Even that film is linked to Jaws. After the monster success of Jaws, Spielberg was offered the chance to make a sequel, which he was actually tempted to do. The studio weren’t interested in his suggestions for the next instalment, though, so Spielberg declined. “He let other people do the sequels,” says McBride. “But then he felt bad because they were lousy. He felt protective of Jurassic Park, so he decided to make The Lost World.”
The Lost World failed to even match the box office of its predecessor, while it was also widely admonished by critics. The four subsequent additions to the franchise haven’t fared much better. Such is the genius of Jurassic Park, these below-par follow-ups haven’t damaged its legacy. Now it is regarded as the film that kick-started Hollywood’s reliance on visual effects.
Which makes it all the more surprising then that there are only 63 computer-generated effects in Jurassic Park, and it contains just six minutes of CGI dinosaurs. Instead, Spielberg used life-sized animatronic dinosaurs built by Stan Winston and his team, as well as his filmmaking acumen, to spellbind and captivate viewers.
“Jurassic Park is an incredible example of showing audiences exactly the right amount when you need to see it for maximum effectiveness,” remarks Kenilworth. “Another director might not have been able to get away with showing so few dinosaurs. But Spielberg’s track record meant that they trusted him.”
Unfortunately, when it comes to the use of visual effects, Spielberg’s approach of less-is-more hasn’t been followed by modern blockbusters. “A lot of modern action sequences are just mayhem,” says McBride. “Like Scorsese said a few years ago, the super-fast cutting disorients the viewer. It’s an assault on our consciousness to have images just smashing into each other from all different kinds of angles and not knowing where you are. With Spielberg, you always know where you are. He believes in characters and story. He knows that’s what matters and what is important.”
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