Ep. 57 - Visiting Jurassic Park!

This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] JJ: I have a question for you. Okay. When you were a kid, was there a type of animal or creature that you were just obsessed with? For me, it was sharks. I was really into sharks as a kid. I remember reading all these books about sharks. Okay. So was it anything to do with like the movies influencing that, like Jaws? No, because when I saw Jaws as a kid, I was terrified. And I remember even getting the heebie-jeebies in the bathtub.

[0:28] Olaf: Really? Wow. Things like that didn't get me like watching Jaws. And then I was afraid to go to the end of the water or anything like that. As far as like animal that I was like, I would run around the house trying to be, you know, sometimes you get kids are like, Oh, he's, he thinks he's a lion. Were you a lion?

[0:46] JJ: I wasn't. And that's the thing. I feel bad because I'm trying to think, did I, I don't think I was overly, uh, childlike.

[0:57] Olaf: Were you an old man when you were a child? Were other kids playing make-believe and you were like, I'm watching the, you're dumb. I'm watching a documentary.

[1:12] JJ: Yeah. I just, I just watched The Shining and I was reading encyclopedias in the corner. No, it wasn't that. But did you have like a type of animal or bug or whatever that you were like, I know all about these?

[1:24] Olaf: Oh no, I wasn't like, I was great. No, but you know, it's interesting. All of that focus and energy was on sports statistics. So you're right. It's one of those things where like, stop doing that. But guess what? I thought you were going to say a movie anniversaries.

[1:40] JJ: Well, no, but here's the thing. I'm really good at dates and things like that. But it started with sports statistics. I would collect football cards, but I would read the backs of the cards and I would just sort of absorb that information. And my childhood was more solely sports related adult information.

[2:08] Olaf: What I find absolutely hilarious is for anyone who's listened to our podcasts from the beginning, you know, that occasionally I'll like to ask a question of JJ and he can't answer the question and it goes somewhere else. You know, I asked if you could pick any sidekick from a movie, you were like, but I'm like, that's not the question. But what you're doing, what everybody's learning is they're learning a little bit more about myself.

[2:31] JJ: Oh, he, when you were a kid, were there any animals, creatures, bugs that you were really into?

[2:37] Olaf: No, I love my dog. I love my dog. I love sports statistics. I was, man. I was gray sports almanac, man. That was another kid comes up to you and gives you some random. I could rattle off. I would have conversations. Just look at them. And then you just go, here's the thing. Fabio's RBI was, and my, my mom can attest to this. I would go on work trips with her and I would be in the room with my mom and all of like her work colleagues talking sports statistics with them.

[3:07] JJ: Because I knew this explains so much because now, because, but then when I got an interest in acting, man, I shifted all of that, quote unquote, brain focus.

[3:18] Olaf: Do you ever think Kyle, wouldn't it have been cool to have a childhood? When you look at your kids growing up, are you envious?

[3:32] JJ: No, I had a great childhood, man. I was outside all the time. Here's the thing. I played outside. I played soccer. I played basketball. I played, I ran track. So just, just sports.

[3:42] Olaf: Right. No, nothing that involved imagination.

[3:46] JJ: No, I had a great imagine. I was an actor. Imagination.

[3:50] Olaf: All right. Well, anyway, my question was going to, my question was going to be good. Segway into what we're talking about today, but we're not talking about sports movies.

[4:02] JJ: So no, but I can tell you everything you need to know about this movie when it came out, who's in it. Oh my gosh. All right. Let's get to it. We're talking Jurassic Park, everybody. So let's go back to the movie theater.

[4:14] Olaf: Now, if you would ask me what my favorite dinosaur was, well, I thought you would take the cue, but I mean, I wasn't going to lie to the audience.

[4:37] JJ: Yeah. I like dinosaurs, but they weren't on my radar. Look, I like Land Before Time. I think it's a great movie. Was I pulled into it like a lot of people were? No, but it's a great movie. I like love, love Land Before Time. Did it need a Land Before Time birthday party at Pizza Hut?

[4:59] Olaf: Let's see. That's solid for you. Like right there. Eight years old, nine years old, rocking that. I liked, I liked dinosaurs. Most kids were into dinosaurs. Dinosaurs were great, but you know, they couldn't hit a triple.

