Jurassic World Dominion: Critics brand new sequel ‘terrible’ and ‘convoluted’ in first reactions

Early responses to the film have been distinctly underwhelming

The first reactions to Jurassic World Dominion have been shared online, and it’s fair to say people are slightly underwhelmed.

The action-adventure film, which follows on from Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and is the sixth overall film in the Jurassic Park franchise, is released in cinemas this week.

For the first time since the original Jurassic Park, the trio of original leads (Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum) will be reuniting on screen, alongside characters from the more recent films such as Chris Pratt’s Owen Grady and Bryce Dallas Howard’s Claire Dearing.

While full-length reviews are still embargoed, a number of critics have shared their reactions to the film on social media.

Courtney Howard wrote: “#JurassicWorldDominion = BAD. It ignores the premise it should’ve had from the start, instead synthetically engineering 2 entirely different, uninteresting & hollow stories that it struggles to connect. Some effects look polished, some ropey. Worst of the franchise.

Scott Mantz also condemned the movie, writing: “It pains me to say this, but I did NOT like #JurassicWorldDominion – the story was convoluted & all over the place, and it didn’t feel special. There’s no magic or heart to it, and it doesn’t capture the awe-inspiring feeling of the original at all. Not sure who it’s even for.”

Critic Tomris Laffly commented: “#JurassicWorldDominion is absolutely terrible. It’s like a bunch of hot shots brainstormed dino-centric theme park rides & put them into a movie. Bugs are more prominent than dinosaurs. A misfire on all fronts with bankrupt ethics. Save your hard earned.”

Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s Jeff Nelson wrote: “#JurassicWorldDominion is awful. We got one of the best legacy sequels with #TopGunMaverick last week and one of the worst with Jurassic World. Poor FX, repetitive plot, and dreadful character arcs. The bulk of the narrative is barely even about dinosaurs.

Others reactions, however, were more positive.

Forbes film critic Scott Mendelsen wrote: “It becomes redundant in the third (overly long) act, just #JurassicWorldDominion is mostly the right kind of stupid. It’s a laundry list of ‘What haven’t we seen in a JURASSIC movie?’ It looked great on the TCL IMAX and often plays like a ‘Yes, we still can!’ Covid era tentpole.

Joshua Axelrod wrote: “Idk man, I had a lot of fun with #JurassicWorldDominion . It’s obviously hokey as hell in many aspects, but Dern, Goldblum and Neill are worth the price admission alone. It’s by far the best ‘World’ film, which is a low bar, but [shrug emoji].

Awards Ace’s Maverick Weber also praised the film, writing: “Nostalgia saves the day in #JurassicWorldDominion, a film that Jeff Goldblum all but redeems on his lonesome, this bizarre tale is more about locusts & clones than actual dinosaurs but action pieces largely work even with some questionable edits, mainstream auds will be sated.”

The film is out in cinemas on Friday 10 June.