This Is the Best Jurassic Park Action Scene (And It’s Not Even Close)

Advanced apologies to anyone desperately trying to outrun the fact that they are getting old, but Jurassic Park was made over 30 years ago. It really does seem too hard to believe sometimes, especially considering how well the movie still holds up. After all, Jurassic Park helped set the standard for what a summer blockbuster should be. As one of the most iconic movies of the ’90s, Jurassic Park has a little bit of everything going for it. Terrific performances from its cast, amazing special effects that perfectly blended CGI with practical effects, and of course … jaw-dropping action scenes that had audiences on the edge of their seats. However, there is one action scene in particular that is the best sequence in the entire Jurassic Park franchise, and it’s not even close.

At its core, Jurassic Park is a very simple film about man’s hubris, more specifically, John Hammond’s (Richard Attenborough) hubris. As a wealthy industrialist, Hammond believes that he is capable of building a theme park filled with real-life dinosaurs. He is so confident in his idea that he even has his grandchildren Lex (Ariana Richards) and Tim (John Mazzello) tag along to take a tour of the place. But, as in most cases when someone is overconfident, all hell breaks loose when the park is sabotaged by Dennis Nedry (Wayne Knight), a money-hungry computer programmer looking for his big payday. Despite this, he’s still one of the most underrated characters in the franchise. In a dramatic turn of events, that very act of sabotage puts Lex and Tim in striking distance of a fully grown T-Rex that is ready to break out of its paddock.

The Ripple Effect

Much like a ripple in the water, Dennis’ greed sets off an ever-expanding chain reaction that leads to the all-time best Jurassic Park action scene. After Dennis disables the park’s security system, he also inadvertently shuts down the tour vehicles, which just so happen to sit right in front of the T-Rex paddock. As a shining example of director Steven Spielberg’s greatness as a filmmaker, the scene starts out slowly, with a sense of mystery and impending doom that only increases with each passing second. The characters all know that something has gone terribly wrong, especially Donald Gennaro (Martin Ferrero), who abandons Lex and Tim and high-tails in out of his vehicle and heads straight for the bathroom. Just a brilliant decision all around.

As the T-Rex picks apart the powered-down fence, it escapes the paddock and lets out a bone-chilling roar that sets the tone for the rest of the scene. The T-Rex’s roar is certainly up there with the most memorable sound effects in cinematic history. As the kids struggle to not make things even worse, the T-Rex aggressively smashes into their vehicle and flips it over, sending the kids into full panic mode. With Dr. Grant (Sam Neill) attempting to distract the T-Rex, Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) takes off running, trying to lure the dinosaur away. But he nearly dies instead and leads the beast straight to Gennaro. With a brief moment to think about his life choices, Gennaro is snatched up by the T-Rex and sent to lawyer heaven. Talk about poetic justice.

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Getting Up Close and Personal

If all of that wasn’t enough, Dr. Grant is still trying to desperately rescue the kids from the upside down vehicle. But as soon as he frees Lex, she turns and sees the T-Rex standing directly in front of them. After letting out a blood-curdling screen, we witness the dino stomping its massive foot into the mud, just a mere feet from Dr. Grant and Lex. But with its vision based on movement, the pair remain invisible to the T-Rex. However, they have very little time to breathe a sigh of relief as the massive predator begins to tear at the vehicle again. With nowhere to go, Dr. Grant and Lex are forced to scale down the inside of the T-Rex paddock. A few moments later, the vehicle, with Tim still inside, is tossed down into the enclosure and the T-Rex lets out one final victorious roar.

What makes this 8-minute-long action scene the best in the entire Jurassic Park franchise is the fact that it all unfolds in near silence. There is no music in the background to suggest how to feel. We are just subjected to the sounds of metal scraping against the ground, panicked screams, and ear-piercing roars. There is such an impressive amount of intense dread that the use of music would have detracted from the scene. These characters are in mortal danger, and the scene is framed in such a way that we feel that intensity with each passing moment. It’s so well done that there hasn’t been a scene in the franchise that’s come close to its brilliance. Who knows, maybe Jurassic World Rebirth will offer up scenes just as scary as this scene was.