[5:10] JJ: Oh, you're not stealing third when it mattered. Hey everybody, it's JJ and Olaf. We're back in the movie theater and that's right today. We are talking about kids' favorite thing sports. No, we're talking dinosaurs. It's Jurassic Park, a phenomenal movie all around. Just amazing. It still holds up today. I saw this movie multiple times in the theater, summer of 93.

[5:37] Olaf: This movie was pure gold, pure magic. This blew everyone away. 1993. What a year. Just that summer. What a summer. Jurassic Park comes out. It is two hours and six minutes long and not a minute or moment is wasted. In fact, I think a lot of people would argue that they wanted more, but I think more would have changed it. Wouldn't have been as good.

[6:01] JJ: Yeah, I know. Cause this movie is real, is constructed really well. It's really tight. Even the parts where you have to get from A to B important, like the beginning. I would say that 1993, and this could be a hot take, but 1993 was Steven Spielberg's peak because he did this and he did Schindler's List.

[6:21] Olaf: So it wouldn't be the first time that he's done two bangers in the same year, but these two, yeah, because nobody even knew Schindler's List was a thing or even coming out till you see the poster like a month before the movie. And that was later in like the November, December.

[6:39] JJ: So that, I mean, that's, there's an argument to be made that he peaked at 90. I mean, that's still, he still put out so much more after that.

[6:49] Olaf: I know he's continued to put out amazing works after 93, but I had to think about that one. This could be his peak. Like I think he hit his absolute best in 93 and has either plateaued or gone up and down since, but I don't think he's ever surpassed this level, but that's me.

[7:05] JJ: No, no, no. I mean, that's a good, because you throw a Saving Private Ryan in there and some could argue that that is better than Jurassic Park, but I don't know if it is. I think it's a different kind of better.

[7:19] Olaf: It's a different kind of movie, just like Schindler's List. But the fact that he did those two in the same year.

[7:23] JJ: Yeah, that's good. I mean, man, what are we talking about? Can we just talk about that now? Can we just talk about 93 and Spielberg? Because when you think about the epic scale of what both of these movies are and Spielberg has said, because he basically was doing these at the same time, he had filmed Jurassic Park and then was working on post-production while he was filming Schindler's List.

[7:41] Olaf: He said it was one of the hardest times in his life as a filmmaker. It took such an emotional toll on him that his enthusiasm for Jurassic Park had almost waned. And he said that he needed like an hour per day to muster up the energy just to comment on digital dinosaurs and answer trivial questions from the special effects crew while he's filming this Holocaust.

[8:04] JJ: Yeah. Like who in their right mind, I guess, Steven Spielberg would choose to, you go from this, what we're going to, I think what we're going to talk about, which is Jurassic Park. We're talking Jurassic Park, you know, summer tent pole, popcorn blockbuster family movie that's never been done before.

[8:24] Olaf: Yeah. And right after that, you're going to totally go in the opposite direction.

[8:30] JJ: Well, the answer to that question is he was already planning to do Schindler's List, but the book Jurassic Park was getting ready to come out and film studios everywhere were clamoring to get the rights to this movie. Everyone thought this book is going to be huge. And a movie is going to be massive. So everybody wanted a piece of this.

[8:54] Olaf: And then Steven Spielberg and his company got ahold of it and they were like, great, we've got it. Here's the catch. We're going to let you do Schindler's List, but you have to do Jurassic Park first because it's going to be such a massive hit.

[9:04] JJ: I get it. It's just, I can't like in your mind without losing your mind and being on the other side of the world, shooting this very heavy material and then having to go into an editing booth and going, oh yeah, the dinosaur looks great.

[9:20] Olaf: Well, in his defense, I don't think he went into it knowing quite how intense Schindler's List was going to be for him. The effect that it had on him just personally was immense.

[9:31] JJ: Yeah. He wanted to do Schindler's first, but I think when he agreed to do Jurassic Park first so that he could for sure do Schindler's List, I don't think he was really thinking it's going to kill me or be the worst.

[9:41] Olaf: No, but I mean, I'm even torn right now what we should be talking about. We're talking Jurassic Park. We can't talk Jurassic Park without talking Schindler's List.

[9:54] JJ: No, but you just brought up a really good talking point of his career and what he had done prior.

