The Lost World: Jurassic Park is a 1997 American science fiction action film. It is the second installment in the Jurassic Park franchise and the second film in the original Jurassic Park trilogy. A sequel to 1993's Jurassic Park and loosely based on Michael Crichton's 1995 novel The Lost World, the film was directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by David Koepp. Jeff Goldblum, Richard Attenborough, Joseph Mazzello and Ariana Richards reprise their roles from the original film with Julianne Moore, Pete Postlethwaite and Arliss Howard joining the cast.
Four years after the original film, John Hammond (Attenborough) loses control of his company InGen to his nephew, Peter Ludlow (Howard). On the verge of bankruptcy, Ludlow intends to exploit dinosaurs from InGen's second island, Isla Sorna, with plans for a new dinosaur theme park in San Diego. Hammond sends a team, led by the eccentric chaos theorist and mathematician Ian Malcolm (Goldblum), to the island to document the dinosaurs and encourage non-interference, although the two groups eventually come into conflict.
After the original novel's release and the first film's success, fans pressured Crichton for a sequel. Following the book's publication in 1995, production began on a film sequel. Filming took place from September to December 1996, primarily in California, with a shoot in Kauai, Hawaii, where the first film was shot. The Lost World's plot and imagery is substantially darker than Jurassic Park. It makes more extensive use of CGI to depict the dinosaurs, along with life-sized animatronics.
The Lost World was among the most anticipated films of 1997. It was accompanied by a $250 million marketing campaign, which included video games, comic books, and toys. Released on May 23, 1997, the film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the visual effects but criticized the character development. Spielberg also expressed disappointment with the film, stating he had become increasingly disenchanted with it during production. The film grossed $618.6 million worldwide, becoming the second-highest-grossing film of 1997. It earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Visual Effects. A sequel, Jurassic Park III, was released in 2001.
Plot[]
Four years after the events on Isla Nublar, a British family anchored their yacht offshore at the nearby Isla Sorna, unaware that the island contains genetically engineered dinosaurs. Their daughter wanders off and is attacked by a group of Compsognathus, but survives.
An ailing Dr. John Hammond invites mathematician Dr. Ian Malcolm to his residence to discuss the incident. Hammond's company InGen, which created the dinosaurs, is now headed by Hammond's nephew Peter Ludlow, who used the incident to take control of the company from Hammond. Besides Isla Nublar, Ian learns that InGen had another facility, "Site B", on Isla Sorna, where the company's dinosaurs were cloned. However, the island was abandoned during a hurricane, and the animals were released into the wild to fend for themselves. Ludlow wants to exploit the island's creatures to save InGen from bankruptcy. Hammond asks Ian to join a team who will document the dinosaurs in their natural habitat, to encourage a policy of non-interference. Ian's girlfriend, paleontologist Dr. Sarah Harding, was hired and is already on Isla Sorna. Upon hearing this, Ian reluctantly agrees to go to the island, but only to retrieve Sarah.
Ian travels there with Eddie Carr, an equipment specialist and engineer, and Nick Van Owen, a video documentarian and activist. They find Sarah, but she insists on staying to continue her research. Ian is shocked when he discovers that his daughter Kelly has stowed away with the team in a trailer, which serves as their mobile base. Ludlow and a mercenary team arrive on the island to capture dinosaurs, with help from big-game hunters Roland Tembo and Ajay Sidhu, Roland's second-in-command Dieter Stark, and paleontologist Dr. Robert Burke.
Malcolm's group realizes Ludlow intends to ship the captured specimens to San Diego, for an unfinished Jurassic Park attraction that he plans to revive after Hammond had abandoned the San Diego project in favor of the park on Isla Nublar. Nick and Sarah free the captured dinosaurs, and the animals wreak havoc on the InGen team's camp. On the way back to the trailer, Nick rescues an injured Tyrannosaurus rex infant that Roland used as bait to hunt its father. Nick and Sarah treat the infant's broken leg, but the Tyrannosaurus adults arrive, having tracked the infant's scent. They reclaim their infant, destroy the trailer, and devour Eddie during his attempt to save the group.
Ian, Sarah, Nick, and Kelly are rescued by Ludlow's team and are forced to work together after losing all their communications equipment. They decide to travel to an abandoned InGen base to call for help. During a break, Stark goes into the wilderness alone to relieve himself and is killed by a group of Compsognathus. After the team sets up a camp for the night, they are ambushed by the Tyrannosaurus adults: Burke is devoured, and others flee into a field of long grass where a pack of Velociraptors ambush them, killing Ajay and most of the InGen personnel.
Ian, Sarah, Kelly, and Nick reach the InGen base, fight off Velociraptors, and successfully radio for helicopter extraction. After being rescued, Nick reveals that he stole Roland's ammunition, to prevent him from killing his trophy. However, they learn Roland has sedated the male Tyrannosaurus with tranquilizers instead. As more InGen personnel arrive on the island to secure the male and infant, Roland declines Ludlow's job offer at the San Diego park, reflecting on Ajay's death and the morality of Ludlow's scheme.
At the Port of San Diego, Ian and Sarah attempt to convince Ludlow to abandon his plans, but the ship carrying the male Tyrannosaurus suddenly crashes into the docks. The crew is found dead, and the Tyrannosaurus is accidentally released and begins rampaging through the city. Ian and Sarah locate the infant at the planned park and use it to lure the male back to the docks. Ludlow tries to retrieve the infant within the cargo hold but is injured by the adult before being mauled to death by the infant. Sarah uses a tranquilizer gun to sedate the male before intervening government forces can use lethal force on it, while Ian seals the cargo hold doors.
In the aftermath, the dinosaurs are shipped back to Isla Sorna accompanied by the United States Navy, while Ian, Sarah, and Kelly watch Hammond in a televised interview announce that the American and Costa Rican governments have declared the island a nature reserve.