Within the last couple weeks, I decided to watch the iconic 1993 classic film "Jurassic Park," as I don't recall having seen it. One line of dialogue, spoken by Jeff Goldblum's character, Dr. Ian Malcom, arguably sums up the entire premise of the film, which entails resurrected dinosaurs gone amok: "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should." The deep irony that I find in this quote, is that a very similar quote could be applied to the very resurrections that seem to be more frequent in Hollywood these days, what with the numerous sequels, remakes and reboots of properties that have been dormant for decades.

Franchises that should have stayed extinct are forcibly brought into the current moment, robbed of the natural cultural environment that existed in their time. An excellent example, ironically, would be 2015's “Jurassic World,” which, in retrospect, seems to be little more than a hollow spectacle compared to the original. Why not make a film that features other aspects of genetics, such as epigenetics? The methodology of CRISPR seems especially ripe with potential. "Life, uh, finds a way;" and I would say the same of quality filmmaking.

Max Ian Engel

East Lyme