[10:00] Olaf: And not yet. I mean, 93 man was like a home run for him. And we can even do an episode just about Steven Spielberg. That's not a problem.

[10:06] JJ: That will be a multiple episode today. It's Jurassic Park.

[10:13] Olaf: Jurassic Park. All right. So Jurassic Park came out in 1993. Rotten Tomatoes score. You want to guess?

[10:19] JJ: I'm going to say it's at least 90, 91%.

[10:30] Olaf: I was audience score 95, 91%. Really?

[10:34] JJ: Yeah. Okay. I mean, I was actually kind of surprised. I really expected it to be higher for both, but the fact that they're the exact same also doesn't surprise me. So no, but 91, that's great. That's amazing.

[10:40] Olaf: This was, as we were talking, directed by Steven Spielberg, uh, the music was composed by John Williams. And this is arguably one of not the, but one of his best albums he's ever made. This music, man, it is incredible.

[11:00] JJ: Oh, other level. When you think about the stuff that he'd already done, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Superman, like just those.

[11:04] Olaf: Yeah. I tell you right now, if you had to make me pick a top five based on just what you just said, it's tough.

[11:09] JJ: Oh yeah. That it's tough. And in your, and wow. I always give you garbage about like, everything needs to be up here. That's one of those ones where I wouldn't know where to put what.

[11:18] Olaf: And honestly, we'll probably, we should probably do an episode of top 10 John Williams.

[11:24] JJ: Yeah. So we'll, we'll revisit that, but yeah, this is one of his best. Some would say it is his best and there's nothing wrong with that. There were two screenwriters on this, David Koepp and Michael Crichton, Michael Crichton being the author of the book, Jurassic Park.

[11:39] Olaf: Who got $2 million for the book. Like they, they, he sold the rights for $2 million, which I mean, he'd Crichton had been around forever as a book.

[11:45] JJ: Oh yeah. He's contributed to lots of movies. But this one, it wasn't until this book got sold and this movie got made. And then subsequently blew the doors open where then everybody was adapting everything that he had ever written.

[11:59] Olaf: He had like ER. And then obviously we talked to Congo and Sphere, like other movies that shouldn't have been, but like movies like books, like Disclosure with Michael Douglas and Demi Moore, which I think a lot of people forget, like he was like had a run where they were just everything he was writing was being made.

[12:13] JJ: Now this could be a hot take. I'm not sure, but I think the movie Jurassic Park is better than the book. Now that, not that being said, there are a couple parts of the book that weren't in the movie that I wish had been.

[12:29] J.J.: In the movie, but overall I think what they did with the movie was better than the book as a whole.

[12:34] Olaf: Yeah, I would say so. David Koepp is a great screenwriter. I think the pieces that they chose to keep going, yeah, we can take this out or we can do something different here. But even changing character motivations or character types, like one of the most classics is John Hammond, in the book, is just the worst person ever.

[12:50] J.J.: He's a total tool.

[12:55] Olaf: And in the movie, he's not as bad, and he ends up wising up and realizing the error of his ways, which is not the case in the book. And in the book, he dies, and in the movie, he does not. Because of the casting choice, and I know we haven't rattled off the cast yet, but Sir Richard Attenborough is John Hammond.

[13:11] J.J.: Oh, so good.

[13:14] Olaf: So great. Would they have cast him if they chose to keep the character like the book, or would they have gone with somebody else?

[13:21] J.J.: I don't know, because Stephen, I think as far as the cast goes, this was everyone he wanted from the beginning, pretty much. I think there were a couple people that had to come in because somebody passed away or whatnot. But overall, the cast is what he wanted.

[13:36] Olaf: And that cast is?

[13:37] J.J.: We have Sam Neill as Dr. Grant. We have Laura Dern. We have Jeff Goldblum, Sir Richard Attenborough, Samuel L. Jackson, Wayne Knight, Ariana Richards, Joseph Mazzello, Bob Peck, Martin Ferraro, B.D. Wong, and there's more, but that's all we really need.

[13:54] Olaf: Sam Neill, prior to this, I had only ever seen him in one other thing, which was Memoirs of an Invisible Man.

[14:01] J.J.: Yeah!

[14:02] Olaf: That's the bad guy with Chevy Chase.

