U.S. Open (Golf) Fan Guide 2015

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38 >>MOVIES TOP-GROSSING FILMS 1. “Spy,” $29.1 million 2. “San Andreas,” $25.8 million 3. “Insidious: Chapter 3,” $22.7 million Source: rottentomatoes.com Return to ‘Jurassic’ is a well-worn path Absurd plot and stupid character actions result in unintended laughs Friday, June 12, <strong>2015</strong> • Thenewstribune.com/Entertainment BY SOREN ANDERSEN Staff writer Shhhh! It’s the Raptor Whisperer. It’s Chris Pratt, playing a guy named Owen, gazing deep into the reptilian peepers of a bunch of snarling Velociraptors, controlling them with a kind of mind meld in “Jurassic World.” Impressive, yes? Uh, no. Silly, is more like it. Gesturing hypnotically, Pratt … Sorry. Must wait for giggles to subside. Welcome to “Jurassic World,” by far the funniest “Jurassic” picture ever unleashed by Steven Spielberg. That’s not by overall design, though there are morsels of intentional humor scattered throughout the picture. One of the funnier of those is the Pratt character’s mocking reference to the “ridiculous shoes,” worn by co-star Bryce Dallas Howard’s character, a well turned-out corporate higher-up. They’re spiky-heeled numbers not well-suited to outrunning a wide assortment of computer-generated prehistoric beasties. For the rest, absurdity of plotting meets stupidity of character actions and the result is lots of unintended laughs. Jeff Goldblum’s sardonic scientist Ian Malcolm isn’t in “Jurassic World,” but his best line from “The Lost World: Jurassic Park” sums up this latest iteration: “ ‘Oooh! Aaah!’ That’s how it always starts. Then later there’s running … and screaming.” Oooh! Lookie there! Little kids riding tame Triceratopses. So cute. And aah! Feeding time at the zoo, featuring a humongous aquatic whatsis leaping up out of a park pool to gulp down the dangling carcass of a great white shark (we’re nodding at you, “Jaws”) while spectators yelp. Then later … Dinos out of control! Panicked park visitors dive-bombed by long-beaked The dinosaurs go out of control again in “Jurassic World.” JURASSIC WORLD ½ out of 5 Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard Director: Colin Trevorrow Running time: 2:05 Rated: PG-13, for intense sequences of science-fiction violence and peril. Pteranodons. Gun-toting security guys gobbled by a giant monstrosaur. Everybody run. And scream. “World,” which Spielberg executive produced but did not direct (Colin Trevorrow, a relative unknown, sat in the director’s chair and shares screenplay credit with a gaggle of other writers), returns to Isla Nublar, home of the original “Jurassic.” There, the tourist attraction dreamed up by the late mogul John Hammond has, despite its fatality-strewn origins, been open for years. It’s a big draw, but attendance figures have been trending down because, as a corporate honcho observes, “no one is impressed with dinosaurs anymore.” So they’ve sunk multimillions into creating a genetic hybrid to goose attendance. Its design guiding principle is summed up thusly: “Bigger. Louder. More teeth.” In “Jaws”-like fashion, Trevorrow teases the audience with brief partial glimpses of the monster early on. Jungle trees shake ominously. A big eye peers through the foliage. Finally comes the Big Reveal. And seeing it, one feels a great big sense of … eh. Is that all there is? Park on-site staff member Owen (Chris Pratt) studies Velociraptors in “Jurassic World.” Nothing special here. There’s nothing special about Trevorrow’s plotting either. From the original “Jurassic,” he’s cribbed the story device of putting two young siblings — two brothers this time (Ty Simpkins and Nick Robinson) rather than the brother and sister of the original — in mortal peril by dispatching them into the park in, not a Jeep but rather a plastic rolling globe. It’s child endangerment time, as the monster plays dino soccer with the conveyance while the kids shriek. Pratt’s character, a rough-edged park staff member, and Bryce Dallas Howard, along with Pratt’s Photos courtesy of Universal Pictures raptor allies, must then venture forth to rescue the kids. Sound familiar? What’s different this time is that there isn’t a single character worthy of an emotional investment by the audience. The dinosaurs’ victims are anonymous stereotypes — fat slob worker, grim-faced interchangeable security gunmen, fleeing extras. Dino chum. A budding romance between Pratt and Howard is contrived and halfhearted. A subplot about an evil corporation seeking to weaponize the Velociraptors for the military is absurd. And finally the dino-on-dino violence that climaxes the picture is barely impressive. Clearly, in Hammond’s words, Spielberg and company “spared no expense” on the effects. But it’s been 22 long years since the original “Jurassic” wowed audience with its then-groundbreaking CG work. Today, “no one is impressed with dinosaurs any more.” We’ve seen it all before.
