Re: JP defending

[Amado Narvaez <anarvaez@umd5.umd.edu>]

On Thu, 25 Jul 1996, Raptor wrote:

> Rik I totally agree with you about people trying to find all these
> mistakes in Jurassic Park.  If you want accurate go watch a documentary.

> Like Rik said it's just a sci fi movie relax and enjoy it.

Although I enjoyed JP immensely, I think the artistic license used in 
portraying some of the dinosaurs violated the tenets of not only good 
science, but good science fiction.

Good science fiction is grounded in good science, or at least science as 
good as current evidence allows. _2001: A Space Odyssee_ was a good 
science fiction film when it came out in 1968. In the scenes outside of 
the Discovery, they respected the scientific concept that sound does not 
travel in space. The loud explosions in outer space in _Star Wars_, however, 
makes it a poor SCIENCE fiction film. (It's an okay story, just bad 
science.) In 1968 the evidence available about Jupiter did NOT include 
the existence of the rings. When Arthur C. Clarke wrote the sequels, he 
updated the science in the sequels to include the rings. He has delayed 
another book in the series because he wanted the information/evidence 
that the Galileo mission would provide to make the science more accurate.

If JP had left out the frill, the venom, etc., it would have been good 
science fiction. Good science fiction can be scientifically accurate and 
still be a good story.

I was very disappointed in the Carnotaurus depiction in _The Lost World_ 
and feel that the attempt to merge "Jurassic Park" and "Predator" is an 
affront to both science and science fiction. In this case, I think the 
powers that be said, "Look at what we can do with film technology. How 
can we use it in Jurassic Park II?" without regard to common sense. 
What's next for Jurassic Park III? Probably a Giganotosaurus that can 
morph into a hadrosaur so it can walk right up to an unsuspecting herd 
of hadrosaurs to catch its next meal. (Open note to Crichton and 
Spielberg: I'm just kidding. Please don't do that.)

----- Amado Narvaez
      anarvaez@umd5.umd.edu