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| 1993's Jurassic Park |
What do they got in there: King Kong?
~Ian Malcolm
In order to create the groundbreaking effects for Star Wars, George Lucas founded his own visual effects company, titled Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), in 1975. Aside from the original trilogy, ILM has since developed pioneering breakthroughs in the motion picture industry, bringing to life characters, worlds, and elements that weren't cinematically possible years before. From a stained-glass knight in 1987's Young Sherlock Holmes, to a water creature in 1989's The Abyss, and the liquid-metal T-1000 in 1991's Terminator 2: Judgment Day. But visual effects reached a new landmark by the summer of 1993, by way of genetically bringing dinosaurs back to life.
Everybody Walk the Dinosaur
With a tagline that reads, "An adventure 65 million years in the making," director Steven Spielberg adapted Michael Crichton's bestselling novel, Jurassic Park, about a work-in-progress theme park on a Costa Rican island, run by an eccentric billionaire. Two paleontologists, a quick-witted mathematician, and the billionaire's own grandchildren, are brought in for "outside opinions" and initially marvel at the overwhelming sites, yet have their own questions and concerns.
Perhaps paleontologist Alan Grant says it best, "Man and dinosaurs. Two species separated by 65 million years of evolution have just been suddenly thrown back into the mix. How can we possibly have the slightest idea of what to expect?" And when safety precautions go haywire, things turn into a terrifying and dangerous fight for survival.
Jurassic Park deals with man's relationship with technology, with nature, and possibly with humanity. Specifically, the theme of abusing control and power (and even "playing God") is strongly implied, as genetic scientists use dinosaur DNA found in mosquitos stuck in amber millions of years ago. There are even a few subtle references to rival companies trying to gain control over said research and technology.
To reiterate, the film changed the way visual effects were incorporated into movies. Arguably, these onscreen herbivores and carnivores remain the most believable, while the iconic sequences of the eponymous T-rex on the paddock (and a smart choice not to include music) and raptors in the kitchen (with equally irreplaceable sound effects) remain the most heart-pounding moments, putting the audience right there with the characters, in the park. Plus, John Williams' incredible score hits all the right notes.
Some believed Jurassic Park lacked character development and investment compared with the attention-to-detail of the fully-realized dinosaurs. Even so, the characters are arguably realized and relatable here, from paleontologists Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Ellie Satler (Laura Dern), to entrepreneur John Hammond (the late Richard Attenborough), scientist Ian Malcolm (the unforgettable Jeff Goldblum), and even a pre-Pulp Fiction Samuel L. Jackson as a chain-smoking employee. The film's screenplay (written by Crichton and David Koepp) has a noteworthy structure (a small cast, and a primary setting in the titular park, one of the most memorable places in cinema), and is a great example of how to effectively build tension. No matter how many times I see this and the aforementioned blockbusters, they can still catch me by surprise because they share that same quality.
Back to Reality, and a Familiar Universe
Spielberg began successfully transitioning to more adult dramas in the mid-1980s, beginning with '85's The Color Purple and continuing with 1987's less-successful Empire of the Sun and 1989's Always. The early 90s, however, proved this transition was not a fluke for Spielberg, as he hit two other landmarks in his career: 1993's harrowing Holocaust drama Schindler's List and 1998's equally harrowing war epic Saving Private Ryan, both of which won him the Oscar for best directing.
Meanwhile, many acclaimed films from old and new directors were making an impact in the mainstream and independent outlets, from Frank Darabont (1994's The Shawshank Redemption) to Mel Gibson (1995's Braveheart), Martin Scorsese (1990's Goodfellas), M. Night Shaymalan (1999's The Sixth Sense), and Quentin Tarantino (1994's Pulp Fiction).
Spielberg also made time as a producer on several animated television shows (being a lifelong admirer of century-long medium), as well as films from his short-lived Amblimation company. This was, after all, another golden age of animation, as the Walt Disney Studios was experiencing a "Renaissance" that began with 1989's The Little Mermaid and continued with 1991's Best Picture-nominated Beauty and the Beast, 1992's rapid-fire comedy Aladdin, and 1994's record-breaking The Lion King. This was followed in 1995 by the world's first fully-computer-animated feature from an upstart company called Pixar, a buddy picture called Toy Story. A revolution in how characters and story drove the technology (and not vice versa), the late critic Roger Ebert wrote, "Watching the film, I felt I was in at the dawn of a new era of movie animation, which draws on the best of cartoons and reality, creating a world somewhere in between, where space not only bends but snaps, crackles and pops." This landmark was followed by the critically- and commercially-successful a bug's life (1995) and Toy Story 2 (1999).
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| Industrial Light & Magic Headquarters in San Francisco, CA |
Lucas, who had been working behind the scenes as a producer for his companies Lucasfilm and Industrial Light & Magic, was inspired by the revolutionary visual effects rapidly growing in the industry in the early 90s, from the dinosaurs of Jurassic Park to Tom Hanks being seamlessly
incorporated into historical archival footage in Forrest Gump, alien spaceships blowing up skyscrapers in Independence Day, intense weather spiraling farm cows in Twister, and slow-motion "bullet time" in The Matrix.
