire Scream franchise has always revolved around whether or not art imitates life or vice versa. The trouble with that theory is that the audience has to buy into it. For the sake of argument, I for one do not. I believe that if someone is truly evil (or perhaps insane), then they’re going to commit murder anyway; and that it’s not going to matter whether they saw Jodie Foster playing a twelve-year-old hooker or Ghostface slicing and dicing bubble headed teenagers. Art imitates life, not the other way around. Scream 2 is just another tired unnecessary sequel spinning its wheels.
TRIVIA
The cast was not informed of the identity of the killer until the last day of principal photography. Also, the cast did not receive the last ten pages of the shooting script until it was time to film the scenes contained therein. Furthermore, the last ten pages of the shooting script were printed on gray paper in order to deter illicit duplication of them. All cast members were required to sign confidentiality clauses as parts of their respective contracts that precluded them from discussing the outcome of the story and the killer’s identity.
Randy’s reference to fake nude pictures of Gale Weathers on the Internet was inspired by fake images of Courteney Cox that appeared on the worldwide web prior to production of Scream 2.
The rules for a horror-movie sequel as stated by Randy are: 1. the death total is always greater; and 2. the murder scenes are always much more elaborate, with more blood and gore. The third rule to surviving a sequel was cut from the movie, but appears in its trailer, “And number three, never, ever under any circumstance assume that the killer is dead.”
Robert Rodriguez directed scenes of “Stab,” the movie-within-a-movie of Scream 2. Rodriguez directed the Casey Becker scene and the Sidney and Billy scene.
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MIMIC: The Director’s Cut
MIMIC: The Director’s Cut-United States-1997
Mira Sorvino as Dr. Susan Tyler
Jeremy Northam as Dr. Peter Mann
Josh Brolin as Josh
F. Murray Abraham as Dr. Gates
Charles S. Dutton as Leonard
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
Screenplay by Matthew Robbins and Guillermo del Toro
Screen Story by Matthew Robbins and Guillermo del Toro
Based on the short story by Donald A. Wollheim
It’s taken me a long time to watch “Mimic” again since its release in 1997. I went with a friend of mine and her mother and all I could think about during the entire film was how muddled of a mess the film was in general. Well, that and how the butter on my popcorn smelled like piss. Anyway, my point is that a better title for “Mimic” would have been “Mess”. There seemed to be no discernible plot line and the film as a whole seemed as if too many people had their hand in the cookie jar. It turns out that I was right; it seems that although the film was directed by Guillermo del Toro (“The Devil’s Backbone”), it appeared that he was constantly being undermined by the film’s producer Bob Weinstein. So much so that del Toro has refused to work with the Weinstein’s ever since then. As for “Mimic” it remained a “Mess” until the director’s cut was released. That’s where I come in.
“Mimic” is about a husband and wife team of scientists (Mira Sorvino and Jeremy Northam) who create a super bug to help wipe out the cockroach population in the city of Manhattan. The roaches carry a disease that threatens to wipe out the population of our children. Anyway, the bugs are supposed to do their job and then die out within a hundred and eighty days. Cut to three years later and we’ve got a whole new set of problems. The bugs that were supposed to die after 3 months have survived and have learned to mimic their predators. Now, go back and re-read that last sentence. Did you read it? Good. So, what is the biggest enemy of the common cockroach? I’ll give you a hint: it wears shoes. Yep, it’s man that they are mimicking. So now it’s up to the scientists to figure a way to get rid of this entomological threat before it leaves Manhattan and spreads itself out across the globe. For those of you who have never seen “Mimic” I can tell you that the end of the film involves a really big can of raid and the dance team from STOMP! I’m just kidding.
I guess my biggest question is why would you even want to try to tell Guillermo del Toro how to make a movie, much less a horror film? That’s like telling Michelangelo how to paint. del Toro has always been known for taking his audiences into dark worlds filled with dangerous creatures. “Mimic” is no exception as del Toro makes underground Manhattan his own personal labyrinth. The same film that I found myself detesting in 1997 is now a film that, despite a few minor flaws, is now a film that I would list as a favorite. All it took for that to happen was for everyone to stay out of the maestro’s way.
TRIVIA
Director Guillermo del Toro disowned the film after constant clashes with Bob Weinstein, who would frequently visit the set and make unreasonable demands about what should be shot, deviating away from the script. Since then del Toro has never worked with the Weinsteins.
The scene where Mira Sorvino and Jeremy Northam walk in the hall with all the sick kids lying in their beds was actually directed by Ole Bornedal, one of the producers on the film.
The escalator in Delancey Street subway station is shown as dismantled for maintenance because the scene was filmed on a Toronto subway station platform that was closed in 1966, so its escalator was removed.
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BREAKDOWN
BREAKDOWN-United States-1997
Kurt Russell as Jeffrey 'Jeff' Taylor
Kathleen Quinlan (w/Kurt Russell) as Amy Taylor
J.T. Walsh as Warren 'Red' Barr
The strength of Breakdown lies in the ability of its stars to make their characters interesting despite their lack of depth. Kurt Russell is one of our most reliable actors, capable of taking any role given to him and making it believable.
