---
title: "Jurassic Park"
year: 1993
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/jurassic-park"
fi1m_id: "jurassic-park"
imdb_id: "tt0107290"
tmdb_id: 329
wikidata_id: "Q167726"
fi1m_score: 91
critics_score: 74
critics_reviews: 19
published: "2026-09-14"
updated: "2026-09-26T18:26:02.664158+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Jurassic Park (1993)

Directed by Steven Spielberg · 2h 07m · MPA PG-13 · Adventure, Science Fiction

## Identity

Jurassic Park

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/jurassic-park
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** jurassic-park
- **IMDb ID:** tt0107290
- **TMDB ID:** 329
- **Wikidata ID:** Q167726
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107290/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/329, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q167726

**Fi1m score: 91** · Critics 74 from 19 reviews

*In a sentence:* We would like to see the dinosaurs again, preferably from considerably further away

> Steven Spielberg’s dinosaur adventure earns its scares by making us want to stand and stare. Simplified characters and occasional sentimentality do little to diminish our enthusiasm for its creatures or its suspense.

## Synopsis

Dinosaurs are alive again, and a park promises to turn their existence into a visitor attraction. Grant (Sam Neill), Ellie (Laura Dern) and Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) encounter the animals, alongside Hammond (Richard Attenborough). Scientific curiosity, commercial ambition and questions of safety collide as the people responsible try to make prehistoric creatures part of a manageable enterprise. Tim (Joseph Mazzello) and Lex (Ariana Richards) are also caught up in the venture. The possibility of seeing these animals comes with another question: how securely can anyone expect to contain them?

## Review

Steven Spielberg’s *Jurassic Park* is a superb adventure, with enough patience to let us enjoy the dinosaurs as well as fear them. Its chief ambition is simple: make an impossible encounter feel physically real, then consider what happens when people assume they can manage it. The creatures have weight, appetite and behaviour we can believe in. That credibility gives the danger force, but it also makes the quieter business of looking at them worth our attention.

Dean Cundey’s cinematography makes the animals’ size comprehensible against the human figures, giving us some immediate sympathy for anyone standing nearby. We were delighted just to watch the dinosaurs move. Their convincing weight and apparently independent behaviour make them interesting even when they are doing nothing threatening. The effects work because the creatures seem occupied with being animals, rather than demonstrating what the technology can do. Spielberg understands how much suspense becomes possible once we accept that these creatures have appetites of their own.

Rick Carter’s production design makes the park’s commercial ambitions tangible, right down to the merchandise. Those goods belong to an enterprise confident that its visitors will have a pleasant time and want something to remember it by. John Williams’s music gives our pleasure in the animals room to expand, and its warmth is part of the film’s appeal. There are also moments when the music encourages Spielberg to insist upon a feeling once we have already got there.

Sam Neill’s Grant and Laura Dern’s Ellie give the film a welcome steadiness, while Jeff Goldblum’s Malcolm supplies the dry interruption that all this confidence needs. Richard Attenborough makes Hammond’s enthusiasm appealing enough for the doubts about the enterprise to sting. None is a particularly complicated role, and Michael Crichton and David Koepp’s screenplay sometimes settles for an obvious response when something less tidy would be more interesting. The performers give us enough to care about, but the simplification is real.

Michael Kahn’s editing helps explain why that limitation matters less during the suspense. There is time to register a person’s apprehension, understand the danger and dread the next movement. We are rarely left wondering where the threat is or why someone cannot simply get away from it. Within the creature-feature tradition, Spielberg distinguishes himself through his attention to the waiting, and his willingness to let fascination survive even when the animals become dangerous.

The consensus is markedly less enthusiastic than we are, chiefly over the simplified people and softened drama. We think those objections give too little weight to how well the film makes us care about immediate physical danger. We would welcome more complicated people, though we never needed a longer personal history to worry about someone sharing space with a hungry dinosaur. The warning about putting profit ahead of safety also survives the simplification, because the animals themselves make commercial confidence look foolish.

