Karim D. Ghantous
Well-known member
This is a draft for a blog post that I meant to publish ages ago. I guess now is the perfect time to publish the draft text. Critiques welcome.
There are lots of story franchises, for lack of a better term, which have permeated popular culture. Star Trek, Star Wars, Twin Peaks, and Jurassic Park are just a few that I can think of off the top of my head. Jurassic Park in particular is the most interesting one for me these days.
(Note that Avatar, despite its huge financial success, has had zero influence on our culture, but that is a separate discussion).
Star Trek and Star Wars have been pretty much irreparably damaged by their current owners. Twin Peaks has not, but it is not as popular as it deserves to be, and that’s probably because it isn’t immediately relatable to a person who hasn’t seen it yet. Jurassic Park speaks for itself and requires no explanation.
Jurassic Park hasn’t been damaged either, despite at least one of the movies being sub-par. You could argue that Twin Peaks Season 3 isn’t quite as intriguing as the first two seasons, and that some of it seems pointless. But its reputation remains intact.
The premise of Jurassic park is one that both kids and adults can appreciate, even if for different reasons. This is not sentimental Disney material - it’s childhood fantasy as well as biology, computer science and philosophy, all wrapped in one.
I think that Michael Crichton and Universal Studios have created something quite special. The novel is one that I recommend any time that someone brings up books. It is one of the best works of popular fiction ever produced. Not merely because of the idea, but because of the mood that it creates, and the style that it was written. I have read the novel three times already - and I am reading it again for a fourth time. I don’t usually do this with novels.
Steven Spielberg did an excellent job with the screen adaptation. He properly adapted the novel instead of just filming a summary. You can’t say this of Ron Howard’s The DaVinci Code, which felt like the director was just rushing through a checklist of story points.
The Spielberg production pretty much set the tone for all the physical aesthetics of the story universe: vehicles, logos, locations, etc. By no means would I consider it a masterpiece of cinema, but I do consider it quite important.
It’s a shame that not all the films are in 1:85, though. Spielberg made a very deliberate choice and I wish that all the directors were forced to stay within that aspect ratio. You can see how difficult it is to be a brand manager - everyone wants to tweak the brand, and they think that their small tweaks are the only ones special enough to make the cut. So, as a brand manager, AKA producer, Spielberg dropped the ball on this point. Perhaps one day the original will be remade for IMAX, but that is a double-edged sword that I don’t know if I want to touch.
Personally I wish that I had collected more paraphernalia from the film. I recall, back when I was still in my teens, movie posters being cleared for $2 each at one particular newsagent. I should have bought the lot.
I have the detailed book which documents the film, as well as the June 1993 issue of American Cinematographer (you can get this online now as a free download).
Back then, powerful computers were not easy to come by, which made me appreciate them more. The book shows the Commodore Amigas which were used for previsualization, as well as the Silicon Graphics Indys which were used to create the final models. The mix of CGI and physical models made the film a perfect blend of classic and modern techniques - an approach that is used in every film in the series.
There were no decent electronic cameras in the 1990s - there wouldn’t be until the early 2000s. Even then they weren’t that good in absolute terms, and in some ways they were a backwards step from the 35mm systems. Everything was 35mm and you had to work a little bit harder for results, particularly if you were shooting documentaries. Plates were often VistaVision. ASA 125 film was a common default stock. There were no 6K crash cameras back then. ;-)
The original movie was very involving, with quite a bit of tension. I saw it at the local cinema with some friends when I was about 18. It was actually quite scary in places as I recall. The soundtrack was great, although as usual with Spielberg, music occasionally runs too frequently throughout the film. The notable exception is the T-Rex attack scene. It’s made more effective by having no music whatsoever - a move that lesser directors might not dare to make.
But the second film didn’t quite hit the spot, although again, I saw it at the local cinema. The third film was nothing special. Jurassic World had lots of promise, as well as having some terrific sequences. But, overall, I didn’t love it. That was shot on 65mm and 35mm save for the aerials, which were shot with an Epic Dragon.
I haven’t seen Fallen Kingdom yet. I’m somewhat disappointed that they went digital on that one, but most people won’t care. Dominion could be interesting. Nobody knows much about it, but this channel is following the production quite closely.
And so here we are, nearly 30 years after it all began. When Jurassic Park was released, there was no Web and no mobile phones to speak of. Inkjet printers were still nascent technology. Colour printing was for well-to-do households only. Pagers and faxes were commonplace. Everyone used floppy disks, and some people were still using the 5.25” type. Sending off Kodachrome for processing was a regular thing. So, too, was mail. I truly miss the 1990s, but you can’t put the cat back into the bag.
The most powerful Macintosh in 1993 was, I think, the Quadra 840AV, which could capture video, play and record CD quality audio, and was powered by a 40MHz Motorola 68040 and a 66MHz AT&T DSP. Ferrari’s most powerful road car was the 512TR, and Porsche’s was the 964 Turbo, a 911 variant.
So here is where it starts to get really fun. Unlike a lot of sci-fi franchises, you can actually build, own and run real life versions of the movie vehicles. The most popular are the Ford Explorer and YJ Jeep Wrangler from the original film.
Have a look at the people building and driving their own Jurassic Park Wranglers today:
Some people really care about getting the details right:
Naturally, there are Lego play sets:
And here is a short scene from a game that someone was working on some years ago - notice that despite the average animation, you feel like you’re actually there:
I don’t doubt that some crazy people are actually recreating the huge gates that are seen in the film. Heck, why not? The only thing you can’t do is create the actual dinosaurs. But, who knows if that is even going to be possible. Not that it matters, as robotics are getting pretty damned good these days:
Why Jurassic Park looks better than its sequels
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKALxKbjOaE (8:32)
How to properly criticise Jurassic World
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_ZbqgGPjwo (14:40)
There are lots of story franchises, for lack of a better term, which have permeated popular culture. Star Trek, Star Wars, Twin Peaks, and Jurassic Park are just a few that I can think of off the top of my head. Jurassic Park in particular is the most interesting one for me these days.
