The Lost World: Jurassic Park
Universal Pictures | Release Date: May 23, 1997 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
59
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
11
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
The New York TimesStephen Holden
Where the original film was a cut-and-dried Pop-Art-flavored allegory pitting scientific hubris against the unpredictable, ungovernable forces of nature, the sequel is an all-stops-pulled, edge-of-your-seat adventure film whose messages are not so neatly packaged. Read full review
60
SlateDavid Edelstein
It would be imprecise to say that the thrill is gone, because The Lost World recovers from its turgid opening and comes to life, or does so in spasms. Read full review
60
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
Although the digital dinos look great, especially the clumsy stegosaurs, Spielberg and screenwriter David Koepp have failed to absorb the single most important lesson from the movies they've looted: If your people aren't interesting, at least make your monsters memorable. Read full review
60
NewsweekJack Kroll
For all the enhanced ingenuity of the special effects in The Lost World, the element of surprise and originality (the idea of cloning dinosaurs from fossilized DNA) is no longer present. And screenwriter David Koepp (the movie is very loosely based on Michael Crichton's sequel to his novel "Jurassic Park") has come up with a pretty conventional story line. Read full review
60
VarietyLeonard Klady
David Koepp's script, from the Michael Crichton novel, is schematic and largely predictable. There's an obvious threat and not too many ways to quell it. Underneath the technical virtuosity is a standard chase film, and director Steven Spielberg does little to elevate it dramatically. Read full review
60
Film ThreatTom Meek
It's technologically more advanced, far more thrilling and there's infinitely more dinos per minute. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Steven Spielberg's blockbuster whips up superficial sorts of excitement, and unlike the original "Jurassic Park," the picture looks tacky around the edges. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Steven Spielberg, a gifted filmmaker, should have reimagined the material, should have seen it through the eyes of someone looking at dinosaurs, rather than through the eyes of someone looking at a box-office sequel. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
The biggest sequel of the summer has more dinosaurs, better special effects and more action than the original... But the inspiration is gone, and with it most of the fun. Read full review
50
San Francisco ExaminerBarbara Shulgasser
The thrill is most certainly not in the script by David Koepp, written from Michael Crichton's novel....Most of the writing is the blandest sort of twaddle, jokes you can practically recite along with actors. Read full review
40
Chicago ReaderBill Stamets
Among the movie's many flaws are lackluster cinematography and leaden sound design. The Lost World also includes irritating little missteps in the plot. Read full review
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