[14:03] J.J.: Yeah, I'd seen him in that, and I think maybe one other thing. The only other thing that he was sort of big was he did this movie, I think, in Australia with Nicole Kidman, before Nicole Kidman hit it big. But then you later find out he had auditioned for James Bond.

[14:17] Olaf: Yeah, he did, yeah. And you can see his screen test.

[14:20] J.J.: Yeah, it's actually not bad. It would have worked.

[14:23] Olaf: Jeff Goldblum, who had, at this point, already had a great career, this movie, I think, really blew him up.

[14:31] J.J.: Yeah!

[14:32] Olaf: And there's some memes and everything. He plays this character amazingly.

[14:37] J.J.: Is this where he became Goldblum, like Goldblum?

[14:40] Olaf: I think so, maybe. Which is funny, because now he's transformed into this Goldblum character so much that he's not anything like Ian Malcolm anymore.

[14:51] J.J.: Right! Yeah, that's a good point, because prior to Jurassic Park, I mean, The Fly was his big role, and other supporting things as well, but yeah.

[15:01] Olaf: Buckaroo Banzai.

[15:02] J.J.: Buckaroo Banzai. Earth Girls Are Easy. Just like, he is the eccentric.

[15:06] Olaf: He's the chaos theory mathematician rock star.

[15:10] J.J.: Buttons down.

[15:13] Olaf: Leather jacket.

[15:14] J.J.: I love those glasses.

[15:15] Olaf: And he came up with that costume. Dr. Alan Grant, there were a lot of other actors considered for that role, including Harrison Ford, who had turned it down. But Sam Neill, you watch this movie, I feel like no one else could have done it.

[15:29] J.J.: I think it's, and it was a smart choice to cast somebody who was, to me, relatively unknown in the States, because it's about the dinosaurs. And if you have Harrison Ford in there, it would have been cool, but then you would have been like, Harrison Ford, running from dinosaurs. There's no way he would have been able to wear Dr. Grant's hat in this without all the finger pointing of Indiana Jones.

[15:50] Olaf: And he was fine. He did The Fugitive that year, so he was all right. But what a great cast. Joseph Mazzello, as little Tim, he got this role, basically, he was essentially sort of promised this role, because originally he had auditioned for Steven Spielberg for the role in Hook, but he was considered to be too young. But Steven liked him so much, he did promise he would have something for him later. And that just ended up being Jurassic Park, which, yeah, he's great in this. I mean, the kids were great in this.

[16:19] J.J.: They were. They did a really good job. Ariana Richards, is that who it was?

[16:23] Olaf: Yeah.

[16:24] J.J.: The thing that I saw her in after this was a movie called Angus, which I feel is somewhat of a forgotten gem. But after that, aside from the sequel, where she's in like two seconds of the movie, I didn't really, she sort of—

[16:34] Olaf: Yeah, I feel like she has not done a lot as far as being an actress.

[16:38] J.J.: Whereas the kid, Joseph Mazzello, he grew up and then subsequently started doing more work.

[16:45] Olaf: Yeah.

[16:46] J.J.: As an adult.

[16:47] Olaf: He kind of disappeared after Jurassic Park. I think he did some little things here and there as a kid. But then, yeah, he was gone. I think he went to school and just kind of lived a life. And then the first thing I remember seeing him come back in was The Pacific.

[16:59] J.J.: And he'd done some things prior to that, and then he did Bohemian Rhapsody.

[17:02] Olaf: Yeah. Wayne Knight as Nedry.

[17:04] J.J.: I was a huge Seinfeld fan already, so just being able to see him.

[17:07] Olaf: It was this and Seinfeld for me.

[17:09] J.J.: Well, and he was in this movie called Dead Again with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson, which is a great movie, which is on a list of mine.

[17:16] Olaf: He has been in a ton of stuff.

[17:19] J.J.: A ton of stuff. He's a great character. He was in Dirty Dancing.

[17:23] Olaf: He was in JFK. He was in Basic Instinct.

[17:26] J.J.: So this dude's working.

[17:34] Olaf: One of the great things I love about his character, the wardrobe that they put him in throughout the course of the movie is basically an homage to The Goonies.

[17:48] J.J.: It really is.

[17:49] Olaf: Which is awesome. The outfit he's wearing is basically an outfit that one of the kids in The Goonies wore at some point. So he's wearing—

[17:56] J.J.: I want to say it was Sean Astin's character.

