It is an irrefutable law of nature that every London summer requires some sort of dinosaur-based family extravaganza or other, from the puppet fun of ‘Dinosaur World Live’ at the Open Air Theatre to the distinctly wobbly animatronic dinosaurs of last year’s ‘Jurassic Encounter’.
‘Jurassic World: The Exhibition’ has a distinct edge over most of the competition insofar as it’s an official tie-in with the deathlessly popular Jurassic World/Park films.
To be honest, though, this is a slightly double-edged sword: it’s cool that we get encounters with ‘Jurassic World’ signature beasties Indominus Rex and Blue the Velociraptor. But a few pre-recorded appearances from the films’ extensive casts – who’ve gamely contributed to various video game spin-offs – might have given it that little something extra. Or just a little more recognisable Jurassic Worldliness. The problem with being the ‘official’ live spin-off from a multibillion-dollar film franchise is that it raises expectations high for what is, ultimately, a solid mid-budget kids’ show with average effects, containing a lot of very generic hallmarks of the summer dinosaur extravaganza (notably the classic baby dinosaur hand-puppets).
It’s still pretty diverting. A starting sequence where we’re ushered on to a ‘ferry’ to visit Isla Nublar, the setting of the films, is a cute immersive touch. Efforts made throughout the show to cap guest numbers in any given area at any given time are skilfully done and much appreciated. And the concluding double whammy of the Indominus Rex and the T-rex is pretty pulse-raising in terms of big scary animatronics.
But not everything hits the mark. There’s a very weird scene in which a performer badly lip syncs to a commentary on Blue the raptor’s training regime; why he couldn’t deliver the lines himself I have no idea, but it’s pretty embarrassing, not least because Blue is performed by a sluggish, rubbery puppet that moves with the grace of a pantomime horse with a gammy hoof. It doesn’t sink it, but the whole point of the franchise ever since Steven Speilberg launched it in 1993 is that the dinosaurs look good, and that certainly can’t be said across the board here
‘Jurassic World: The Encounter’ is solid family dinosaur content that’s relatively affordable by London standards. But for an official ‘Jurassic World’ spin-off, it’s distinctly lacking in bite.