The PG certificate is worth a moment’s thought if younger children are joining the evening. These animals are convincing enough to cause more than a passing fright. We would recommend it even to someone with no particular interest in dinosaurs. Choose company who enjoy being scared.

*Fi1m score 91, published 14 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics like it, and nearly all of them, including the two who do not, agree on why: the dinosaurs. The effects are praised across the board, from the first reviews in 1993 to revisits two and three decades on, which mostly find they have aged better than the sets, the script and the acting around them. Spielberg’s handling of suspense draws the next most praise, with the T. rex and kitchen sequences named again and again, and John Williams’s score gets its share.

The reservations gather around the people. Several reviews find the characters thin and the story blunter than Crichton’s novel, and a few think the sentiment is laid on thick. The spread is wide. The Los Angeles Times rates everything but the dinosaurs flat, and The Times treats the film as a phenomenon of hype rather than a piece of cinema. The later reviews are noticeably warmer than the originals.

## Straight answers

**Is Jurassic Park worth watching?**

*Jurassic Park* is worth watching for almost anyone, and we scored it 91. Steven Spielberg makes the dinosaurs convincing enough to enjoy as animals before they become dangerous, and the suspense is patient and clear. The people are simpler than we would like, but we never needed more of them to worry about someone sharing space with a hungry creature.

**How long is Jurassic Park, and what is it rated?**

*Jurassic Park* runs 2h 07m and is rated PG-13 by the MPA in the US. It is an adventure and science fiction film.

**Where can I watch Jurassic Park in the US?**

*Jurassic Park* is streaming on Hulu, AMC+, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and The Roku Channel in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from $3.99. It leaves Hulu on 1 October. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How does Jurassic Park compare to The Lost World: Jurassic Park?**

*Jurassic Park* is the better film, and [*The Lost World: Jurassic Park*](https://film.one/film/the-lost-world-jurassic-park) is the meaner one. The original lets us stand and stare at its animals before it frightens us with them; the sequel has better dinosaurs and one cliff-top sequence as good as anything Spielberg has made, but treats its people as bait and turns silly in its last half hour. Start with the original.

**Is Jurassic Park based on a true story or a book?**

*Jurassic Park* is based on Michael Crichton's novel of the same name, not on a true story. Crichton co-wrote the screenplay with David Koepp, and it keeps the book's warning about putting profit ahead of safety, though it simplifies the people along the way. You do not need to have read the novel; the film explains everything it needs to.

**Do you need to have seen the other Jurassic Park films before Jurassic Park?**

*Jurassic Park* is the first film in its series and stands entirely alone. Nothing in it assumes knowledge of any other title, and every later film in the series builds on it rather than the other way round. It is the natural place to start, and for many viewers it will be the only one they need.

**What should I watch after Jurassic Park?**

After *Jurassic Park*, try [*Jaws*](https://film.one/film/jaws) (1975, Fi1m 93): Spielberg gives another hungry animal time to make its presence felt. Then [*King Kong*](https://film.one/film/king-kong) (1933, Fi1m 88): For the pleasure and unease of watching people display an extraordinary creature; and [*Tremors*](https://film.one/film/tremors) (1990, Fi1m 82): Practical people face an unfamiliar animal problem, with welcome humour and clear geography.

**What order should I watch the Jurassic Park films in?**

Release order is the safe choice for Jurassic Park, and it is the order [our collection page](https://film.one/collections/jurassic-park) lists them in. *Jurassic Park* is the first of the 7 Jurassic Park titles on Fi1m; after it [*The Lost World: Jurassic Park*](https://film.one/film/the-lost-world-jurassic-park). [The full order.](https://film.one/collections/jurassic-park.md)

