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    #268
    Jack Horner quickly nixed the idea of the raptors having "flicking toungues" like snakes in JP. (From: Erick)
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    March 21, 2001
    JP3 Script Review!
    Hooooly crap.. Nick over at CHUD.com has just posted his review of the JP3 script, and -- holy crap again -- he seems to really like it, giving it an 8 out of 10! "These films are thrill rides," Nick says. "We cannot expect mind bending theory and deep plot twists ... These are event films built around a solid premise. In the grand scheme of things, this is pretty dark (not as dark as we'd like, but less dependent on child heroics than the first two) and most likely AT LEAST the 2nd best film in the series. On those grounds, it's a success.... I just hope the audience responds because it's RARE a series maintains its dignity after the 3rd installment". Nick also divulges a good amount of info about the plot of the film and his opinions about the action, at least in the first half of the script.. Here are some of the major points:
    • Nick calls the film "Concise, with very little fat."
    • Ben's last name is "Hildebrand".
    • The film opens as we've suspected, with Eric and Ben parasailing near the island (ISLA SORNA). They know what's on the island (big dinosaurs), and want to get as close as possible.
    • It looks like we get to meet Dr. Sattler once again, but just for a quick scene, just a "glorified cameo, really".
    • The rumored scene where Grant addresses a group of students will serve as exposition for the film, with Grant giving a "scientific seminar" where "it's apparent he has no love for meeting any dinosaurs up close again".
    • There's a "quick but fun dream sequence" before the team gets to the island, though Nick thinks it may be cut.
    • The spino attacks the airplane and tears it to shreds, hardly flinching at the fact that the plane's propellers are cutting the dinosaur.
    • The Carnotaur will be featured in the film.
    • A "neat development in the [raptor's] physiology" (presumably its feathered head crest) "plays a vital part in the film"
    • The kid in JP3, Nick thinks, "isn't really much of a nuisance and seems to be one of the smarter characters," so Kelly-haters rejoice.
    • Like TLW, the film moves from one set-piece action scene to another at a quick pace, stopping very little. But that's what we like, right?
    • Regarding the length of the film, or lack thereof, the script is called a "VERY QUCK read" (100 minutes, Nick estimates).
    Keep in mind that the draft Nick is reviewing is from Aug. 2000, a "third version of the original script written by Peter Buchman. Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor, and now John August has worked on it" so things may have changed since then.
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    No Delays in Australia/NZ?
    Despite a report published here that the JP3 release date has been pushed back to Sept. 21st in these two countries, a source over at Dark Horizons says that UIP Australia "has confirmed there is NO distribution problems ... the release date is still locked in for August 30th" (Thanks 'Varan101')

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    March 20, 2001


    Underwater Dino?
    Break out the salt, because it's completely and totally unsubstantiated rumor time! A myterious source over at the message board who goes by '213' claims that Stan Winston studios has actually created an underwater dinosaur which will "most likely be a Megaladon (a prehistoric shark)". You may remeber that this has been one of the original JP3 rumors from the very beginning, so it is interesting it is re-surfacing once again.
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    JP3 DVD
    At least we won't have to wait seven years for a JP3 DVD, as everyone's favorite DVD news site, The Digital Bits is reporting that the JP3 DVD is in the works by Universal. (Thanks 'dinodan')

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    Toys: 'Dino Dex' Named Top 'Toy Wish'
    Tiger Electronics' "Dino Dex", the electronic dinosaur encylopedia toy which will be tied in to JP3 come July, has been called one of the top "Toy Wishes" this year by a new magazine, according to this press release. "Show dino-knowledge with this fun and informational hand-held encyclopedia of dinosaurs from Hasbro," the release says. "Kids 5 and up will have complete information about 72 different dinosaurs, plus two different game modes. There's also an organizer function, a high-resolution dot-matrix screen and cool sounds. Keep it all secure with a private password."

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    March 17, 2001


    Disappointing Trailer News II
    There has obviously been some confusion about the whole teaser/trailer situation, even within Universal, as I just received another report from my primary source that, unfortunately, the rumor about a short JP3 teaser coming out in the next few weeks is just a rumor. Here's the beef: "I just triple-checked," says my source at Universal in LA. "Unfortunately, there is no truth to the teaser-trailer rumor. There WILL BE a trailer up with THE MUMMY RETURNS, but there will be no earlier piece."
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    Don Davis' Music
    Looks like composer Don Davis has started on the musical score for JP3, using the themes from the previous films as a guide. An informant over at JP3HQ provided some info from an inside source:

