Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park is a novel written by Michael Crichton and published in 1991, which was later adapted as a movie directed by Steven Spielberg. Written as a cautionary tale on unconsidered biological tinkering (in much the same spirit as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein), it explores the consequences of an attempt to re-create certain species of dinosaur to serve as amusement park attractions.

Discrepancies

A fair amount of the discrepancy between the book and the movie lies in which characters die. In addition, the characters themselves are altered.

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Ian Malcom, as he appears in the book, is a rather sardonic but brilliant man who couldn't truly appreciate the accuracy of his failure theories because he is badly injured and immobilised by a dinosaur attack. Malcolm's vitriolic monologues are toned down for the film.

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Grant's relationship with Ellie Sattler in the book was purely professional, whereas in the film they are involved romantically.

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The character of John Hammond is distinctly different - in the book he ultimately dies at the jaws of small dinosaurs ("compys") while trying to climb a hill to his bungalow with a broken ankle, with plans to rebuild somewhere else, and irritation at his guests and grandchildren. In the movie, he escapes completely unharmed, humbled and awed by the monstrosity he created.

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Canon Issues

There are key differences between the novels, movies, games, and comics in the Jurassic Park series. The differences are in not only the architectual layout of the island, but also in the dinosaurs, dates, and even the characters used. The status of what would be considered canon vary on which area is being looked at in the entire Jurassic Park franchise. For example, if one were to look at the movies as the official canon source then only the events seen in the three films would be considered movie canon; however, if one were strictly looking at the novels as the official source then only the novels would be considered canon. The video games, specifically the Trespasser (game), would not be considered movie canon or novel canon due to the fact that there are multiple contradictions in the game between the movies and the novels. One such example of a contradiction is the Isla Sorna map pictured in the Trespasser game being different from the Isla Sorna map pictured in ' as well the map that appears in the novel, which also differs from the movie map as it is! The comics illustrate Isla Nublar with an undetermined amount of dinosaurs and also even bring Robert Muldoon back to life in them the events are never aknowledged in the movies though in the slightest. The conclusion that can be drawn from this is that the novels, games, comics, and movies should be considered to be in their own individual canon and cannot be combined with each other.

Related Topics:
Canon - Franchise - Trespasser (game) - Isla Sorna - Isla Nublar

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Original ending

Originally, the movie was to end with the T. rex skeleton (in the Visitor Center) falling onto the raptors before they attack Alan Grant, Tim, Lex, and Ellie Sattler. Hammond arrives and is then able to gun down the raptors with a shotgun. Later when the original ending was seen as too simple of a resolution, the skeleton was replaced with a living T. rex that attacks the raptors, saving Grant and the others. This ending also eliminates the shooting of the raptors which is why the brief scene in which the shotgun is left in another room is included. In both versions, they quickly flee with Hammond in his jeep to the helicopter and escape the island.

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Dinosaurs Featured

These are dinosaurs confirmed to be on Isla Nublar in the movies:

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• Brachiosaurus
• Dilophosaurus
• Gallimimus
• Triceratops
• Tyrannosaurus
• Velociraptor
• Parasaurolophus
• Metriacanthosaurus (Seen on tour map)
• Proceratosaurus (Seen on embryo tubes and tour map)
• Herrerasaurus (Seen on tour map)
• Stegosaurus (Seen on embryo tubes)
• Baryonyx (Seen on tour map)
• Segisaurus (Seen on tour map)
• Pteranodon (Suggested to be on Isla Nublar from mural in ')
• Compsognathus (Suggested to be on Isla Nublar from JP: The Exhibit in 1995)

Dinosaurs confirmed to be on Isla Nublar in the novels

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• Tyrannosaurus
• Velociraptor
• Dilophosaurus
• Apatosaurus
• Hadrosaurus
• Maiasaura
• Stegosaurus
• Triceratops
• Procompsognathus
• Styracosaurus
• Hypsilophodon
• Othnielia
• Euoplocephalus
• Microceratops
• Cearadactylus
• A species of Coelurosaurus was to be announced