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DINOSAURS IN FILM HISTORY

First:

  • The Manhattan federal court released more than $5.6 million that Donald Trump owes E. Jean Carroll.
  • The U.S. Senate has 53 Republicans and 47 Democrats.
    • John Cornyn (R-Tex), Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) will not return to the Senate next year, and mostly because Trump was directly responsible for their situation.
  • Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) chose not to run for re-election. 
    • If he never returns to the U.S. Senate, this means that, if the above three Republicans want to leave with a major payback, Democrats would have one vote more than Republicans.  
    • If McConnell does return, he has had a severely strained personal relationship with Trump, that he, too, could well vote like a Democrat.  
  • This foursome could be why Trump's nomination for Attorney General, Todd Blanche, could well have serious difficulties in the U.S. Senate. He will face confirmation hearings beginning tomorrow.  A plethora of controversies involving the Epstein files, the anti-weaponization fund and the sense that he should be your lawyer instead of the president's will be a few issues.

I've always had a fascination about dinosaur films. 

  • I recall using plaster of paris (a fast-setting powder made of calcium sulfate hemihydrate) in a rubber mold to make dinosaurs.
  • There was a period when I got interested in becoming a paleontologist.  Then I found out that they camped out in the worst areas and didn't shower for weeks.
  • There were two silent movies released in 1914, Brute Force and Gertie the Dinosaur.  Both are full-length films, but relatively short.  Worth a watch.
  • Ah, but the 1925 The Lost World was the first feature-length masterpiece, based on a novel by Arthur Conan Doyle.  Click on that link and watch the entire 1 hour 32 minute film. Incredible quality for a movie 101 years old.
    • He wrote his first Sherlock Holmes story in 1887, A Study in Scarlet.
    • Then much later, in 1912, published The Lost World.

I asked Google AI, what are the top ten dinosaur films of all time:

  1. Directed by Steven Spielberg, this sci-fi masterpiece revolutionized CGI and animatronics, setting the gold standard for all creature features. [1, 2]
  2. A beloved, deeply emotional animated classic that follows Littlefoot and his friends on a quest to find the Great Valley.
  3. While technically a giant ape film, the legendary stop-motion battles with a Tyrannosaurus Rex and other prehistoric beasts cemented its status as a foundational monster movie. [1, 2, 3, 5]
  4. The original atomic monster film that introduced the concept of an ancient, prehistoric beast awakened by human folly. [1]
  5. Jurassic World (2015)
    A massive box-office hit that successfully revived the franchise, offering thrilling action and iconic new hybrids like the Indominus Rex. [1, 2, 3, 4]
  6. Spielberg’s direct sequel delivers epic set pieces, most notably a tense scene where two T-Rexes push a trailer over a cliff.
  7. A visually stunning Disney animated feature that combined computer-generated dinos with real-world backgrounds.
  8. The Good Dinosaur (2015)
    A beautiful Pixar "what-if" story that imagines an alternate history where the asteroid missed Earth, leaving dinosaurs to coexist with humans.
  9. A classic fantasy-adventure by Hammer Films, featuring stop-motion dinosaurs brought to life by Ray Harryhausen. [1]
  10. Another Ray Harryhausen masterpiece, blending cowboys and dinosaurs in a hidden valley in Mexico.

  • Like Google AI, with the 1993 Jurassic Park at #1, and the 1988 The Land Before Time #2, but #3 is the 2015 Jurassic World.  
  • Above, the 1933 King Kong is #3, but IMBd has this film at #14.
  • #17 is the 1925 The Lost World.  There is a 1960 The Lost World #38, the 1992 The Lost World #42 and the 2001 The Lost World #67.
  • #63 is the 1914 Gertie the Dinosaur.

  • Same #1, the 1993 Jurassic Park.
  • But #2 is The Lost World: Jurassic Park, which is #7 in the other IMDb list and #6 in Google AI's.
  • #3 is The Land Before Time.
  • #4 is the 2001 The Lost World, which was #67 in the other IMDb list.  Turns out that this is a TV series.
  • The last mentioned, at #46, is The 1960 The Lost World, #38 in the other IMDb list.

So what did I get from all the above?

  • Jurassic Park (1993) – 91%
    • Critics Consensus: A spectacle of special effects and life-like animatronics with sustained awe and terror. [1, 2, 3]
  • Jurassic World (2015) – 72%
    • Critics Consensus: Can't match the original for sheer inventiveness but works as an entertaining summer blockbuster. [1, 2]
  • The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) – 57%
    • Critics Consensus: Demonstrates how far CG effects have come, but is a less compelling sequel. [1, 2]
  • Jurassic World Rebirth (2025) – 50%
    • Critics Consensus: Goes back to basics with rip-roaring set pieces. [1]
  • Jurassic Park III (2001) – 49%
    • Critics Consensus: Darker and faster than its predecessors, but suffers from a continuing creative decline. [1, 2, 3]
  • Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) – 47% [1, 2, 3, 4]
  • Jurassic World Dominion (2022) – 29% [1]

    • Two recent news events inspired me to post on this subject:

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