[17:58] Olaf: He wears Chunk's outfit, he wears Mouth's outfit, and he wears Mikey, Sean Astin's outfit. Which I think is cool.

[18:05] J.J.: Another great performance in this that I don't think gets enough credit, especially considering who it is, is Samuel L. Jackson.

[18:12] Olaf: Well, that's because nobody knew who he was, really.

[18:14] J.J.: Yeah, he wasn't a huge star at the time.

[18:18] Olaf: If you were a Spike Lee fan, you knew Samuel L. Jackson. Do the Right Thing, Jungle Fever. But you're right, I didn't know who Samuel L. was. But he plays his character in this just so believable and natural. It's so good.

[18:31] J.J.: And it's such a small role, too.

[18:33] Olaf: And it's a credit to him because you look at him as a character and you don't see Samuel L. Jackson.

[18:39] J.J.: Especially when you're watching it at first viewing.

[18:40] Olaf: You're just watching whoever this person is playing this character all the way until the end of the movie, completely believable. And if you're clocking it, you're going, man, I hope we get to see this dude in other things because he's really good. And then he blows up a year later with Pulp Fiction.

[18:56] J.J.: But even now, you watch it now and you're like, that's Samuel L. Jackson. And then you immediately forget. And you're like, he's great.

[19:02] Olaf: Or you're entertained because you're like, this is Samuel L. But I'm not distracted by the fact that it's Samuel L.

[19:09] J.J.: Which is what you're saying.

[19:09] Olaf: Yeah, it's great.

[19:09] J.J.: Cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

[19:11] Olaf: Hold on to your butts.

[19:12] J.J.: Yeah, just that cigarette's just defying gravity.

[19:16] Olaf: I love it. He's like, please, hack a crap, whatever he said when he's like, uh-uh-uh.

[19:23] J.J.: Didn't say the magic word.

[19:26] Olaf: Guys, this movie is just so good. It's so perfect. And it feels like—and maybe it was a conscious effort or a subconscious effort by Steven Spielberg—but it's like he took every possible thing that he learned from his ordeal with Jaws and improved it and turned it into utter magic.

[19:47] J.J.: And Jaws was amazing. But that came out of suffering and hardship and learning from your mistakes. I think he took all those lessons when he made this.

[19:58] Olaf: Because when you watch this movie, it's a straight-up thriller for most of it.

[20:03] J.J.: And you don't see the monsters.

[20:06] Olaf: No, you don't. You barely see them.

[20:07] J.J.: In fact.

[20:07] Olaf: Not until you see the T-Rex.

[20:10] J.J.: Yeah.

[20:10] Olaf: The creatures in this whole movie, two hours and six minutes, only have around 15 minutes of screen time total. Nine minutes are Stan Winston's animatronics. And six minutes of it is Industrial Light and Magic's CGI.

[20:25] J.J.: Yeah.

[20:25] Olaf: So that means only around 11% of the film is dedicated to dinosaur scenes.

[20:31] J.J.: Well, and that's a credit to—

[20:33] Olaf: Amazing.

[20:34] J.J.: That is. Because you don't think that. You feel like you've seen a whole bunch of dinosaurs for most of the movie.

[20:40] Olaf: That's a very Hitchcock thing, too, right? Where he's going to create the environment and make you care about the characters as well.

[20:49] J.J.: Exactly. But that's what was forced upon Spielberg when he did Jaws. Because the shark wasn't working.

[20:56] Olaf: Right.

[20:56] J.J.: They had to not show the shark, which made it so much more powerful.

[21:00] Olaf: Yeah. I mean, it's almost 20 years later. So the technology is clearly he's able to do this type of movie because the technology is somewhere there.

[21:08] J.J.: Which is crazy because it wasn't there. This movie was supposed to be animatronics and stop motion animation.

[21:17] Olaf: That's what this movie was going to be. In fact, it came very close to game time decision when it switched. The job of animating the dinosaurs was first given to Phil Tippett, who had blown up as a stop motion animator. He'd done the AT-ATs or AT-ATs in Empire Strikes Back. He did the chess pieces in A New Hope. He'd done ED-209 in RoboCop. He's done a ton.

[21:43] J.J.: He has become the stop motion guy.