### Reviews we read (19)

- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Duane Byrge (90/100, inferred): The film is a colossal, jaw-dropping entertainment that becomes the king of blockbusters through Spielberg's masterful orchestration of spectacle and human elements. The technical achievements in effects, score, and cinematography are singled out as the brightest stars. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/jurassic-park-review-1993-movie-802289/)
- **Total Film** (90/100, inferred): The critic calls it a classic due to Spielberg's skill with peril and character moments rather than just the CGI, noting the intense set pieces that make it one of cinema's greatest thrill-rides. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/jurassic-park-1-review/)
- **Sight and Sound** (85/100, inferred): The film is an almost infallible entertainment that converts Crichton's novel into a suspense machine while demonstrating the director's signature elements. It singles out the dinosaurs for praise, noting how seriously they are taken with advisers ensuring realistic behavior and highlighting an emotionally complex shot of unsaleable merchandise. [Read](http://old.bfi.org.uk/features/ultimatefilm/chart/details.php?ranking=15)
- **Empire**, Caroline Westbrook (80/100, inferred): The review highlights Spielberg's transformation of Crichton's novel into an awe-inspiring blockbuster filled with memorable set pieces and groundbreaking dinosaur effects. It notes that while the script and performances are not Oscar-worthy, the dinosaurs are the real stars. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/jurassic-park-review/)
- **The Telegraph** (80/100, inferred): The review notes that the effects have dated remarkably well compared to the sets, script and acting, giving the film an amusingly quaint quality on revisit. It remains one of Spielberg’s purest suspense rides: gimmicky, giddy and still great value. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/8782687/Jurassic-Park-1993-review.html)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (3/4): The critic praises the dinosaurs' special effects but criticizes the lack of awe, wonder, and strong human characters, turning it into a standard monster movie. He notes it delivers on excitement but could have been more. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/jurassic-park-1993)
- **The Guardian** (70/100, inferred): The critic finds the restored re-release of Spielberg's dinosaur thriller eye-wateringly shiny on the big screen, though its clunkier first-hour elements stand out more with time. The second half delivers Spielberg at his best as a thrill ride, with Wayne Knight nearly stealing the show. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/sep/22/jurassic-park-rerelease-review)
- **The Independent**, Adam Mars-Jones (70/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's blend of fear and wonder, especially the convincing realization of dinosaurs through special effects and their own inherent qualities as creatures. He criticizes the tonal disruption caused by efforts to secure a PG certificate for what is essentially a horror film. [Read](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film-the-big-picture-spare-the-rod-spoil-the-child-adam-marsjones-reviews-steven-spielberg-s-jurassic-park-the-monster-of-all-movies-1485156.html)
- **Variety**, Variety Staff (70/100, inferred): The review finds the film one-dimensional and clunky in story and characterization but praises its delivery on excitement, suspense, and the stupendous realization of the giant reptiles. [Read](https://variety.com/1992/film/reviews/jurassic-park-1200431301/)
- **Vulture**, David Denby (70/100, inferred): Jurassic Park delivers thrilling effects and comes close to Jaws in excitement, wit, and fear, with dinosaurs that are convincingly hungry and real. The calculation in Spielberg's big-machine approach and conventional thrills are noted as drawbacks. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/jurassic-park-1993-new-york-magazine-review.html)
- **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (65/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a true movie milestone for its awe-inspiring, lifelike dinosaurs created with groundbreaking effects that set a new standard. However, the human characters are sweetened and simplified, the story loses bite from the novel, and it becomes more of a roller-coaster ride than a sharp thriller. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/11/movies/screen-stars-with-teeth-to-spare.html)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (40/100, inferred): The dinosaurs are wondrously realistic and state-of-the-art, the film's strongest element. Everything else falls short, with bland human characters, simplistic acting, flat directing, and excessive sentimentality that turns the film into an amusement-park ride rather than a fully realized movie. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-06-11-ca-1933-story.html)
- **The Times**, Geoff Brown (30/100, inferred): The film is a blunderbuss strong on surface thrills but weak on everything else, with dinosaurs raging via technical finesse from multiple effects units. It is frightening as a phenomenon of aggressive promotion and hype more than as cinema. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/article/review-jurassic-park-pg-rj92kmwnkzg)
- **Collider**, Rae Torres (A): The critic calls Jurassic Park a masterpiece whose practical effects and visuals remain unmatched, praising the restrained use of CGI and the iconic T-Rex sequence as highlights that make it a cultural milestone beyond a mere summer blockbuster. [Read](https://collider.com/jurassic-park-review-steven-spielberg-summer-blockbuster-better-than-sequels/)
- **Digital Spy**, Emma Dibdin (90/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's immersive wonder, terror, efficient script, and enduring effects, calling it pure, efficient, big-hearted entertainment. They single out the expressive dinosaurs and Spielberg's mastery of wonder and terror, while noting a minor issue with the lack of a strong human antagonist. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/re-viewed/a509402/re-viewed-steven-spielbergs-dinosaur-classic-jurassic-park/)
- **HeyUGuys**, Steven Neish (90/100, inferred): The critic finds the 3D re-release of the 1993 film still highly entertaining and effective, with its character focus and technical achievements holding up remarkably well two decades later. They single out the blend of practical effects, CGI, and John Williams' score for particular praise. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/jurassic-park-3d-review/)
- **Polygon**, Sean T. Collins (80/100, inferred): The critic highlights the film's critique of greed and unchecked capitalism as its most chilling element, noting how the story's warnings about prioritizing profit over safety resonate anew while still delivering thrilling dinosaur spectacle. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/2020/8/12/21362915/jurassic-park-review-where-to-watch-characters-covid-pandemic-parallels/)
- **The Ringer**, Adam Nayman (80/100, inferred): The critic positions Jurassic Park as the victor in its 1993 box-office clash, praising its groundbreaking CGI, relentless suspense in key sequences, and lasting influence on blockbusters while noting some dated character elements. Singles out the T. rex and kitchen scenes as masterful. [Read](https://www.theringer.com/2018/06/13/movies/jurassic-park-last-action-hero-steven-spielberg-arnold-schwarzenegger)
- **/Film**, Dana Moran (75/100, inferred): The critic revisits the film 25 years on and concludes it largely holds up as a technological trailblazer and expertly paced thrill ride, though the finale feels like a letdown after the stronger set pieces. Singles out the opening sequences, dinosaur effects, and suspenseful action for praise. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/557167/jurassic-park-revisited/)

