One of the biggest blockbusters to release this year was Jurassic World: Dominion. It was set to close out the saga that Jurassic Park started almost 30 years ago. It is set, for now at least, to be the final Jurassic Park movie. Until they decide to make another one in about 5 years.  

One of the main selling points, other than being the finale, was that Dominion would bring back the original trio from the first movie. Alan Grant, Ellie Sadler, and Ian Malcom would reunite after all these years! They had been in some of the sequels to the original Jurassic Park, but never together. It was a big selling point. They do a great job of bringing the characters back. 

For the newer cast, all of the stars from the previous Jurassic World, Fallen Kingdom, return for this one. Owen Grady, Claire Dearing, and Maisie “Clone but not a clone” Lockwood. They also move the plot forward, and even meet with the original cast.  

The plot is…interesting to say the least. Dinosaurs are now all over the world, thanks to the last movie, and humans have to find a way to coexist. But instead of talking about that, we get bugs! Specifically, mutated locusts that eat grains. A company called Biosyn is trying to get dinosaurs to be protected. Turns out, they also make lab made grain seeds. Grain seeds that the locusts aren’t eating. Seems a little odd. So Ellie Sadler seeks out Alan Grant to go expose them. 

Then the other plot happening with the new cast. Owen, Claire, and Maisie are living out of a cabin in the woods, trying to protect Maisie. Since she is a clone, long story, certain organizations would want to study her. Also nearby, the raptor with more screentime than some side characters, Blue, and her baby, dubbed Beta by Maisie. An organization that has been watching them kidnaps Delta, then Maisie as well. Now Claire and Owen try to get her back.  

There are some good parts of the movie. Some of the jokes land, and the return of the original cast is great, but the movie feels a little disjointed from itself. There are two different main plotlines happening at the same time, and only come together at the end. Also, the old and new casts don’t even meet until the last 20 minutes of the over 2 hour long movie. And some of the plot beats feel odd, like the locusts, or the reveal that Maisie’s mother cloned herself, but still had Maisie as a child. She is both a clone, and not a clone. Also, the big plot set-up of dinosaurs running across the world, is resolved in the final seconds of the movie, off-screen, and told to us via a voiceover.  

The best part of the movie, is of course, the dinosaurs. They don’t do a whole lot in the movie. Nothing like Jurassic Park’s raptors of T-rex, and nothing like Jurassic World’s Indominus rex. They’re mostly just there for the sake of being there. Although, there are still some good moments. The chase scene in Malta was great, and the Therizinosaurus, dinosaur with big claws, had a very tense seen near the middle of the movie. And the final battle between it and the T-rex, vs. the Giganotosaurus was great too, although a little short.                                    

Overall, it is a good popcorn flick. It’s serviceable enough, but far from the grandiose finale to the franchise it was hyped up to be. It’s not the worst Jurassic movie, but it is far from the best one.