With Trevorrow back at the helm, this second-trilogy closer is definitely an example of how to go out with a bang. Evident from the start, this film largely eschews the popcorn entertainment approach - although there are certainly plenty of blockbuster action thrills on offer - for something more dramatic and character-driven, making it feel much more weighty and impactful, with issues, emotional ties and often a sense of real jeopardy to the fore. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard (the stars of the previous two World films) here are seen to play more realistic and credible characters with aplomb, and of course it is an absolute joy to see Laura Dern, Sam Neill and Jeff Goldblum reunited and thankfully being integral to the film rather than providing nostalgic cameos, enabling their strength as actors to really contribute to the film's success. Storywise, Dominion is an interesting synthesis and advancement of characters and ideas from across the whole series, cleverly setting up the present character worlds from the two separate series before bringing them together triumphantly: like The Force Awakens and Top Gun Maverick, this film manages to create an effective link between old and new casts. Whereas Fallen Kingdom felt like two mini-movies stapled together, Dominion interleaves its stories to mostly good effect, even if some characters and situations feel a little underserviced owing to the sheer weight of content being juggled here. This film is also notable for its extraordinary integration of high-quality CGI creatures into lively and complex action sequences and a range of landscapes not previously seen in the series - the Malta/raptors sequence in particular is fantastically well-realised on screen. Dominion may not be as pure and streamlined as the first Jurassic World movie, but it provides a fitting end to the (whole?) series and is hugely entertaining on both a visceral and nostalgic level.
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