Before his untimely death in 1998, JT Walsh was the actor for hire when it came to playing good old boys with just a trace of slime to their underbellies. Roles like ‘Red’ Barr and his short but memorable character in Sling Blade are a testament to this.
Breakdown isn’t perfect and we don’t expect it to. What it is, is entertaining. That’s all we could ever expect of it.
TRIVIA
½
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EVENT HORIZON
EVENT HORIZON-United Kingdom/United States-1997
Laurence Fishburne as Captain Miller
Sam Neill as Dr. William Weir
Kathleen Quinlan as Peters, Med Tech
Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson
Written by Philip Eisner
Paul W.S. Anderson must get really frustrated when re-watching his sci-fi/ horror hybrid Event Horizon. It must confound him when he watches and realizes that ever since then he has done nothing to equal it. Not Alien vs. Predator, not even the Resident Evil films that he’s shot. It’s kind of sad, actually, to know that you’ve directed this creepy little movie and later on down the line you realize you’ve blown your entire wad on it. What’s even sadder is that although it’s an effectively creepy and atmospheric film, it’s not perfect in any way.
The Event Horizon has come home. Seven years after disappearing to God knows where, it miraculously reappears. The crew of the Lewis and Clark, led by Laurence Fishburne as Captain Miller, and assisted by Sam Neill as Dr. Weir, are given the order to investigate the ship. Their mission is to find the crew and to salvage what they can from the Event Horizon. Of course, this is a horror/space opera, so you just know it’s not going to be that easy. Pretty soon there are hallucinations, madness and enough gore to satisfy the average slasher fan. That’s the good part of the film.
Now let’s discuss the flaws. The acting in Event Horizon reminds of when I was in the sixth grade and my school had a talent show. Some friends of mine put on their own little Star Trek scenario. I thought it was awesome…when I was in sixth grade. It’s not so much fun watching Laurence Fishburne and the rest of the cast of Event Horizon act the same way over 30 years later, especially when you know that they are all capable of so much more.
Also, it’s easy to see that Event Horizon took its main cue from Alien. In fact, I kept expecting Sigourney Weaver to pop up in certain scenes.
But, anyway, there you have it. Paul W.S. Anderson’s shining moment. It’s okay to enjoy it. It’s a fun movie. Too bad it’s neither a perfect or original one.
TRIVIA
The Event Horizon was modeled on Notre Dame cathedral. Its long corridor resembles a church nave, and its interior is filled with cruciform shapes, columns and vaults. Also, its engines resemble rotated church towers.
Director Paul W.S. Anderson was forced to cut over 20 minutes of violent scenes so the film could reach the R-rating.
According to the DVD documentary, the first cut of the film had a longer “Visions from Hell” sequence, more blood, and a different, though similar, ending. The test audience didn’t like it, so it was re-cut with an alternate ending involving what director Paul W.S. Anderson called “The Burning Man Sequence.” The second test audience didn’t like that version, and the film was edited again. The final cut is a less-intense hybrid of both test screenings, with significantly less gore.
½
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THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK
Poster for Gorgo
THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK-UNITED STATES-1997
Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm
Julianne Moore as Dr. Sarah Harding
Pete Postlethwaite as Roland Tembo
Arliss Howard as Peter Ludlow
Vince Vaughn as Nick Van Owen
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Screenplay by David Koepp
Based on the novel by Michael Crichton
I’m going out on a limb from the word ‘go’. It may break underneath me, but that’s a chance I’m willing to take. The Lost World: Jurassic Park is, in the humble opinion of this reviewer, a better film than its predecessor, Jurassic Park. I will try to explain myself as best as possible. Maybe it’s because the acting is better. Maybe it’s because I harbor a mad crush for Julianne Moore. It could be that the story line is better and that the scenes between the dinosaurs and the humans are amped up to 10 instead of 8½. But the main reason I felt that The Lost World: Jurassic Park was a better film than the first was this: Gorgo
Read it again: Gorgo
For those of you who are unfamiliar, Gorgo is a 1961 horror film from Great Britain. It’s about a 200 foot sea creature who wreaks havoc on the city of London in search of her abducted baby, the titular character. If you saw the last (and best) forty or so minutes of TLW: JP then you pretty much saw the entire movie Gorgo. But it’s not only Gorgo that Spielberg pays homage to; it’s Godzilla and the Beast From 20,000 Fathoms and any other rampaging monster on the loose films that we grew up with in the 1950′s and ’60′s. Spielberg is letting us know with TLW: JP that you can go back to the things that you enjoyed as a child. It’s okay to play with your plastic dinosaurs and destroy your Lincoln Log cities with them. The only difference in him and us is that his dinosaurs are way bigger.
But, of course it doesn’t hurt having Julianne Moore in your movie, either. As long as she’s running in the same direction with me, I’ll let a T-Rex chase me any day.
Trivia
