Description
Additional Information
Jurassic Park is a 1993 American science fiction action film[4] directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Gerald R. Molen, and starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Richard Attenborough. It is the first installment in the Jurassic Park franchise, and the first film in the original Jurassic Park trilogy, and is based on Michael Crichton‘s 1990 novel of the same name, with a screenplay by Crichton and David Koepp. The film is set on the fictional island of Isla Nublar, off Central America‘s Pacific Coast near Costa Rica, where a wealthy businessman John Hammond (Attenborough), and a team of genetic scientists have created a wildlife park of de-extinct dinosaurs. When industrial sabotage leads to a catastrophic shutdown of the park’s power facilities and security precautions, a small group of visitors, including Hammond’s grandchildren, struggle to survive and escape the now perilous island.
Before Crichton’s novel was published, four studios put in bids for its film rights. With the backing of Universal Pictures, Spielberg acquired the rights for $1.5 million before its publication in 1990. Crichton was hired for an additional $500,000 to adapt the novel for the screen. Koepp wrote the final draft, which left out much of the novel’s exposition and violence, while making numerous changes to the characters. Filming took place in California and Hawaii from August to November 1992, and post-production lasted until May 1993, supervised by Spielberg in Poland as he filmed Schindler’s List. The dinosaurs were created with groundbreaking computer-generated imagery by Industrial Light & Magic, and with life-sized animatronic dinosaurs built by Stan Winston‘s team. To showcase the film’s sound design, which included a mixture of various animal noises for the dinosaur sounds, Spielberg invested in the creation of DTS, a company specializing in digital surround sound formats. The film was backed by an extensive $65 million marketing campaign, which included licensing deals with over 100 companies.
Industrialist John Hammond has created Jurassic Park, a theme park of cloned dinosaurs, on the tropical island Isla Nublar, located off of the coast of Costa Rica. After a Velociraptor kills a dinosaur handler, the park’s investors, represented by lawyer Donald Gennaro, demand a safety certification. Gennaro invites chaotician Ian Malcolm, and Hammond invites paleontologist Alan Grant and paleobotanist Ellie Sattler. Upon arrival, the group is shocked to see a live Brachiosaurus and other dinosaurs.
At the park’s visitor center, the group learns that the cloning was accomplished by extracting dinosaur DNA from prehistoric mosquitoes preserved in amber. DNA from frogs, among other animals, was used to fill in gaps in the dinosaurs’ genome. To prevent breeding, the dinosaurs were made female by direct chromosome manipulation. The group witnesses the hatching of a baby Velociraptor and visits the raptor enclosure. During lunch, the group debates the ethics of cloning and the park’s creation. Malcolm warns of the implications of genetic engineering and scoffs at the park’s design, saying it will inevitably break down.
Film Information
| Directed by | Steven Spielberg |
|---|---|
| Screenplay by | |
| Based on | Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Dean Cundey |
| Edited by | Michael Kahn |
| Music by | John Williams |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 127 minutes[1] |