[21:46] Olaf: You had Harry. Harry Hasen was the godfather of stop motion. Now you have Phil Tippett. And there's a really great documentary about Phil Tippett, I want to say, on Amazon Prime. Definitely check it out. It's very good. But he was assigned to animate the dinosaurs because CGI wasn't there. I mean, none of this stuff existed.

[22:05] J.J.: Well, that's what made this thing so great, right?

[22:07] Olaf: Right.

[22:08] J.J.: Yeah. So they'd already gotten Stan Winston because it's Stan Winston. He's amazing. He had Terminator. He had Predator. He had all these amazing credits. And they were like, yeah, he's our guy. But in Industrial Light and Magic, there were a couple computer whizzes that were working on some new stuff. And they really thought, hey, we can animate these dinosaurs.

[22:29] Olaf: What a gamble.

[22:31] J.J.: But no one thought it was there. Ed Murin, who was the head of the department and everything, even he wasn't sold on it. So visual effects artists Steve Spaz Williams and Mark Az Dip suggested that most of the dinosaurs could be fully animated on computers. Dennis Murin told them that they could never do a better job than Phil Tippett. So it was kind of like shelved. Spaz decided, I'm going to go ahead and make something anyway. So he took a skeletal structure of a T-Rex and animated it walking in place.

[23:09] Olaf: Now, Kathleen Kennedy, Spielberg, all them, they're taking a walkthrough tour of ILM one day, I guess, going over stuff and everything. They walk by Spaz's desk. And he had put this video up on his screen just running on a loop, even though Murin and some others were like, put that away.

[23:27] J.J.: Right, right, right. We're not doing that.

[23:29] Olaf: Well, Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy see it. And they're like, whoa, what's this? Hold on a second. What's going on here? So Murin explains it to them and everything. And that changed everything. You're seeing a fully animated skeletal dinosaur moving on screen.

[23:46] J.J.: Spielberg was intrigued and ordered another test reel based off of this video. He was blown away by the final result, where a fully fleshed T-Rex walks through a desert. He and Tippett looked at each other and Tippett said, I think we're extinct. Spielberg loved this line so much that he gave it to Jeff Goldblum to say to Sam Neill in the visitor center in the movie.

[24:06] Olaf: Right, right.

[24:08] J.J.: Unfortunately, Tippett, he stated that he was genuinely physically sick from feeling obsolete because he just lost his job.

[24:13] Olaf: Yeah.

[24:18] J.J.: And not just his job, but his entire career was in his mind just gone suddenly. Like, this is it. I've just been replaced by computers. So he left for a few days to just kind of recover. But Spielberg brought him back onto the movie and later hired him to help design the computer-generated movements of the dinosaurs. So if you watch the credits, he's credited as the movement director or coach of the dinosaurs. So because the animators, they knew how to make the dinosaur, but they didn't know how to make it move and look realistic.

[24:51] Olaf: Yeah. So thankfully, Phil Tippett, he was still vital to the show and he's moved on and he's done a lot.

[24:58] J.J.: Welcome back to the Theater! Today, we're diving into the world of Jurassic Park!

[25:28] Olaf: That's right! We're going to explore the secrets of this iconic film and all the chaos that comes with it.

[25:58] J.J.: So grab your fedora and brush up on your chaos theory because we're in for a wild ride!

[26:00] Olaf: Absolutely! And let's not forget about Mr. DNA!

[26:02] J.J.: Oh, Mr. DNA! Such a memorable part of the movie.

[26:04] Olaf: It really sets the tone for the whole experience.

[26:06] J.J.: Speaking of experiences, did you know that the giant T-Rex puppet on set occasionally scared everyone?

[26:08] Olaf: No way! How did that happen?

[26:10] J.J.: Well, it would suddenly come to life, and it terrified everyone on set.

[26:12] Olaf: I can imagine! Kathleen Kennedy even mentioned that it gave them the heebie-jeebies sometimes.

[26:14] J.J.: Right? They'd be eating lunch, and suddenly a T-Rex would come alive!

[26:16] Olaf: That must have been quite the shock!

[26:18] J.J.: At first, they didn't know what was happening until they realized it was the rain.

[26:20] Olaf: Spielberg insisted on having rain during the big T-Rex attack, which caused some issues.

