Lego Jurassic World: The Indominus Escape

Movie review by Brian Costello, Common Sense Media
Lego Jurassic World: The Indominus Escape Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 7+

An unnecessary, extended commercial for Lego toys.

NR 2016 24 minutes
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Parents say

age 4+

Based on 8 reviews

Kids say

age 6+

Based on 4 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Lego Jurassic World: The Indominus Escape is a short 2016 movie in which a gigantic genetically-engineered dinosaur has an insatiable craving for hot dogs. Essentially, this is one extended commercial for the Lego brand; parents wary of consumerism masquerading as children's entertainment will find much to dislike in this one. There is some cartoonish violence -- one of the characters falls out of his helicopter and is passed around from fierce-looking pterodactyl to pterodactyl by their jaws. Many of the dinosaurs look scary enough to cause nightmares for younger and more sensitive viewers. Also, the silly bathroom humor will most likely not fly with anyone but the youngest kids, and even that is questionable.

Community Reviews

Homer3334
Homer3334 Adult
August 17, 2020
age 3+

Dinosaurs and Lego - everything a little boy likes

Consumerism is a given with lego films, the very existence of them is an advert - so that aside, the film is funny to my boys, mildly suspenceful and with some peril. Mostly though, my 3 and 5 year olds love the different types of dinosaurs, humour and action... its about right for them. They usually have trouble with the scary elements of some films (the good dinosaur is way to much for them) - But this is fine and 22 minutes long fits their attention span pretty well.
Heather M.
Heather M. Adult
February 29, 2020
age 4+
See all 8 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In LEGO JURASSIC WORLD: THE INDOMINUS ESCAPE, Simon Masrani, not the best at flying his helicopter, rips the roof off of the aviary of Jurassic World, thus freeing all the flying dinosaurs contained inside and leaving Jurassic World without a new attraction. He leaves it up to park manager Claire to find a way to solve the problem. Claire goes to Dr. Wu (B.D. Wong) to see if he can come up with anything in his lab. Together, they create the Indominus rex: a monstrous creature with an unexpected and insatiable appetite for hot dogs. But when the hot dogs run out in its pen, the Indominus rex escapes, angry and still hungry for hot dogs. It's up to the intrepid and daring Owen Grady to try and stop the Indominus rex, but as he and Claire start to learn, stopping it will be more difficult than they thought.

Is It Any Good?

This movie is an extended ad for Lego as well as the Jurassic franchise. Unlike the Star Wars and Batman Lego movies, where there was at least some goofy humor to somewhat counterbalance the bitter taste of marketing to kids disguised as children's entertainment, the humor in Lego Jurassic World: The Indominus Escape is too lowbrow for anyone but young kids to enjoy, and even they might not think it's all that funny. The end result is sillier versions of the original Jurassic characters in Lego form trying to stop a dinosaur with an insatiable appetite for hot dogs.

Perhaps the best thing to be said about this is that it's not very long. It might also provide an opportunity for parents concerned about some of the debatable ways in which toy manufacturers (among other industries) market their products directly to young kids to begin a discussion with their kids about this issue. Regardless, for parents wary of this kind of marketing, this short movie is one to avoid.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about children's programming centered on toys and other kid-related merchandise, like ego Jurassic World: The Indominus Escape. Why do you think toy companies release movies like these?

  • Do you see a problem with toy manufacturers producing entertainment for kids that also prominently features the products they sell? Why or why not?

  • What are some of the ways in which this movie attempted to parody, or imitate in a funny way, the original Jurassic Park movies?

Movie Details

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