I found this intriguing theory that suggests that the Disney film Dinosaur was a prequel to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World. It suggests that the Nesting Grounds becomes the Lost World, a lush haven that is cut off from evolution and the forces of nature. It also implies that the dinosaurs in the film are the ancestors of the dinosaurs in Doyle’s novel and that the lemurs are the ancestors of the Ape-Men.
In the prologue of Jurassic World: Dominion, we watched as Rexy is chased by a helicopter before rampaging through a drive-thru movie theater. I noticed something different about Rexy’s behavior in this scene. She was not hunting or fighting or being territorial like she usually is. Instead, Rexy was scared and confused, which is normal when a wild animal ventures into an unfamiliar environment. She was born and raised in the laboratories of Isla Sorna and spent the majority of her life in the jungles of Isla Nublar. When she was released onto the mainland, she was seeing all of this for the first time in her life. She was being exposed to sights, sounds, and smells she never experienced before. It must be beyond overwhelming for her. We have gotten used to seeing Rexy as the powerful and regal Queen of the Dinosaurs, but here she is lost, alone, and trying to figure out her new place in the modern world.
My favorite part of the prologue for Jurassic World: Dominion is the section that takes place in the Cretaceous Period. In that part of the prologue, we got to see the original versions of the dinosaurs in their natural habitat. It felt like something out of Walking With Dinosaurs. The makers of the Jurassic Park/World franchise did say that they plan to take the franchise in other directions after Dominion. I hope one of those directions will involve a film that is like the prehistoric section of the prologue. That would be cool beyond measure to see a full length film that features the dinosaurs in this fashion.
“Nothing in Jurassic World is natural! We have always been filling the gaps in the genome with the DNA of other animals. And if their genetic code was pure, many of them would look a lot different.”
Dr. Henry Wu, Jurassic World
It is common knowledge that the dinosaurs in the Jurassic Park franchise are not fully scientifically accurate. None of them had feathers and several of them looked different from their prehistoric counterparts. In Jurassic World, it was revealed that the reason why the cloned dinosaurs looked nothing like their templates was because they were not pure-blooded carbon copies of the originals. When InGen cloned their dinosaurs, they would use frog DNA to fill in the gene sequence gaps in the prehistoric DNA. By the time of Jurassic World, scientists were able to include genes from snakes, cuttlefish, and scorpionfish in the dinosaurs’ genetic makeup. Due to all this foreign genes in their DNA, the Jurassic Park dinosaurs were unable to authentically resemble their prehistoric counterparts. Fortunately, that plot hole is going to be rectified in Jurassic World: Dominion, which will feature a prologue that portrays scientifically accurate dinosaurs with feathers. Such specimens include Dreadnoughtus, Quetzalcoatlus, Pteranodon, Ankylosaurus, Natsutoceratops, Iguanodon, Oviraptor, Moros Intrepidus, Giganotosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus Rex. It is a big deal for several of these dinosaurs to appear on the big screen and not just because they are more scientifically accurate. Moros Intrepidus was only discovered and named two years ago and it made its big screen debut in record time. Despite being a larger and more powerful predator than Tyrannosaurus Rex, Giganotosaurus never appeared on the big screen before until now. Even though Tyrannosaurus Rex appeared in countless dinosaur films, its feathered version never appeared on the big screen before. In addition, this preview will reveal the origin story of the original Tyrannosaurus Rex from Jurassic Park. Overall, this preview is going to look like a more high quality version of Walking With Dinosaurs and I cannot wait to see it next week.
“God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys God. Man creates dinosaurs.”
Dr. Ian Malcolm, Jurassic Park
It has come to my attention that Jurassic Park has a number of references to the Bible, which were more prominent in Fallen Kingdom. The Book of Genesis was heavily referenced in Fallen Kingdom to highlight a new beginning where humanity’s attempts to play God result in the rise of life forms that will challenge their role as the dominant species on the planet. These references are often inverted and reversed from the original version. The first Jurassic World referenced the story of Cain and Abel when the Indominus Rex killed its sibling. While Cain and Abel were brothers, the Indominus Rex and its sibling were sisters. In an early draft of Fallen Kingdom, the Indoraptor was supposed to have a Cain and Abel moment when it murders its sibling. In the Bible, the male Adam’s rib bone was removed in order to create the female Eve. In Fallen Kingdom, the rib of the female Indominus Rex was used to create the male Indoraptor. The ship known as the Arcadia was the ship that carried the remaining dinosaurs off Isla Nublar as it was being destroyed by fire and lava. This is an inverted version of Noah’s Ark, which carried all the animals in the world from an apocalyptic flood. Benjamin Lockwood was one of the ones who contributed to the creation of the dinosaurs and was an inherently good man, which could be as a symbolic representation of God. Eli Mills was a greedy and deceitful man driven by his own ambition, which can be seen as a symbolic representation of Lucifer. When Lockwood found out what Mills was doing behind his back, he cast Mills out. However, Mills murdered Lockwood and usurped his symbolic throne, which is a reverse of how God cast Lucifer out. In this case, Lucifer won and claimed God’s throne for himself. While the Book of Genesis is heavily referenced in Fallen Kingdom, there are also aspects of the Book of Exodus as well. Finally, there is Maise Lockwood’s symbolic representation of Moses. As a clone herself, Maise has a connection and kinship with the dinosaurs that normal humans would never understand. When she pushed the button to release the dinosaurs into the world, she said, “I had to. They’re alive like me.” This can be seen as her way of saying, “Let my people go.” When the basement door opened and the dinosaurs ran through the tunnel into a new world, it is similar to how Moses’s followers traversed the parted Red Sea to a promised land. If Jurassic World and Fallen Kingdom were based on Genesis and Exodus, it is possible that Dominion will revolve around the Book of Revelation and portray a dinosaur apocalypse that will end human civilization. I look forward to finding out next year.