      I was actually able to hear what Don Davis has been doing for Jurassic Park III these past few months, he's sounding great! When you hear it you'll definitely recognize the Jurassic tunes as well as some very unique touches of his own. Evidently the music has been named after what's happening in the movie at the time, and one that particularly stuck out to me was (Spoilers!) Spinosaurus Rampage, as well as Attack and Sky-high fall...
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    Winston Talks Pteradons
    The new issue of Cinescape features a short interview with everyone's favorite animatronics expert, Stan Winston, who talks about the new spino, and how the characters in the film are "menaced at every turn by a pack of Velociraptors" as well as an attack "from above":

      "You're going to see Pteranodons [a breed of flying dinosaur] in this, which are entirely another level of technical difficulty because we are dealing with a combination of animatronics, men in suits [and] wings that are beyond what we've done in the other movies," Winston says.
    For more info on JP3, the article adds, be sure to pick up Cinescape's "Son of Sequel Mania" special issue "on sale soon". (Thanks 'Tango9000')
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    JP3 95 Minutes?
    'Embryo' received a message from a Universal "distribution manager", first apologizing for the delay in Australia (see yesterday's news), but adding that the current cut of the film clocks in at 95 minutes long. Obviously this number may change as they're still editing and assembling the film, but it still seems substantially shorter than TLW's 130 minute running time.

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    March 16, 2001


    Neill on ET, New Still
    Be sure to tune in to tonight's Entertainment Tonight, as my source at Universal Studios reports that they will air a piece on Sam Neill which will feature a new shot from JP3. If anyone with a vid capture card wants to try and get a screenshot of the new pic, please send it in! [Update: False alarm, only a slightly larger version of the spino cage pic was shown. At least we now have a better shot of the cage, many thanks to Gregg Truscott]
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    It'll Be Big, But Will it Have Legs?
    That's what theater owners are wondering about JP3, according to the newest issue of Entertainment Weekly -- the film may have a great opening weekend, but will it continue to rake in the dough in the following weeks like the last two films did? "[There] are sequels that should have some power left in them," says one theater insider in the article about recently screened trailers at ShoWest. "Jurassic Park will open. I'm not sure how its legs will be, but we certainly want it in all our theaters." (Thanks 'JP Animal Control')

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    March 15, 2001


    Full Trailer in May, Release Delayed in Australia
    Larry Gibsen, a distribution executive at a production branch of Amblin Entertainment in New Zealand, dropped me a line this morning informing us that due to unspecified "distribution problems", the release date of JP3 in Australia and New Zealand has been pushed back to September 21st, almost a month after the original date of Aug. 30th. Whether or not these problems will impact other countries (including the US) remains to be seen. In more disapointing news, Larry also said that according to Universal, ILM "expects to have a trailer ready for worldwide release in May, so that it can be attached to Universal's main Summer release, 'The Mummy Returns'." The wait continues....

    [Update: Not so fast! While it looks like we'll have to wait until May for the full trailer, the teaser trailer still looks immiment. "Director Joe Johnston and producer Larry Franco were apparently delighted with the response it received from its [showing at ShowWest in front of a] relatively small audience," Larry said. "So Universal is preparing to release the teaser late March/early April." As for the distribution delays, while they were originally afraid it would effect the UK, it seems everything has been cleared up and the film is on track for the July 21st release.]

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    Toy Fair Promo Sheet, JPI Info
    Ahh, finally we get to see what was on the back of that JP3 Promo sheet they gave away at the NYC Toy Show, and which has appeared on Ebay recently. Fortunatly someone sent JurassicPark.Action-Figure.net (a very cool site, btw) a bigger image of the sheet, which has this blurb about the upcoming Jurassic Park Institute:

      "Jurassic Park Institute will be the definitive dinosaur resource for learning and advanced scientific study. Its activities and products will be scientifically based and educationally focused. The program will be supported by many divisions and activities like museum tours and kids clubs."
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    Konami on JP3 X-Box Game
    Interesting story at CNet this afternoon.. Despite previous reports that Japanese gamemaker Konami is embracing Microsoft's upcoming X-Box system, the company now seems to be backstepping, saying that the new console is "risky". However, they are still planning on releasing three titles this year, "Jurassic Park 3" (the title is apparently not 'Jurassic Park X' anymore) among them.