[26:22] J.J.: Exactly! The T-Rex was massive and covered in foam latex, so they could only shoot for so long before it got too heavy.

[26:24] Olaf: That sounds like a logistical nightmare!

[26:26] J.J.: It really was! You can actually see behind-the-scenes footage of that happening.

[26:28] Olaf: I bet it looks crazy!

[26:30] J.J.: They had to stop shooting and bring out a whole crew with towels to dry off the T-Rex.

[26:32] Olaf: That's wild! But the T-Rex puppet is just incredible.

[26:34] J.J.: It really is! The details, like the air coming out of its nostrils and the eye dilating, are absolutely bananas.

[26:36] Olaf: If you ever get a chance, check out the behind-the-scenes videos. They're fascinating!

[26:38] J.J.: Definitely! And speaking of the movie, let's talk about the characters.

[26:40] Olaf: Yes! Some of them don't make it, and it raises the question of how you'd want to go out in a dinosaur movie.

[26:42] J.J.: Right! Would you go out Wayne Knight style in the Jeep with the velociraptors?

[26:44] Olaf: Or maybe like the lawyer in the toilet with the T-Rex?

[26:46] J.J.: If I had to choose, I'd want to go out in a blaze of glory!

[26:48] Olaf: That's a solid choice! But honestly, I don't want to go out at all.

[26:50] J.J.: Fair enough! But if I had to pick, maybe sitting on the toilet in true Spielberg fashion.

[26:52] Olaf: Classic Spielberg! And since it's a PG-13 movie, you don't see much gore.

[26:54] J.J.: Exactly! You see the T-Rex chomp down on the lawyer, but it's not graphic.

[26:56] Olaf: And the Jeep scene with the velociraptor is thrilling, even if it has its flaws.

[26:58] J.J.: For sure! The tension is so well done that you don't analyze it too much.

[27:00] Olaf: Another brilliant aspect is how they incorporate exposition through Mr. DNA.

[27:02] J.J.: Yes! It feels like you're on a ride, and it's such a clever way to deliver information.

[27:04] Olaf: Does Hammond expect to be at the start of every ride, interacting with himself on screen?

[27:06] J.J.: You'd think with all his money, he could have someone else do it!

[27:08] Olaf: Right? It must be exhausting to wear the same outfit every day!

[27:10] J.J.: Maybe they only do one or two tours a day, so it's not too bad.

[27:12] Olaf: That makes sense! The T-Rex was such a huge part of the movie that they changed the ending.

[27:14] J.J.: Originally, it was supposed to end in the visitor center with puppeteered dinosaur skeletons.

[27:16] Olaf: But they decided to bring the T-Rex back, which was a great call!

[27:18] J.J.: Absolutely! It would have been cheesy otherwise, and the T-Rex is iconic.

[27:20] Olaf: You have to have the T-Rex at the end!

[37:27] J.J.: Welcome back to the Theater! Today, we’re diving into the world of Jurassic Park!

[37:57] Olaf: That’s right! We’re going to explore the secrets of the island and discuss what makes this movie such a classic.

[38:27] J.J.: And let’s not forget about the iconic moments and unforgettable characters that have become a part of pop culture.

[38:57] Olaf: Absolutely! From the thrilling T-Rex chase to the cleverness of Dr. Ian Malcolm, there’s so much to unpack.

[39:01] J.J.: Plus, we’ll touch on the impact of the film on the genre and how it changed the way we view dinosaurs in cinema.

[39:03] Olaf: And of course, we can’t ignore the groundbreaking special effects that brought these creatures to life.

[39:05] J.J.: So grab your fedora, brush up on your chaos theory, and let’s get started!

[39:07] Olaf: Let’s do it!

[39:09] J.J.: First off, what were your initial thoughts when you first saw Jurassic Park?

[39:11] Olaf: I remember being completely blown away by the visuals. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before.

[39:13] J.J.: Same here! The way they brought the dinosaurs to life was revolutionary for its time.

[39:15] Olaf: And the suspense! The tension in those scenes where the T-Rex first appears is just masterful.

[39:17] J.J.: It really keeps you on the edge of your seat.

[39:19] Olaf: Definitely! And let’s not forget the memorable quotes that have stood the test of time.

[39:21] J.J.: “Life finds a way” is one that everyone knows!

