Ever since Steven Spielberg adapted Michael Criction’s iconic novel, Jurassic Park has remained the template for the dinosaur genre in film, with everything else either parodying or homaging the 1993 Oscar winner. Amidst the crowd, there have been a variety of movies with their tongues planted firmly in their cheeks, which Mike Capes and Johnny Wickham’s The Invisible Raptor aims to be, and yet the seemingly self-aware feature finds itself way too bogged down by its underwhelming script.
Capes, who co-wrote the script, also leads The Invisible Raptor as Dr. Grant Walker, a paleontologist who returns to his small town after making a discovery related to velociraptors sometime before the events of the film. However, he’s only offered work as the presenter at a dinosaur-themed amusement park. Shortly after being reunited with the love he left behind to go to college, Walker and hapless security guard Deniel “Denny” Denielson learn that the string of disappearances and bizarre events happening in their town is from that of a raptor, though in their hunt they also learn that it’s invisible.
The Movie Can’t Find Its Tonal Rhythm
Between An Overlong Runtime & Imbalanced Atmosphere, The Invisible Raptor Fails To Captivate
With a name like The Invisible Raptor, one would think that the movie would know exactly what it’s going for and stick to that. This would include the movie’s tone, as the self-aware nature of the title suggests it’s strictly going for a combination of a comedic slant and as inventive of kills as possible. While the movie certainly strives to be plenty funny, the problem is it’s largely not through the titular dinosaur, but instead through its characters.
The fact I checked where I was in the movie at multiple points is a true indicator of just how poorly paced and overlong it is.
This character-driven approach further proves an issue for the movie’s tonal balance when Capes and Wickham start attempting to add sincere drama for their characters, none of which lands all that well. Walker’s desire to break free of his small-town roots comes off as rote and underdeveloped, but it’s Denny’s desire to prove himself as a potential protector of the area that proves the worst of the bunch. It’s not only a character arc we’ve seen in countless movies, but the delivery of his so-called traumatic backstory is neither funny for its absurdity, nor dramatic enough to be heartbreaking.
This tonal imbalance also feels like it largely stems from the film being far too long. In comparison to most modern movies, a nearly two-hour runtime certainly sounds more reasonable, but for a concept like the one that drives The Invisible Raptor forward, it risks overstaying its welcome by trying to make things as much about the characters as the titular monster. The fact I checked where I was in the movie at multiple points is a true indicator of just how poorly paced and overlong it is.
The Script Is Also Woefully Unfunny & Devoid Of Logic
Jokes Seen Coming A Mile Away & Bad Puns Can’t Even Overcome A Shut-Down Brain
Despite it being a “comedy”, the script rarely lands any jokes effectively across its runtime. As previously noted, a title like The Invisible Raptor invites us to turn off our brains and not think too critically about what goes on, and yet even that approach fails to make any of the jokes land as well as the filmmakers hope. One of the main reasons for this is that the setup for the jokes takes longer than the punchline, and, as such, can be seen coming a mile away.
It’s a bit in which clearly the writer thought they were doing something clever, but ultimately comes off as unfunny.
Arguably one of the best examples of this is the raptor-creating corporation being called Tyler Corp after its founder Steven Tyler. Even the broadest of music fans will recognize the Aerosmith lead singer’s name and wonder why they settled on that for the character, ultimately resulting in a conversation in which Denny, frustrated by the raptor’s rampage and learning one of the scientists that created it named it “Chance”, exclaims “F–k Chance the raptor, f–k Tyler the creator, and f–k Aerosmith“. It’s a bit the writer clearly thought was clever but ultimately comes off as unfunny.
This lack of extra thought doesn’t just extend to the movie’s comedy, since much of The Invisible Raptor‘s plot progression is about as braindead. Every time a character does something that could be deemed intelligent, they quickly go backward on it with choices that don’t add up. It results in some drastic consequences, namely multiple deaths. Other story decisions are bizarrely devoid of thought, like the raptor wandering into a room full of partiers, but starts off by killing the DJ in the middle of the room rather than any of the others it passes on the way to her.
The Effects Look Good For An Indie Production
It Might Be The Only Thing The Movie Has Going For It
Despite its lackluster writing, the one thing that could be commended is the movie’s visual effects which, for an indie production, are actually solid. While the dinosaur’s invisible nature allows the filmmakers to not need a Jurassic Park-level budget to create the monster, director Mike Hermosa still finds creative ways to deliver plenty of grisly kills that also play on the invisibility of the dinosaur in creative enough ways to showcase a good mix of practical and visual effects. But this is not nearly enough to help carry it beyond its unfunny script and overlong runtime to make for an entertaining ride.
The Invisible Raptor is now in theaters. The film is 115 minutes long and rated R for bloody violence and gore, crude sexual material, drug use and brief graphic nudity.
- The visual effects are solid for an indie movie.
- The concept is unique.
- A few jokes land well.
- The majority of the script is unfunny.
- The movie progresses at a really sluggish pace.
- There’s a real tonal imbalance that keeps the movie from feeling thoroughly silly enough.