So imagine my surprise when the big threat of the movie was just some giant locusts.
The very first Jurassic Park movie set up the scenario of humans and dinosaurs existing with each other. And what was the outcome? Well, dinosaurs are more dangerous than humans and controlling them is out of the question. They're so beyond what humans are meant to deal with that there is no way that humanity could possibly survive much less coexist with them.
But there is a bright ray of hope that shines down on even the darkest parts of that movie. That at least the rest of the world won't be able to experience such terrors as the dinosaurs are contained on the island. At least if you make it to the helicopter you'll be safe from becoming the meal of some dinosaur.
Though the first Jurassic Park movie ended on a high note, that didn't mean the danger had passed. It was entirely possible that the dinosaurs could escape in future sequels to increase the stakes.
It took five movies but finally dinosaurs were no longer confined to an island. Now they were let loose on the entire world! Finally audiences could watch the spectacle they all wanted to see! Okay...I don't know if everyone wanted that, but I certainly did. I wanted the dinosaurs to roam free so that escaping the danger wasn't as simple as leaving or avoiding an island.
To get rid of any unnecessary confusion: I am not referring to The Lost World: Jurassic Park as both Tyrannosaurus Rex were returned back to Isla Sorna by the end of the movie. Thus the threat of dinosaurs and humans clashing was confined to a very short time.
I am referring to the end of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Now the movie itself is a mess and I can understand not watching it a second time or even a first time. All of the trailers for it made me think that the movie was going to be a disaster but I kept hoping I was wrong. Unfortunately it turned out to be a train wreck and is my second least favorite Jurassic film. My most hated Jurassic film is Jurassic Park 3 as it made it think the series should die with it. That is until Jurassic World came out.
At the end of Fallen Kingdom, Maisie Lockwood releases dinosaurs on the United States. She does this because she's actually a clone so feels a close bond to the dinosaurs. She wouldn't want to be trapped and so doesn't give that same fate to the dinosaurs.
No matter the quality of Fallen Kingdom, the ending was impactful. It showed that humans and other animals would struggle with dinosaurs being reintroduced to the rest of the ecosystem. With the rest of the series as examples, it didn't seem like dinosaurs would fit in with the modern era without a fight. Thus the next movie in the series would be a reward for everyone who sat through Fallen Kingdom.
But the plot of Jurassic World: Dominion does not revolve around humanity and dinosaurs clashing for either dominance or coexistence. In fact Dominion picks up around three years after Fallen Kingdom which means we don't even get to witness the initial clash firsthand. I don't mind a slight time jump but three years seems like overkill. At least if the movie was going to have humanity clashing with dinosaurs be the main plot.
Now Dominion does touch on how and if dinosaurs could coexist. But it does so briefly and in a very offhanded sort of way. At the beginning of the movie there's a Now This segment and brief scenes of the main cast interacting with dinosaurs. Probably one of the coolest moments of this part is Owen Grady rounding up dinosaurs like cattle. And the ending shows a montage of dinosaurs fitting in comfortably with the rest of the world.
So what does the plot of Jurassic World: Dominion revolve around? You're going to need to be sitting down for this one: the plot revolves around Biosyn using genetically enhanced locusts to control the world's food supply.
Now if you take the plot of Dominion in a vacuum, it doesn't seem that bad and is actually interesting. It does stand to reason that if a global crisis happened, there would be those that rose to power and deemed themselves to be the only ones that mattered. And the best way to control people is by controlling the food supply. Heck, that plot could be used to make a statement about the current state of society.
Plus it would be cool to watch a giant insect movie.
But Dominion's plot can't be taken in a vacuum and must be viewed in context of the Jurassic series. For so long people have waited to see dinosaurs unleashed on mankind and the end of Fallen Kingdom promised that wish would be fulfilled in the latest installment. So having the plot focus on locusts instead was...yeah...not good.
Not having a three year time jump between Fallen Kingdom and Dominion would ensure the latter film would be stronger. Or at least would have the promise of being so. We could see first hand how the black market formed and other areas of society that dinosaurs invaded. The film could end with the hint that Biosyn is planning something if there will be more films after, that is.
In short: the plot people waited so long for was replaced by a plot about genetically enhanced locusts created by Biosyn. Making this plot even worse is the fact that all the characters are eventually driven to Biosyn's facility which doesn't feel that much different than a park.
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