## Details

- **Director:** Steven Spielberg
- **Director:** Steven Spielberg
- **Screenplay:** Michael Crichton, David Koepp
- **Novel:** Michael Crichton
- **Cinematography:** Dean Cundey
- **Editor:** Michael Kahn
- **Music:** John Williams
- **Production design:** Rick Carter
- **Producer:** Kathleen Kennedy, Gerald R. Molen
- **Cast:** Sam Neill as Grant; Laura Dern as Ellie; Jeff Goldblum as Malcolm; Richard Attenborough as Hammond; Bob Peck as Muldoon; Martin Ferrero as Gennaro; BD Wong as Wu; Joseph Mazzello as Tim
- **Runtime:** 2h 07m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 11 June 1993
- **Genres:** Adventure, Science Fiction
- **Part of:** [Jurassic Park](https://film.one/collections/jurassic-park.md) · 1 of 7
- **Budget:** $63 million
- **Box office:** $1.06 billion
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wfv5jdW__N0

## Where to watch in the US

- Hulu: streaming, uhd, leaving 2026-10-01
- AMC+: streaming
- Disney+: streaming, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd, leaving 2026-09-22
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, uhd

*Checked 2026-09-14.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, AZ, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, UA, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 1994: Best Sound (won); Best Sound Editing (won); Best Visual Effects (won)
- Hugo Awards 1994: Best Dramatic Presentation (won)
- Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie 1994: Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie (won)
- Saturn Awards 1994: Best Director (won); Best Science Fiction Film (won)

## If you liked this

- *Jaws* (1975), Fi1m 93: Spielberg gives another hungry animal time to make its presence felt. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/jaws.md)
- *King Kong* (1933), Fi1m 88: For the pleasure and unease of watching people display an extraordinary creature. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/king-kong.md)
- *The Host* (2006): A creature attack becomes a family crisis, with sharper comedy and angrier politics.
- *Tremors* (1990), Fi1m 82: Practical people face an unfamiliar animal problem, with welcome humour and clear geography. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/tremors.md)
- *Godzilla* (1954), Fi1m 88: For a grimmer encounter with a giant creature and human technological confidence. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/godzilla.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/jurassic-park