Like the creatures that inhabit it, “Jurassic World” (Universal) is all about brawn: sheer visual and commercial heft. Director Colin Trevorrow’s 3-D-optional sci-fi adventure is huge, but emotional subtlety and deep characterizations are not on offer.
Instead, this continuation of the series that began with 1993’s “Jurassic Park,” Steven Spielberg’s wildly popular adaptation of Michael Crichton’s 1990 novel, uses its human participants as anachronistically placed bait — so it hardly matters that they amount to nothing more than an ensemble of stick figures.
Take career woman Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard). Her precise role in the management of the titular resort is never made clear, but Claire is far too worried about getting ahead to have a family of her own.
Nor does she have time to spare for her visiting nephews, 16-year-old Zach (Nick Robinson) and his preteen brother Gray (Ty Simpkins), who have been foisted on her by their soon-to-be-divorcing parents. Claire, in her turn, hands off the boys to an assistant.
Such adult neglect, of course, gives Zach and Gray the perfect opportunity to wander off on their own. Extricating them from the inevitably resulting danger will require all the acumen of ex-military animal trainer Owen (Chris Pratt).
Who’s this Owen and what’s he doing here? As with Claire’s job description, information is sketchy.
Amid the mayhem, there’s some perfunctory discussion about the proper limits of science: B.D. Wong reprises his role in the first picture by playing overly ambitious, if not quite mad, scientist Dr. Wu.
But, really, such feints in the direction of seriousness are beside the point. Anyone looking for interaction more meaningful than that which transpires between the DNA disaster of an uber-dino and the anonymous extras on whom the creature contentedly munches have come to the wrong fictional island.
The film contains some gory interludes, a bit of comic innuendo, at least one use of profanity and a few crude and crass terms. (A-III, PG-13).
