by Michael Barry

Created on: March 30, 2007   Last Updated: May 09, 2007

DEVICES USED TO GENERATE EXPECTATION IN "JURASSIC PARK"

Audience expectation is the name of the game for mainstream movie-makers. The more a film-maker can involve an audience and have it waiting expectantly for the outcome, not just of the story itself but of a myriad of smaller points en route through the story, then the greater success he wili have with the film. "Jurasslc Park" has been an immensely successful film exactly because of its success in generating audience expectation. Let's see how it achieves this.

1. In the opening sequence of the film, a presumed audience preconception that the film is about dinosaurs is effectively played on by an extended series of shots depicting a massive (unseen) beast crashing through the jungle towards us. The surprise is that it is a man-driven fork-lift truck The beast itself, a dinosaur, is in a cage being transported.

2. The first scene in whicli we meet Dr Grant (Sam O'Neill) and Dr Sapper (Laura Dern) generates a detailed description of the velociraptor. Audience sophistication is such today that we just know we are going to meet this lovely little creature later (and sure enough we do). This device of setting up an expectation is strong enough to produce one that lasts perhaps an hour of film time or more before being satisfied.

3. A small example of expectation generation can be seen in the Costa Rica scene where there is more visual space given to Dodson's bag than to its carrier, as he walks from the taxi to the cafe table. We know of course that the contents are significant, even though we don't know what they are. Our curiosity is soon allayed: the bag contains a large amount of money and a clever smuggling device.

4. A major example of very skilful expectation generation is the sequence leading up to the first shot of brontosauruses. Thls is extended almost to the point of anti-climax, as one after the other the passengers in the vehicle turn, see, rise and stare in wonderment at the unseen creatures. Even when everyone's eyes are popping out of their heads and we are desperate to see what they are looking at, Dr Sapper (Dern) is still happily chattering on reading something aloud. But no-one tells her to shut up and look. They are too dumbstruck to do so. Dr Grant physically has to turn her head towards the beasts before she registers them. Even then, we have to wait for her to rise very slowly to her feet before at last we get to see them too.

5. Amongst these examples we have to include a slightly different

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