There are good blockbuster flicks without romantic plotlines, you know. Because - let's face it - the romance between Owen and Clare was never meant to be; these characters couldn't be any different from one another, and yet Jurassic World attempts to bring them together because it feels like that's what is supposed to happen. To quote Jurassic Park's Dr. Ian Malcolm, the screenwriters were "so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn't stop to think if they should." And that line essentially sums up what is one of Jurassic World's biggest flaws; that Owen and Claire a) once dated, apparently and b) decide that after just a few hours they're into one another, despite the horror show that is going on around them. It doesn't make any sense. And it's a simple case of tradition; modern blockbuster rules denote that there has to be some kind of romance going on, but this one never rings true. The pair already had a catastrophic first date, and on that basis they decided to never see one another again. There's barely any room in the movie for all the sub-plots; this one feels like a reach. The screenwriters of Jurassic World should have been braver; they didn't need to pair up Owen and Claire; the story wouldn't have suffered at all had they just been friends - in fact, the film would have been better if they'd had a bit of banter and left it at that. Lesson, then: If find yourself writing a film that doesn't easily (or naturally) incorporate a romance, don't feel pressured to add it in or force characters together; a half-assed romance that nobody buys into is a whole lot worse than no romance plotline at all. Apparently the one thing that Jurassic World forgot to take from Jurassic Park was its attitude towards romantic plotlines: the original doesn't get hung up on Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler's relationship, nor is it ever really clear whether they're "together." Guess what? The movie suffers in absolutely no capacity - it has its mind on more important things. What did you make of Jurassic World's screenplay? Share your thoughts down in the comments.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
