--- title: "The Lost World: Jurassic Park: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-lost-world-jurassic-park/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-lost-world-jurassic-park" critics_score: 63 critics_reviews: 14 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." --- # The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997): what the critics said Critics' score 63 from 14 reviews: 8 positive, 3 mixed, 3 negative. Most critics come down in favour, though not by much, and the praise is nearly all for the dinosaurs. The effects are called an improvement on the original, the set pieces tense and precisely built, and Spielberg’s direction more relaxed and self-aware than before. Goldblum’s performance and John Williams’s score get their mentions. Several later writers make a case for the film’s mean streak, arguing that its cruelty is the point and that this is the closest Spielberg has come to a horror film. The reservations cluster on the script: a thin rescue-mission plot, weak human characters and an ending that stretches belief. The 1997 notices are the coolest, with RogerEbert.com, Time Out and Total Film all finding the wonder of the first film gone and formula in its place. The reappraisals, from Vulture to Collider, are markedly warmer. The spread is wide, running from outright dismissal to something close to a rave. ## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 7 August 2020. The critic celebrates the film as Spielberg’s nastiest, a demented horror-like sequence of action set pieces with technical skill and cruelty, highlighting its mean streak and parental themes amid the carnage. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2020/08/the-lost-world-is-spielbergs-nastiest-film-and-i-love-it.html) ## The New Yorker — Terrence Rafferty Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 May 1997. Spielberg brings visual wit and relaxed, self-aware showmanship missing from the first film, turning the creature-feature into playful entertainment that amuses even as it manipulates. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1997/06/02/1997-06-02-091-tny-cards-000149513) ## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 9 May 2014. The critic finds it a lot of fun as a straightforward monster movie with improved effects, strong Goldblum performance, and precise set pieces, free of the original's pretensions. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/could-the-lost-world-actually-be-better-than-jurassic-p-1798268511) ## The New York Times — Stephen Holden Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 23 May 1997. The sequel is a fast-paced adventure film that excels at spectacle and lifelike dinosaurs, especially the smaller compsognathus, though messages are less neatly packaged than in the original. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1997/05/23/movies/a-jurassic-romp-of-parental-mayhem.html) ## Little White Lies — Josh Slater-Williams Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 27 May 2017. The piece highlights how a particularly brutal T-Rex attack scene in the film shocked the writer as a child and changed their view of cinema's capacity for cruelty. It positions the movie as a cynical, macabre follow-up to the original that abandons wonder for darker tones, though it stops short of calling it a classic. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/in-praise-of/the-lost-world-t-rex-death-scene) ## Variety — Leonard Klady Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 25 May 1997. Dinosaur effects are improved and credible, delivering visceral thrills, but the schematic script and thin plot make it a standard chase film that relies on manipulation over substance. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/the-lost-world-jurassic-park-1117329752/) ## Empire — Ian Nathan Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 18 July 1997. The sequel falls short of the original but delivers strong set-pieces and technical spectacle with more and better dinosaurs. It suffers from a thin story, disjointed structure and a silly ending that stretches credibility. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/jurassic-park-lost-world-review/) ## Time Out Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). The review finds the sequel suffers from déjà vu, with diminished wonder at the dinosaurs and set-pieces that feel like more of the same. It criticises contrived story and characterisation while noting the eco message feels thin, concluding it delivers exactly what one would expect and no more. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-lost-world-jurassic-park) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 6 June 1997. The film lacks awe and wonder about dinosaurs, feeling like a perfunctory monster-movie sequel driven by formula rather than imagination. Technical effects are strong but human characters and plot are weak and unconvincing. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-lost-world-jurassic-park-1997) ## Total Film Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 18 July 1997. The dinosaurs and effects remain impressive and integrated into the action, but the film is let down by a monotonous, predictable and pointless story with poor acting, dialogue and pacing. It fails to recapture the awe of the first film. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/the-lost-world-jurassic-park-review/) ## Den of Geek — Simon Brew Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 21 June 2018. The critic argues that The Lost World is a better sequel than generally credited, praising its tense set pieces, detailed direction, and John Williams score while noting some bloat and a flawed ending. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/why-the-lost-world-jurassic-park-deserves-more-credit/) ## The Ringer — Miles Surrey Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 19 May 2022. The critic views the film as mean-spirited and darker than its predecessor, embracing horror over wonder, but appreciates its craftsmanship and Spielberg's willingness to try something different. It is seen as entertaining despite flaws and comparable to the director's own King Kong. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2022/05/19/movies/the-lost-world-jurassic-park-25th-anniversary-steven-spielberg) ## Collider — Daniel Boyer Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 27 June 2025. The piece defends the sequel as underrated, highlighting Spielberg's direction, the darker tone, expanded themes of man vs. nature, strong visuals, and compelling characters like Roland Tembo. It argues the film is the best after the original despite not matching it. [Read the review](https://collider.com/the-lost-world-jurassic-park-underrated-reasons/) ## NME — Victoria Luxford Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 4 August 2023. The Lost World is a good film undermined by following a great one, with strong sequences but diminishing returns overall as it settles into a rescue mission story and a bold but uneven third act. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/features/film-features/jurassic-park-movies-ranked-3477717) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/the-lost-world-jurassic-park.md