Lucas saw an opportunity to go back to some of his initial ideas for Star Wars. In 1997, he reissued the original Star Wars trilogy as a "special edition," with enhanced visual effects and additional scenes, which many fans criticized for robbing them of their memories of seeing the films in the Seventies and Eighties). But that didn't compare with the first chapter of a prequel trilogy that soon followed.
With 1999's Star Wars: Episode I--The Phantom Menace, Lucas and ILM took the saga to new, imaginative visual heights, while telling the backstory of some of the main characters from the original trilogy. The finished film unfortunately left many fans disappointed (frankly, many still hate the character of Jar Jar Binks, ditto a kid version of Anakin Skywalker, an uber-political subplot, a few cardboard stereotypes, and the controversial concept of "midichlorians"), including the fact that it seemed more kid-friendly in comparison.
There are a few things that most critics and audiences can agree on: Ewan McGregor does a great young Obi-Wan Kenobi, Darth Maul is a menacing and intimidating villain, the pod racing sequence is an entertaining knockout, and John Williams' score (particularly "Duel of the Fates") leaves you breathless. Recent retrospect reviews from 2019 (commemorating the film's 20th anniversary) look back on The Phantom Menace with less criticism than its initial release (especially towards actor Ahmed Best). When considering the film's anticipation and polarizing reception, that seemed initially the opposite case with another feature two years prior, about a doomed ship and a melodramatic love story at the center.
"Take Her to Sea, Mr. Murdock"
James Cameron began the making of Titanic with the intention of encountering the real-life R.M.S. ship at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean himself. The making of the film became one of the most expensive and difficult productions in history, perhaps even more than Jaws and Star Wars put together. With massive sets, cold gallons of water, hundreds of extras, millions of dollars over budget, and a delayed release date, many industry insiders predicted Cameron's tale of "Romeo & Juliet on a ship" as a financial failure.
When it was released in December of 1997, the result (like it or not) was epic storytelling and filmmaking that was equal parts spectacular, romantic, thrilling, and harrowing. Sure, the story was predictable. (It practically lays out the overview of the ship's tragic 1912 sinking from the get-go.) But it's not the what that makes Cameron's screenplay unique, but how and why it happened. Opening in the present day, an elderly survivor (the late Gloria Stuart) tells her story to a group of ocean divers (led by the late Bill Paxton) in search of lost artifacts and "untold stories" (particular a blue heart necklace).
Titanic far exceeds just mere romanticism and teenage heartthrobs (considering 90s stars and leads Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet). The story involves social and class differences, as well as man-made technology that didn't hold up as perceived (similar to the tower of Babel in Genesis). Yes, there is a romantic subplot: Rose (Winslet) is a society girl who feels like she's seen where her life is going, and sees no way out of it (including her forced engagement to her haughty fiance). That is, until she meets Jack (DiCaprio), a penniless artist who makes life count at best. Rose's character (as corny as it may seem) has the most compelling development here.
To be fair, Jack does save her from ending her life, helps her see how freeing it can be, and inspires her to be strong and enduring no matter what adversities come their way. Part of that "liberation" here, however, involves modeling naked (a rather lengthy scene for a PG-13 film) and having a rendezvous in the back of an automobile. The film is agreeably sentimental at times, but weren't most early 20th century films? (Gone With the Wind, anybody?)
According to Cameron, during an interview for the film's 3D re-release in 2012, one of the reasons this film was such a success and has endured is that it bridged a generational gap. The film can be seen as a testament to those who survived and to the memory of those who lost their lives (an objective perspective that is effectively represented in various supporting--and compelling--characters in the film).
Sure, there are many iconic moments like DiCaprio's "king of the world" ad-lib (a la Roy Scheider's "bigger boat" line in Jaws) and the last sunset at the bow of the ship (one of the most magical movie moments, implying a sense of freedom). The cast is first-rate, including Billy Zane (as the egotistical Cal) and Kathy Bates (as the "unsinkable" Molly Brown). The late James Horner's score is ethereal and moving (and reportedly remains the most successful film score in history). And the film seamlessly blends real and artificial footage of the actual ship, haunting shots that appear as "ghosts" from the past (a theme Cameron would explore in his subsequent documentary Ghosts of the Abyss).
DiCaprio and Winslet have gone on to further acclaim and celebrated careers, even reuniting eleven years later for the devastating 2008 drama Revolutionary Road, and winning their own Oscar statues down the line (DiCaprio for 2015's The Revenant, and Winslet for 2008's The Reader). In addition, they each wouldn't star in another blockbuster hit until the 2010's, with Inception and the Divergent film series, respectfully.
Cameron, meanwhile, took a sabbatical from filmmaking for a few years, to continually explore the depths of the ocean. His next feature film would again revolutionize visual effects and moviemaking, and would not have been possible had it not been for a series of unprecedented films (which began development in the latter part of the Nineties) based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien.
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