Review: ‘Jurassic World: Rebirth' Is No Dino Déjà Vu

HOLLYWOOD, CA — Dino déjà vu? Certainly not. Gareth Edwards’ “Jurassic World: Rebirth” strides boldly into its own shadow, dragging hubris into the harsh light of survival. With every tremor in the jungle and every howl in the dark, the film doesn’t just return to the island — it resurrects it, bone by bone, roar by roar, crafting a visceral, emotionally charged spectacle born not of nostalgia but of reckoning carved in reverence for the past.

Picking up five years after the events of “Dominion,” the story unfolds in a world where dinosaurs are fading into ecological oblivion. Only three colossal species remain — Patagotitan, Mosasaurus, and Quetzalcoatlus, each claiming dominion over land, air and sea within a remote equatorial biosphere. When biotech titan ParkerGenix uncovers the potential for dinosaur DNA to revolutionize heart treatment, the powerful conglomerate launches a covert expedition to extract genetic samples from these last remaining giants.

Leading the charge is Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson), a no-nonsense extraction specialist, flanked by Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali), a veteran navigator, and Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), a world-renowned paleontologist, all bound for the forbidden Ile Saint-Hubert with a team of mercenaries and scientists. However, the mission quickly spirals into pandemonium as Zora’s crew crosses paths with the Delgados, a shipwrecked family still reeling from a Mosasaurus dino attack.

The island, once a sanctuary, becomes a crucible. It’s not a place filled with prehistoric thrills, but a graveyard of failed ambition haunted by the terrifying six-limbed Distortus Rex, a predator once thought buried in ash. As the jungle closes in, alliances fray, and the mission becomes a fight not just for escape, but for redemption.

Through it all, the cast delivers. Johansson imbues Zora with quiet ferocity and flashes of vulnerability. Her silence speaks volumes, her gaze flickers between resolve and regret. Ali embodies Duncan with stoic gravitas — steely yet calm but never detached. And Bailey? He’s marvelous. His portrayal of the morally conflicted Dr. Loomis pulses with wonder and philosophical dread.

In a breakout turn, 12-year-old Audrina Miranda delivers a glowing performance as Isabella Delgado. Her bond with Dolores, the scene-stealing juvenile Auilops, isn’t just charming — it echoes the empathy threaded between Maisie and Beta in “Dominion.”

Undeniably, it’s not just the cast that rumbles. From the haunting hush of jungle glades to the jaw-dropping majesty of beasts breaching beneath the moonlight, Edwards’ deft direction and John Mathieson’s painterly cinematography forge a visual language of awe, scale and restraint, punctuated by Alexandre Desplat’s brooding, heart-pounding score. Together, they know when to let the camera breathe, when to let it quake, and when to let the music carry what the silence can’t.

“Jurassic World: Rebirth” crescendos into a thunderous meditation on consequence and survival — a thoughtful reminder of why we fell in love with dinosaurs in the first place. It’s not just a sequel, it’s a thrilling legacy unearthed and reawakened, thrumming with new life. And in that final, bone-rattling roar, the film isn't a whisper of the breathtaking past — it's a charge into the future, hopefully with Distortus Rex’s secrets in tow.