Prehistoric Park (2006)

Such a frustrating disappointment

Sadly Over-hyped

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

Yes it is rather silly, but it does have a great concept. I was not expecting another Walking With Dinosaurs, which is one of the best documentaries I have ever watched in my life, but Preehistoric Park is a lot of fun. I really like David Jason, and while he has done better, he does a good job as narrator. Nigel Marvin is also really entertaining, he is very likable and clearly has a lot of enthusiasm for this. As well as being introduced to these wonderful dinosaurs, the special effects I thought were mind blowing, the T Rex especially was exceptionally well done. I also really liked the music. Overall, Prehistoric Park was silly but my sister and I learnt quite a lot and loved it all the same. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Following in the prehistoric footsteps of 'Chased by Dinosaurs', creator/producer Time Haines has brought Nigel Marvin back for a new program, of prehistoric safari. Six episodes, and dozens of new creatures, Prehistoric Park, takes things one step further (or at least it promises to). In the end it takes one step backwards, and here is why.This series is more focused on show than science, and it goes a little over the top, occasionally reaching a level of gimmicky. Nigel Marvin and his team are setting up a Jurrasic Park kind of Facility. Using a time portal, Marvin intends to go back in time to various points in prehistory and return with creatures that are endangered at those time periods. If you are not bothered by the absurdity, you will certainly find the program cute, but it can be equally annoying at times. When Steven Spielberg made Jurassic Park, he claimed that he wanted to show animals, not monsters. Prehistoric Park takes that a step further. The creatures we see are not merely treated like animals, they are treated like pets! From wrestling games with a Triceratops to a Mammoth haircut, I doubt if anyone will find this program as awe inspiring as its 'Walking with' predecessors. What is most annoying however is the decision to throw in a narrator. Totally unnecessary, It ruins the Cinema Verité factor, making the program feel even more artificial.Despite error, Prehistoric Park is entertaining simply because it never takes itself seriously. Even if it doesn't do justice to prehistoric life, it is a feel good, quirky kind of program, that kids as well as adults can enjoy.

So I have read a few reviews, checked out some comments and have decided everyone else is wrong and no not what they talk about. OK, thats a bit much but I'll explain what I mean (And yes, everyone is entitled to their own opinion).First I acknowledge there are problems with the plot - he doesn't explain why he chooses the moment dinosaurs died to first travel back to in order to catch a T-Rex. He does constantly talk about running out of time, yet he can time travel repeatedly, but it doesn't effect my scoring because this show is made for kids.Unlike most dinosaur CGI shows that I have seen Prehistoric Park attempts to show Dinosaurs in a different light - they are not depicted as evil, it isn't all about blood a guts and it has the odd funny moments the whole family will laugh at.In my opinion the CGI was brilliant, I have seen dinosaurs I never even knew existed in this show and, in Australia at least, it was played on a main stream station allowing the educational sections to reach a lot more children then anything on at 6 pm on a weekend on ABC ever will.This show is fun, you feel for the dinosaurs and more importantly they make an effort to show the relation between todays animals and the dinosaurs throughout the ages. If your kid likes giant lizards, they will love this show. This is coming from a person who detests children's programs. It really is entertaining and educational, give it a try!

This program was show here in Australia right before another program "The Truth About Killer Dinosaurs" was show on another channel. The latter actually had serious, interesting stuff to say along with all the pretty CGI, and certainly made this show seem rather insipid. Even after accepting the device of time-travel, this quasi-documentary doesn't hold up high in the credibility stakes. Waist-high wooden fences? Really.Still, for pre-teens, this ought to hold the attention, with the novelty of the palaeontologist dodging the big creatures, and throwing in a sprinkling of prehistoric factoids. Nothing revolutionary, however.