(Note that Avatar, despite its huge financial success, has had zero influence on our culture, but that is a separate discussion).
Star Trek and Star Wars have been pretty much irreparably damaged by their current owners. Twin Peaks has not, but it is not as popular as it deserves to be, and that’s probably because it isn’t immediately relatable to a person who hasn’t seen it yet. Jurassic Park speaks for itself and requires no explanation.
Jurassic Park hasn’t been damaged either, despite at least one of the movies being sub-par. You could argue that Twin Peaks Season 3 isn’t quite as intriguing as the first two seasons, and that some of it seems pointless. But its reputation remains intact.
The premise of Jurassic park is one that both kids and adults can appreciate, even if for different reasons. This is not sentimental Disney material - it’s childhood fantasy as well as biology, computer science and philosophy, all wrapped in one.
I think that Michael Crichton and Universal Studios have created something quite special. The novel is one that I recommend any time that someone brings up books. It is one of the best works of popular fiction ever produced. Not merely because of the idea, but because of the mood that it creates, and the style that it was written. I have read the novel three times already - and I am reading it again for a fourth time. I don’t usually do this with novels.
Steven Spielberg did an excellent job with the screen adaptation. He properly adapted the novel instead of just filming a summary. You can’t say this of Ron Howard’s The DaVinci Code, which felt like the director was just rushing through a checklist of story points.
The Spielberg production pretty much set the tone for all the physical aesthetics of the story universe: vehicles, logos, locations, etc. By no means would I consider it a masterpiece of cinema, but I do consider it quite important.
It’s a shame that not all the films are in 1:85, though. Spielberg made a very deliberate choice and I wish that all the directors were forced to stay within that aspect ratio. You can see how difficult it is to be a brand manager - everyone wants to tweak the brand, and they think that their small tweaks are the only ones special enough to make the cut. So, as a brand manager, AKA producer, Spielberg dropped the ball on this point. Perhaps one day the original will be remade for IMAX, but that is a double-edged sword that I don’t know if I want to touch.
Personally I wish that I had collected more paraphernalia from the film. I recall, back when I was still in my teens, movie posters being cleared for $2 each at one particular newsagent. I should have bought the lot.
I have the detailed book which documents the film, as well as the June 1993 issue of American Cinematographer (you can get this online now as a free download).
Back then, powerful computers were not easy to come by, which made me appreciate them more. The book shows the Commodore Amigas which were used for previsualization, as well as the Silicon Graphics Indys which were used to create the final models. The mix of CGI and physical models made the film a perfect blend of classic and modern techniques - an approach that is used in every film in the series.
There were no decent electronic cameras in the 1990s - there wouldn’t be until the early 2000s. Even then they weren’t that good in absolute terms, and in some ways they were a backwards step from the 35mm systems. Everything was 35mm and you had to work a little bit harder for results, particularly if you were shooting documentaries. Plates were often VistaVision. ASA 125 film was a common default stock. There were no 6K crash cameras back then. ;-)
The original movie was very involving, with quite a bit of tension. I saw it at the local cinema with some friends when I was about 18. It was actually quite scary in places as I recall. The soundtrack was great, although as usual with Spielberg, music occasionally runs too frequently throughout the film. The notable exception is the T-Rex attack scene. It’s made more effective by having no music whatsoever - a move that lesser directors might not dare to make.
But the second film didn’t quite hit the spot, although again, I saw it at the local cinema. The third film was nothing special. Jurassic World had lots of promise, as well as having some terrific sequences. But, overall, I didn’t love it. That was shot on 65mm and 35mm save for the aerials, which were shot with an Epic Dragon.
I haven’t seen Fallen Kingdom yet. I’m somewhat disappointed that they went digital on that one, but most people won’t care. Dominion could be interesting. Nobody knows much about it, but this channel is following the production quite closely.
And so here we are, nearly 30 years after it all began. When Jurassic Park was released, there was no Web and no mobile phones to speak of. Inkjet printers were still nascent technology. Colour printing was for well-to-do households only. Pagers and faxes were commonplace. Everyone used floppy disks, and some people were still using the 5.25” type. Sending off Kodachrome for processing was a regular thing. So, too, was mail. I truly miss the 1990s, but you can’t put the cat back into the bag.
The most powerful Macintosh in 1993 was, I think, the Quadra 840AV, which could capture video, play and record CD quality audio, and was powered by a 40MHz Motorola 68040 and a 66MHz AT&T DSP. Ferrari’s most powerful road car was the 512TR, and Porsche’s was the 964 Turbo, a 911 variant.
So here is where it starts to get really fun. Unlike a lot of sci-fi franchises, you can actually build, own and run real life versions of the movie vehicles. The most popular are the Ford Explorer and YJ Jeep Wrangler from the original film.
Have a look at the people building and driving their own Jurassic Park Wranglers today:
Some people really care about getting the details right:
Naturally, there are Lego play sets:
And here is a short scene from a game that someone was working on some years ago - notice that despite the average animation, you feel like you’re actually there:
I don’t doubt that some crazy people are actually recreating the huge gates that are seen in the film. Heck, why not? The only thing you can’t do is create the actual dinosaurs. But, who knows if that is even going to be possible. Not that it matters, as robotics are getting pretty damned good these days:
Why Jurassic Park looks better than its sequels
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKALxKbjOaE (8:32)
How to properly criticise Jurassic World
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_ZbqgGPjwo (14:40)