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    March 13, 2001


    JP3 PC Games
    This morning's Variety is reporting that Universal has sold the rights to create several PC CD-ROM games based on JP3 to edutainment software company Knowledge Adventure (a company partially owned by Universal). According to the accompanying press release, the first two titles will be released in June with another to follow in the fall. "The 3D action/adventure games will transport kids into the authentic world of Jurassic Park, featuring realistic dinosaurs from the movie," the release says vaguely.
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    March 12, 2001


    JPI: Dinosaur Field Guide
    'Mallon' contacted one of the authors of the upcoming "Jurassic Park Institute: Dinosaur Field Guide", Thomas Holtz, asking him what exactly the 160 page book will be about. According to Holtz, "In brief: lots of dinosaurs, a few non-dinosaurs, how to dig and prepare dinosaurs, and more." However, Holtz says, "absolutely NO instructions on cloning your own dinosaur: that is proprietary information of JPI and their owners, InGen Corporation." For more info on Jurassic Park Institute, read this story.
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    JP3 NASCAR
    Several Ebay auctions are selling the new JP3 paint jobs for the 2001 Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte NASCAR vehicles.. On the left is Tony Stewart's #20 car (here is the auction), with Bobby Labonte's #18 car on the right there (From this auction). Thanks Gregg and 'RaPTOR705'.

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    Toys in April?
    'Twistr' called his local Toys R' Us in Alberta, Canada, who surpisingly reported that their first shipment of JP3 toys would be arriving April 6th, much sooner than had been earlier suspected...

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    Rex or Spino?
    Like most everything in the JP community, it looks like the pic from USA Today I posted here last week (which featured a big dinosaur towering over a bunch of scared-looking people in a cage) has sparked some disagreement, as some people think it's the rex, and others the spinosaur. At this thread on the Corona message board, several people have dismantled the image, coming to the conclusion (backed up by someone who apparently works on the film), that it is the spino.

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    March 9, 2001


    What is the "Jurassic Park Institute"?
    Several people have noticed this upcoming book on Amazon.com, the "Jurassic Park Institute: Dinosaur Field Guide", a 160 page book about the science of the dinosaurs in the Jurassic Park series, to be released in June. From what I've gathered from talking to Universal reps, the "JP Institute" will be a big marketing push, semi-tied in to the release of Jurassic Park 3, obviously trying to capitalize on the renewed interest in dinos following the release of the film. What is less clear is that the "JP Institute" may soon be an actual place, perhaps at Universal Studios Hollywood, which will tie everything JP-related together. While it's still unclear at this point, its obvious that this book (and this one, a sticker book) are only the beginning of this interesting campaign.....
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    No Topps
    Mark Spasaro sent along this image of the back of the JP3 trading card from awhile back (and which are popping up all over on Ebay -- apparently they were given out at a recent comic book convention, according to Josh). While originally we thought that Topps will be doing the JP3 trading cards (they did the cards for JP + TLW), it now looks like they will be produced by "inkworks!" instead.

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    Attenborough on JP3
    British news site Ananova spoke to Lord Richard Attenborough about his feelings on not being asked back to work on JP3. According to the actor, he's not really upset, and in fact thinks he may have died in the last film. "Did I die in the last one? I don't know, I looked pretty decrepit," he said. "I've never seen it. I don't like going to see my own movies. I haven't seen Jurassic, Elizabeth or Miracle [on 34th Street]" (Thanks Movieheadlines.net and Mark for the alert.)

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    Junior Novelization
    'Horribly Mauled' pointed out the the JP3 Junior Novelization can now be pre-ordered from Amazon.com. You might be interested to know that Scott Ciencin will be writing the book, an author who has written several "Dinotopia" novels in the past. From the UK Amazon site comes this description of the novel: "The junior novelization of the script of 'Jurassic Park III', produced by Stephen Spielberg. Dr. Grant, undeterred by previous close scrapes in Jurassic Park, returns to the newly discovered Site C on Isla Nubar in order to study the raptors, which he believes have (Potential Spoiler!) a capacity to learn and evolve."

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    Ebay Auction Mania
    Lots and lots of Ebay auctions up for grabs.. Gregg Truscott points to this "Public Relations Sheet" from the toy fair, this "Field Researchers Kit" (pic), and yet another sleeping bag.

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    March 8, 2001


    JOE JOHNSTON SPEAKS
    Well, wasn't I bit surprised to open my email last night and read a message directly from the man in charge of Jurassic Park 3 himself, Director Joe Johnston. He wanted to comment officially on William H. Macy's negative sentiments about the film (which received more attention after they appeared on the IMDB yesterday -- Story). Here's what Joe has to say about that particular subject:
      "Regarding the negative comments by Bill Macy, you have to keep in mind the incredible hardships the cast went through during the making of this film. They were in constant discomfort in rain, mud, cold night exteriors, and dangerous stunts, many of which were performed by the actors themselves. They had to work in close proximity to animatronic creatures that had a combined force of over 1300 horsepower, and that were frighteningly susceptible to errant radio waves. They had to be harnessed and hung from cables, sometimes upside down. They were dropped fifty feet into icy water. They were bruised, scraped, cut, knocked down and submerged under water in a closed cage. Conditions like this can wear anyone's patience to the breaking point and I think Bill was simply letting off a little steam, deservedly so. The entire cast was consistently professional under extremely difficult conditions. Not one member of the cast ever said, "I can't do another take". More often than not, they volunteered another take, in order to improve the scene. As for the snail's pace of production, Bill may be exaggerating a little. We went a very few days over schedule, due mostly to weather and unforeseen technical problems. Under the circumstances, I'm very happy with where we ended up, schedule-wise. The cast and crew made a truly heroic effort to bring the picture in on time and to make it something to be proud of, and I am. The movie is scary, funny, intense, moving, startling and contains just the right amount of barely-controlled chaos. As they say, you'll have to pay for the entire seat, but you'll only need the edge.