[39:23] Olaf: Exactly! It’s such a profound line that resonates beyond the movie.

[39:25] J.J.: And it’s interesting how the film explores themes of science and ethics.

[39:27] Olaf: Right! It raises questions about the consequences of playing God.

[39:29] J.J.: And that’s something that still feels relevant today.

[39:31] Olaf: For sure!

[39:33] J.J.: So, what’s your favorite scene from the movie?

[39:35] Olaf: I’d have to say the first time we see the dinosaurs in the park. It’s such a magical moment.

[39:37] J.J.: That scene is iconic! The music, the visuals—it all comes together perfectly.

[39:39] Olaf: And the way the characters react adds to the wonder of it all.

[39:41] J.J.: It really captures the awe and excitement of discovering something new.

[39:43] Olaf: Plus, it sets the tone for the adventure that follows.

[39:45] J.J.: Absolutely!

[39:47] Olaf: And speaking of adventure, the pacing of the film is spot on.

[39:49] J.J.: It keeps you engaged from start to finish.

[39:51] Olaf: There’s never a dull moment!

[39:53] J.J.: So true!

[39:55] Olaf: And the character development is also well done.

[39:57] J.J.: Each character has their own arc, which adds depth to the story.

[39:59] Olaf: Exactly! It’s not just about the dinosaurs; it’s about the people too.

[40:01] J.J.: And how they react to the chaos around them.

[40:03] Olaf: Right!

[40:05] J.J.: So, what do you think makes Jurassic Park stand out among other films in the genre?

[40:07] Olaf: I think it’s the perfect blend of action, suspense, and thought-provoking themes.

[40:09] J.J.: Plus, the nostalgia factor plays a huge role for many viewers.

[40:11] Olaf: Definitely! It’s a film that has left a lasting legacy.

[40:13] J.J.: And it continues to inspire new generations of filmmakers and audiences alike.

[40:15] Olaf: For sure!

[40:17] J.J.: So, let’s dive deeper into some of the characters and their motivations.

[40:19] Olaf: Great idea!

[40:21] J.J.: Starting with Dr. Alan Grant, played by Sam Neill. What are your thoughts on his character?

[40:23] Olaf: I love how he evolves throughout the film. He starts off as a skeptic but becomes a protector.

[40:25] J.J.: Exactly! His journey is really compelling.

[40:27] Olaf: And his relationship with the kids adds another layer to his character.

[40:29] J.J.: It shows his softer side, which is great to see.

[40:31] Olaf: Plus, it highlights the theme of responsibility.

[40:33] J.J.: Absolutely!

[40:35] Olaf: And then there’s Dr. Ellie Sattler, played by Laura Dern. She’s such a strong character.

[40:37] J.J.: Yes! She’s not just a sidekick; she’s integral to the story.

[40:39] Olaf: Her expertise in paleobotany is crucial to the plot.

[40:41] J.J.: And she holds her own in the face of danger.

[40:43] Olaf: Exactly!

[40:45] J.J.: And let’s not forget about the villain, Dennis Nedry.

[40:47] Olaf: He’s such a memorable character!

[40:49] J.J.: His greed drives the plot forward and leads to chaos.

[40:51] Olaf: And his downfall is a great example of poetic justice.

[40:53] J.J.: It really is!

[40:55] Olaf: So, what do you think the film teaches us about technology and nature?

[40:57] J.J.: I think it serves as a cautionary tale about the consequences of tampering with nature.

[40:59] Olaf: Definitely! It reminds us that we should respect the natural world.

[41:01] J.J.: And that there are limits to what we should try to control.

[41:03] Olaf: Exactly!

[41:05] J.J.: So, as we wrap up our discussion, what are your final thoughts on Jurassic Park?

[41:07] Olaf: It’s a timeless classic that continues to resonate with audiences.

[41:09] J.J.: I couldn’t agree more!

[41:11] Olaf: It’s a film that combines entertainment with important themes.

[41:13] J.J.: And it’s a must-watch for any movie lover.

[41:15] Olaf: Absolutely!

[41:17] J.J.: Thanks for joining us on this cinematic adventure!

[41:19] Olaf: Be sure to subscribe and follow us on social media!

[41:21] J.J.: Until next time, keep watching those movies!

[41:23] Olaf: See you at the theater!