Pratt thoroughly evolves into leading man 39 Former ‘Parks and Rec’ goofball has transformed into hero with ‘Jurassic’ BY LINDSEY BAHR The Associated Press UNIVERSAL CITY, CALIF. — On a recent afternoon on a Universal soundstage, Chris Pratt was regaling a group of journalists with a story about elk hunting. Suddenly, a gust of air blew through the room, toppling a giant fake plant onto a similarly giant speaker before both careened toward one unlucky reporter. Everyone gasped but stayed in their seats. Everyone except Pratt, who sprang from his chair with a gravely serious expression, ready to help however he could. There wasn’t much that needed doing in this case. The shrub-speaker combination missed the reporter. But there was no missing the instinct. The perennial goofball turned leading man wasn’t merely a hero on screen. Apparently, he has the right stuff in reality, too. “That’s who he is. He takes responsibility for the well-being of those around him,” said Pratt’s “Jurassic World” co-star Bryce Dallas Howard. On set, things were no different. “He gets funnier and more charming as things get more difficult. It comes from a place of genuinely wanting to make it fun for everyone else,” said director Colin Trevorrow. Even after crashing his motorcycle on the Jurassic set, Pratt insisted on reassuring the cast and crew the show would go on. “That one really jolted me,” he recalled in an interview. Off camera, the bike locked up when he used the brakes in some mud. He was thrown 20 feet and had to dive roll over a prop gun strapped to his back. “I was immediately swarmed by everyone,” he said. “When you’re on a movie and that much money is on the line, should your star get hurt… I’m like, ‘Listen dudes, you’ve got to back the (expletive) off for a second. Am I fine? How could I possibly know that? Give me a day and I’ll tell you. It seems OK right now.’ ” Howard, through her own career and by proxy of lineage (her CASEY CURRY Invision Chris Pratt poses for a portrait during press day for “Jurassic World” in Universal City, Calif. Nearly one year after Pratt helped the little-known Marvel property “Guardians of the Galaxy” become the third highest grossing movie of the year, the perennial goofy sidekick turned Indiana Jones-style leading man has another franchise to shoulder: “Jurassic World.” dad is Ron Howard), has been around the biggest names in the business for her entire life, and dislikes the overused and undervalued phrase “movie star.” She prefers terms like “recognizable” and “well-known” and believes that there have only been maybe 15 true movie stars in the history of cinema. Pratt, however, makes the cut. A few years ago, things looked very different for Pratt. He had a steady gig as the affable Andy Dwyer on NBC’s “Parks and Recreation” and would pop up in movies here and there, but usually as a goofy sidekick. Then everything changed in 2014. With leading roles in both “The Lego Movie” and the little-known, high-stakes Marvel property “Guardians of the Galaxy,” the year was almost a test. Could he carry a film? Would audiences respond? The answer was an unequivocal yes. “Guardians” became the third highest earning movie of the year, and “The Lego Movie” was the fifth. Both are getting sequels. Now, Pratt has another trial looming: “Jurassic World,” the fourth installment in the “Jurassic Park” series that Steven Spielberg launched in 1993, out Friday. Pratt plays Owen Grady, a military man turned Velociraptor trainer at an amusement park that devolves into dino chaos. If his ‘Guardians’ character, Peter Quill, was Han Solo, Owen Grady is Indiana Jones — a little more serious, a little less rakish and definitely not silly. As he delves into higher profile projects, Pratt is only concerned about making movies that don’t just “aim for the middle.” He wants audiences to truly feel like profits aren’t the sole, or most important, objective. Also, even in these leading roles, he doesn’t give himself credit for a film’s success. Fame and stardom can be ephemeral, too, and Pratt, who was raised in Lake Stevens, likes to keep things light and sincere. He recently posted a humorous “apology” on his Facebook page “for whatever it is I end up saying during the forthcoming ‘Jurassic World’ press tour.” He was keenly aware of the various “gates” and “scandals” mined out of recent “Avengers” interviews and others. “It was a fun way for me to poke fun at the PC police, but also, truly to pre-emptively apologize in the likelihood that I would say something inappropriate,” he said. He also stole his Owen costume from set, telling Howard that he’d like to wear it to hospitals to visit kids in character. There are the usual downsides of increased fame, but Pratt, who’s married to actress Anna Faris, knew the score going in. “I don’t much like the elements that pertain to my private life and my personal space being diminished, but with that there’s a trade. I’m now on a short list to have access to amazing filmmakers and material,” he said. “I’m just hoping I never get caught complaining about it.” Friday, June12,<strong>2015</strong> • Thenewstribune.com/Entertainment
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Page 36 and 37: 34 CRITIC’S PICKS FROM THE GO ART
Page 38 and 39: 36 >> TICKETS FLORENCE + THE MACHIN
Page 42 and 43: 40 >> MOVIE GUIDE Friday, June 12,
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Page 48 and 49: 46 >>ADVENTURE Jeffrey P. Mayor, ed
Page 50: 48 >>FOOD Friday, June 12, 2015 •

U.S. Open (Golf) Fan Guide 2015

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