Jurassic World is set to cause ripples in your oversized cup of coke in the cinema from today so I thought I'd wave my flare in front of my 5 favourite dinosaur movies.
Godzilla (1954)
The city stomping daddy of them all. Directed by IshirÅ Honda, Godzilla tells the story of a prehistoric monster resurrected by repeated nuclear tests in the Pacific, who ravages Japan. The film stars Takashi Shimura (Seven Samurai) as the revered palaeontologist who uncovers the horrible secret at the heart of the monster. Reigniting the horrors of nuclear devastation to the very nation that experienced it first-hand, Godzilla was the first of many kaiju films released in Japan, paving the way and setting the standard for future kaiju films as well as some of the greatest film names of all time including Invasion Of Astro-Monster and Godzilla Vs. Destroyah!
Jurassic Park (1993)
The first installment of the film series, director Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park centers on the fictional Isla Nublar, an islet located off Central America’s Pacific Coast, near Costa Rica, where a billionaire philanthropist and a small team of genetic scientists have created a wildlife park of cloned dinosaurs. A stone cold blooded classic. It's groundbreaking and shaking use of CGI still looks as mind blowing today as it did 22 years ago and if you needed any further proof of Steven Spielberg's genius, he edited the entire movie at night whilst directing Schindler's List by day. Here's the story behind it's most iconic scene..
King Kong (1933)
Not only is this one of the best movies ever made, featuring a super self-aware meta-fictional plot device, and an awesome monster for a main character, there’s also a bunch of dinosaurs in this movie. Though famous for his New York City antics, King Kong spends most of his time on Skull Island doing battle with all sorts of creatures, including, at one point, a T-Rex who he brutally kills. Though this scene was recreated in the 2005 Peter Jackson version of the movie, this original battle is still the best. Legendary special effects hero Willis O’Brien is just showing off at this point.
One Million Years B.C. (1966)
One Million Years B.C. offers a vivid view of prehistoric life, when a man from the mean-spirited Rock People (John Richardson) is banished from his home and finds himself among the gentle Shell People and falls in love with one of their tribeswomen (Raquel Welch). The twosome decide to face the world together, cut off from all tribal support, alone in a dangerous world of beasts and earth-shattering volcanic eruptions. Speaking of 'volcanic eruptions', the films is historically best known for Raquel's historically placed bikini but really it should be seen for Ray Harryhausen's incredible stop motion artistry.
The Land Before Time (1988)
There was a time in the 1980’s when Don Bluth was working overtime to wrench the affections of children away from Disney and into his brand of animated heartwarmers. This one occupies a special place in the hearts of children of the 80’s simply because we all remember loving it unconditionally, and then later becoming baffled with the inexplicable number of direct-to-video sequels. The original is still a great, tight little movie, and despite the fact that these dinos talk, this is not the most scientifically inaccurate movie on this list!