      Hope you like it."

    I didn't want Joe to get off that easy, so I prodded him for some more info, which he also graciously provided. I first asked about Macy's comment that nine different writers had worked on the script, a suggestion that Joe denied outright:
      "There was a total of five over a period of 18 months. Two of the writers wrote material that was abandoned in favor of better ideas, so in reality only three writers (although one of the "writers" is a writing team so I guess you could say four) contributed to the version that was actually shot. I've been on movies where many more than that were involved. Given the arbitration process with the writer's guild, anything could happen regarding screen credit."
    About the trailer, and whether or not we'll see it in this decade, Johnston added some info.. Apparently a trailer was recently shown at Sho West in Las Vegas (Update: More info on this trailer below), though it may not be the same one we'll see in theaters:
      "I hear the trailer at Show West in Las Vegas played extremely well. The theatrical trailer will probably be based on that with new ILM material as it becomes available. ILM is doing incredible work, by the way. We've been blown away here in the cutting room."
    Speaking of ILM, I also asked about the amount of CGI vs. Animatronics that are being used in the film. With the hype surrounding Winston's gigantic animatronic Spino, many of us (myself included) have been a little concerned that ILM's effects will be used sparingly:
      "The rule of thumb is...use the animatronic when you can for tight shots but when you really have to see the dino wide, or when it needs to run or do some kind of movement that the animatronic can't handle, then go for the CG. The animatronic is more cost-effective because once you've paid for it the shots only involve the cost of production. CG shots are priced on duration and complexity. And they ain't cheap."
    Finally, I couldn't help ask about rumors of JP4 which have been floating around (the other day someone emailed me saying he heard from a friend of a friend who knew Joe Johnston said that he'd be working on JP4). "This is crazy talk at this point, right?" I asked Joe:
      "Totally crazy, but I know how this particular rumor got started. Steven and I were discussing an idea for the fourth one and I said, (with heavy sarcasm) 'I can't wait to get started on that'. I guess whoever overheard me didn't pick up on my tone."
    Joe also dropped me some info on some the characters we'll see in JP3, matching up some names with actors: "Taylor Nichols plays Mark Degler, Ellie's husband. Sarah Danielle Madison plays Cheryl Logan, a student digsite volunteer. The characters of Finch, Susan, 'military hero', and Simone are leftovers from a previous obsolete draft. Trevor Morgan's character is Eric Kirby."
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    JP3 Trailer Description
    Speaking of the trailer shown at Sho West, one of Harry's spies over at AICN sent in a report of what they saw in Las Vegas this weekend. Good news: They liked what they saw!

      "Of course, I've saved the best for last. At the party, Universal unveiled the Jurassic Park III trailer. I think everyone can relax. This movie looks great, and the trailer doesn't seem to give too much away. From what I can gather, returning Sam Neil and a rescue crew are forced to crash land their airplane on an island. While there, they encounter a new batch of prehistoric creatures. The catch is that these dinosaurs seem to be far more intelligent then the scientists seem to give them credit for. At the end of the trailer, we see Sam Neil and Tea Leoni standing in a strange looking (Spoilers!) fortress, staring around in awe. At one point, Neil says something to the effect of; "This looks to be some kind of birdcage." to which Leoni replys; "A birdcage for what?" With this, a loud shriek eminates from behind our fearless heros. This movie looks like a lot of fun and far edgier and action oriented than The Lost World. With a great cast (including William H. Macy) and a new director (October Sky's Joe Johnston), this film should put some fire into the franchise."
    Sounds awesome, though judging from what Joe said above, it may change before the rest of us get to see it in theaters... The big question, I guess, is still WHEN? (Thanks Patrick and 'KC')
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    Footage from JP3 on BBC?
    UK Jurassic Park fans -- be on the look-out for the kids program "NEWSROUND", according to 'natalie', who heard that the show is planning on showing an "exclusive behind the scenes footage from ILM's current movies" (including JP3) tomorrow at 5:25pm GMT on BBC1. [Update: Looks like this one was a bust, 'robbert' reports that they only said mentioned it briefly, no footage.]

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