“Jurassic World Rebirth” falls flat, despite excitement from lead actress Scarlett Johansson

The newest addition to the Jurassic franchise, “Jurassic World Rebirth,” ventures into familiar territory but struggles to recapture the wonder of its predecessors. Directed by Gareth Edwards, this film features dinosaurs roaming freely once more, but the thrill audiences once felt is seemingly extinct, reports Slate. The plot follows mercenary Zora Bennett, played by Scarlett Johansson, and her team on a mission to acquire dinosaur DNA, a task that leads them to a dangerous and isolated island. The intention is to extract a cure for heart disease from the creatures' extraordinary size.

In this narrative, dinosaurs are no longer spectacles but rather backdrops to a mission laden with science fiction tropes. According to Slate, Alan Grant's awe in the original film seems to be replaced with a sense of routine indifference from urban inhabitants as dinosaurs wander freely. David Koepp returns as screenwriter, but notably, Slate describes the screenwriter’s involvement, saying, “Koepp’s return feels as if he’s been dragged in by the ear, mumbling sullenly in the corner and wishing he were anywhere else. The movie’s plot is skeletal, almost desultory, like a video-game synopsis they forgot to hang a game on.”

In its review, Slate describes the main issue with “Jurassic World Rebirth” as overdoing it with unrealistic, genetically modified dinosaurs—some the size of apartment buildings that live in parts of the ocean filled with pleasure cruises. The review site claims that movies have lost interest in real dinosaurs, not their audiences. 

When comparing the awe of the first movies to the latest, Slate says, “The first movie’s Alan Grant is practically giddy at the opportunity to answer scientific questions that seemed doomed to linger in the realm of conjecture. But though his pupil Henry Loomis is lured onto the expedition by the prospect of seeing dinosaurs that aren’t cooped up in zoos or nature preserves, there seems to be nothing left to learn.”

Scarlett Johansson's childhood dream

In a recent interview withTODAY, Scarlett Johansson expressed excitement about joining the iconic franchise, despite negative reviews like the one from Slate. She described her role as a dream come true in the interview, having been inspired by the original film as a child. Johansson admitted that shooting in exotic locations like Malta and Thailand was both a thrilling and challenging experience. "I've been trying to get in the 'Jurassic' universe for three decades," she told TODAY. “Like the entire audience, I was completely transfixed, mesmerized, carried away, terrified, all of that stuff, and it’s part of the formative part of my childhood.”

Despite the film's challenges, Edwards' direction is noted for its attempt to evoke Spielberg's magic with a thrilling tension. However, “Jurassic World Rebirth” falls short. The sense of urgency and nostalgia that once defined the franchise appears to be sidelined.