The Worst ‘Jurassic Park’ Sequel Has One of the Best Sequences

As with any franchise, there are some sequels that just don’t have the same effect as others. For Jurassic Park, that sequel is Jurassic Park III. Though it brought back the characters Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) from the first movie, the resulting film is rather messy and doesn’t know what it’s doing with its plot, not even they could save it. Even with the additions of Téa Leoni and William H. Macy, Jurassic Park III just didn’t resonate with audiences like the series’ previous installments. It’s not exactly unwatchable, there are still enjoyable moments, but ultimately, Jurassic Park III is widely regarded as the worst sequel in the franchise, it does have one of the best moments of all the movies, and that’s the pterodactyl scene.

Jurassic Park 3

PG-13

Action

Adventure

Sci-Fi

Jurassic Park III is the third film in the series and takes place four years after the events of The Lost World. The film follows the original protagonist Alan Grant and his new assistant/protege, Billy Brennan. When Grant’s dig is in somewhat dire straits, a business proposition by two supposedly wealthy vacationers potentially changes his fortunes. Agreeing to give them a tour of the dinosaur-inhabited island, Isla Sorna, Grant soon realizes the true reason behind the trip is to find their missing son, putting them all in danger.

Release Date

July 18, 2001

Director

Joe Johnston

Cast

Sam Neill , Laura Dern , Tea Leoni , William H. Macy , Trevor Morgan , Alessandro Nivola

Runtime

92mins

Main Genre

Sci-Fi

What Is ‘Jurassic Park III’ About?

Jurassic Park III brings Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler back to the franchise after they were absent from the previous movie, The Lost World: Jurassic Park. But unfortunately, Ellie is more of a background character than a proper one, and she doesn’t get in on the physical action of being back amongst the dinosaurs like Alan does. This may be a plus for her, but it is a big downer for fans. The movie focuses on Amanda and Paul Kirby, who enlist the help of Alan Grant as they plan to fly over Isla Sorna for a sight of the dinosaurs. At least, that’s what they tell Alan. In reality, their son Erik (Trevor Morgan) recently went missing during a parasailing trip over Isla Sorna and they intend to find him by any means necessary. Alan doesn’t know this until they touch down on the island, but almost as soon as they arrive, they’re targeted by some dinosaurs, leaving them with a demolished plane and no choice but to run deeper into the island to find safety, and Erik.

Why Do Fans Dislike ‘Jurassic Park III’?

Jurassic Park III has some pretty glaring flaws that fans have never been able to overlook. For starters, Téa Leoni’s character Amanda is one of the most irritating characters in the franchise. She spends the majority of the movie screaming, despite Alan’s warnings that doing so will only attract attention to them. In fact, none of the characters are particularly great aside from Alan, and the characters can really make or break a movie. The plot itself doesn’t really do the movie any favors either, because the story isn’t all that strong, and considering it relies on finding the son of two pretty annoying characters, there wasn’t much to latch onto to keep audiences’ attention. As if those reasons aren’t enough, the T. rex — who, let’s be honest, is everyone’s favorite part of these movies — is defeated by the Spinosaurus at the beginning, meaning we have a basically T-Rex-less Jurassic Park film and that’s just atrocious. Oh, and there’s a talking raptor. Seriously, what were the writers thinking with this one?

Still, Jurassic Park III does have some shining moments. For starters, the dinosaurs look just as cool as ever, and we see so many more of them in this movie. Most of the film is Dino-centric action rather than actual plot development, which in any other movie may be considered a flaw, but for Jurassic Park is worthy of praise. It also has some really cool scenes that are unlike ones we’ve seen in the previous installments. There’s the scene when Erik and Alan reunite with everyone at the fence, only for the reunion to be cut short by the Spinosaurus. Or the scene in which the characters are attacked on their boat in the middle of the river by the Spinosaurus. (Seriously, the Spinosaurus is so cool!) But the best part of the movie, and what makes up for every other flaw without a doubt, is the scene in the Pterodactyl cage.

‘Jurassic Park III’s Best Scene Finally Introduces the Pterodactyl

After finding Erik, Alan and the rest of the crew attempt to find the coast in hopes of being rescued. But as they make their way across Isla Sorna, they find themselves in an unknown building. They continue on their way, hoping it will provide them with some safety for the time being, but that quickly proves not to be the case. As noises rumble around them, it suddenly dawns on Alan that this isn’t just any building, it’s a birdcage. And a birdcage in a Jurassic Park movie can only mean one thing: Pterodactyls! The previous movies didn’t feature the Pterodactyl, aside from a brief glance or mention. But Jurassic Park III forms an entire scene around them and it’s worth the wait.

As Erik crosses a rickety bridge in the dense fog, he feels the bridge begin to shake and sees a figure emerging from the fog. He assumes it is his mom or Alan, as they went across first. But as the figure comes closer, and the fog begins to clear, we see that it’s a Pterodactyl approaching. And listen, the thing is terrifying, but man is it cool to look at! The Pterodactyl snatches Erik up and flies off, dropping him in a nest full of baby Pterodactyls as a meal. He manages to distract the babies long enough to run off, but they catch up eventually and begin pecking at him. That’s when Billy (Alessandro Nivola) swoops in with an abandoned parasail and saves Erik from the tiny dinos. But even that proves perilous, as the Pterodactyls can fly and catch up pretty darn quick, only growing in the size of their flock. The rest of the crew is being targeted too as they try and find an escape. Billy, however, isn’t as lucky as the rest of the characters who do eventually manage to escape the dinos hunting them. We watch as Billy runs for his life as a Pterodactyl pursues him from above, and just as you think maybe he’ll make it out, the Pterodactyl swoops down and scoops him up. It then proceeds to peck at him as they float down the river, seemingly killing him in brutal fashion. It is revealed by the end of the movie that he miraculously survived, but the scene may just land Billy the title of “best almost death scene.”

The Pterodactyl Scene Makes ‘Jurassic Park III’ a Better Movie

The Jurassic Park movies usually showcase bigger dinosaurs, such as the T. rex or the Velociraptor, as they’re more effective at providing tension and fear for both the characters and the audience. But Jurassic Park III switched things up and proved that Pterodactyls can be just as scary, if not more. These dinos are huge, larger than our characters, with wings and beaks that spell pure trouble. Watching them fly around and create chaos is so dang cool, that you almost want to see them win just so we can see more of them. Obviously, that isn’t the case and our characters do come out victorious, but that doesn’t diminish just how thrilling the entire scene is. It’s a relatively short scene in the grand scheme of things, but it’s also one of the most unique in the entire franchise. Not only for being the first movie with a proper Pterodactyl scene, but also because it’s oddly brutal. Granted, any time someone gets killed by a dinosaur in these movies it’s brutal, but it’s usually fairly quick, or done in the dark, so we don’t see much. We still don’t see much in this scene, but watching the Pterodactyl scoop up Billy and peck at him as he’s underwater is honestly terrifying.

It’s a little disappointing that the franchise made us wait three whole movies to see the Pterodactyls, but it’s all worth it in the end because they provide one of the best, and most tense scenes in the entire franchise. And no, that’s not a stretch, it’s the truth. They’re just so unpredictable given that they fly and scoop up our characters at random. They can come out of the sky, steal someone, and we’ll never see them again. It’s so scary, but it makes for one thrilling ride. It’s honestly a shame that it’s a part of Jurassic Park III, because so many viewers write off the movie as a whole and don’t appreciate how good some aspects of it are. So if you were ever looking for a sign to give Jurassic Park III another chance, this is it. Do it for the Pterodactyls.

Jurassic Park III is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

WATCH ON NETFLIX