While I have been working on my dinosaur book, my interest in dinosaurs has awakened with a vengeance. Due to this, I have been binge-watching all manner of dinosaur films. A number of these films were adapted from books by Jules Verne and Edgar Rice Burroughs. The rest are cult classics from the 1960s and 1970s. Even though their special effects were cheesy and their creatures are not scientifically accurate, these have been an enjoyable bunch of movies. I would recommend these movies to anyone who is seeking something old school to watch.
I have reached a significant decision regarding my writing. As some of you know, one of my greatest ambitions is to have one of my books adapted into a movie. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that film studios will seek me out due to my relative obscurity. However, I can still reach them instead. I have not tried this in over 17 years. The reason my efforts failed was because I aimed too high in terms of studios, I did not know how to properly reach studios, and I did not know how to write an adequate query letter. Fortunately, I am starting to get a much better idea on how I can reach studios in the future. I will be doing trial and error while creating a new query letter, research the process of pitching to studios, and I will downplay my expectations on a more realistic level. Instead of the well known studios, I will be targeting independent studios that make low budget films. A independent low budget film adaptation will suffice if my attempts are successful. Above is a clip from Trumbo, which will pretty much highlight what I have in mind. I will commence these renewed efforts when my schedule opens up and I will keep you updated on my progress.
Like many writers, I often dream of the possibility of my books one day being adapted into films. Even if it is a remote possibility, I try to keep that dream alive. If that dream ever does come true, I think I have an idea of what the theme song for my dinosaur books would be. I remember the ominous tribal drums from Jumanji, which always sent a shiver down my spine whenever I heard them. I would want that same sense of tropical horror for my dinosaur books if they became a film. Imagine giant dinosaurs moving through the jungle with ominous drums echoing through the darkness.
I have been a fan of Jim Carrey for as long as I could remember. It is extremely difficult to keep a straight face around that man. While he was filming Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events, Jim Carrey did the funniest impersonation of a dinosaur. Instead of making the classic growls and roars, Jim Carrey’s dinosaur impersonation sounded more like a dying chicken than a dinosaur.
After watching the found footage film known as The Dinosaur Project, I have become intrigued by the dinosaur named Crypto. The film revolved around an expedition to discover the existence of prehistoric animals. Among those animals was Crypto and his species. What makes Crypto’s species fascinating is that they are not one of the dinosaurs we are familiar with like Tyrannosaurus Rex or Velociraptor. Instead, he is a new species that survived the dinosaurs’ extinction and spent the next 65 million years continuing to evolve in isolation.
Thanks to unchecked adaptation, Crypto and his kind acquired a number of features you would not find in real life theropod dinosaurs. For example, Crypto possesses a neck frill like the Dilophosaurus in Jurassic Park. However, while the Dilophosaurus used its neck frill as a warning sign to go along with its venomous spit, Crypto’s neck frill was designed to be for display. This would allow Crypto to seem much larger than he really was, which would ward off bigger predators. Like the Dilophosaurus, Crypto was also a spitter. However, instead of venom, Crypto would spit a slimy pheromone that would mimic his scent. He used this to protect his human friend, Luke, from his giant parents. Finally, Crypto was an amphibious animal, able to swim like a dolphin in the Congo’s rivers.
Even though we got to see Crypto’s parents at the end of the film, we did not see any of their capabilities other than the fact they are capable of tearing a grown human apart. They were roughly the size of either a medium-sized or large carnivorous dinosaur. When taking Crypto’s adaptations into account, I have a good idea of what an adult member of Crypto’s species would be like. With the neck frill, an adult specimen would likely use it to attract mates and discourage rivals. With the slimy pheromone, it is likely used to mark territory much like how some animals use scent glands to mark their territory. With the amphibious lifestyle, an adult member of Crypto’s species was likely a fish eater like Baryonyx or Spinosaurus when terrestrial prey was not available.
Overall, Crypto was an interesting dinosaur to watch even though he was a fictional species. He is one example of what is evolutionarily possible if dinosaurs existed in the modern world. If you want to see Crypto and his species in action, I recommend watching The Dinosaur Project, which can be found on Amazon Prime.
Grady P Brown - Author 