Jurassic Park
Premise - An entrepreneurial scientist comes up with the unprecedented idea to genetically breed dinosaurs using fossilized DNA samples, bringing back these magnificent creatures from extinction. Not only does he want to research these animals, but he wants to put them on display for profit, creating the theme park "Jurassic Park" for tourists to come see the dinosaurs for themselves. Before the park opens, a select group of people are offered a tour of the park when a power outage hits and the dinosaurs are unleashed upon them.
Review - Every time I revisit this story I become more of an anticapitalist and honestly, I think that's fantastic. Literally toying with the fate of the world for profit is what capitalism has brought us, and even though bringing dinosaurs back to life may seem like an extreme example, it is not. We've done stranger and more dangerous things for money, hence the planet being an absolute wreck.
It's very easy for me to put the entirety of blame for the creation of such a park on capitalism since I have no problem labeling it as an evil. But I also am wrestling with the question of whether or not a story like this could have existed outside of a capitalistic world? If money were not a motivator, would there still be incentive to try to recreate dinosaurs for the sake of scientific "progress", just to show that it "could" be done?
The story could be viewed as anti-science, but I really don't think it is. Rather, the story is anti-"thintelligence", a term in the book meant to represent a tunnel vision associated with scientific research. The entrepreneurs and scientists in the story are incredibly smart in their ability to come up with the idea in first place, figure out the genetic and computer programming, and build the entire park. However, no one stops to think about the big picture of how this work is impactful - their perspective is narrowed and blinded by power and profit. When dealing with something as powerful as science, a more holistic intelligence is ethically necessary to apply it in ways that improve the world rather than harm it, and that takes far more intelligence than most would realize. I have much respect for Michael Crichton as a writer for the intelligence he has in articulating the problematic nature of thintelligence.
Similarly, as I've said, I don't think the story is anti-science generally so much as anti-science for profit, entertainment, or consumerism. The book especially targets the difference between research in private or public institutions like InGen (the company that created Jurassic Park), vs. the university paleontological research that is far less sexy, but far safer. Public research, and applications for research funding, are slow and bureaucratic because it has to pass through so many approval and ethics boards, but that's how we prevent crazy stuff like Jurassic Park from happening.
The book is very much focused on the science fiction storytelling, and explaining the ins and outs of how the science could have come to be. And while I'm no geneticist, I remember being convinced by the mesh of real vs. speculative science. I can't speak to accuracy about how the dinosaurs were actually described and looked in the film (don't most paleontologists now think that dinosaurs were covered in feathers? That would have made for a very different film...)
The film, which I recently rewatched, focuses much more on the thriller adventure aspects, or even the pure horror of the situation. I was surprised at how terrifying the film was, considering that I had remembered the story being a family friendly adventure. The rain and darkness, the one by one deaths, and the jump scares translated to me like a horror film and I was genuinely frightened.
Despite the horrific concept and scary film, this story leaves me with a very odd optimism for life more than anything else - and I don't mean human life specifically. I mean the very concept of life. If I have learned anything from this story, it's that no matter how badly humans fuck up the world, life will keep going. We can almost guarantee, with the state of climate change, that the world will have to go on without us. But it will keep going. We will be a tiny blip in planet earth's existence, and maybe that's for the better. The concept of life is so beautiful and immense that it is narcissistic to believe that we as humans have any power over it.
The iconic John Williams musical score is the other thing that leaves me with pure optimism for life. There is something so deeply soul-filled in the music, that it seems to hit a very nature of human existence right in the heart, and that is high praise. (94/100)
Quote - “The planet has survived everything, in its time. It will certainly survive us" and the accompanying "life will find a way."
ALSO
“They don't have intelligence. They have what I call 'thintelligence.' They see the immediate situation. They think narrowly and they call it 'being focused.' They don't see the surround. They don't see the consequences.”
What to read/watch for - Read for the speculative science. Watch for the music. Also - I went to Hawaii recently and saw the ranch that served as a backdrop filming location! So when I rewatched the film, I looked out for those particular mountains that I saw!
If you liked this book/film, I'd recommend Jurassic World! (Just the first one) Or for more Michael Crichton, I'd recommend Timeline!
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