I'll be honest with you. I am a Spielberg groupie.

I like the fact that his heroes usually look like real people who are neither classic nor Hollywood beauties. I like his grand style. I like his messages. And I love his ingenuity. However, I never could get into blood and guts.

But I watched Jurassic Park on video with my kids and hey, how could I miss The Lost World?

So my youngest son, who was seven years old at the time, agreed to accompany me. (When my husband takes the younger kids to the movies he drops them off, finds a nearby coffee house and reads history books while they're engrossed in the large screen and popcorn. Me, I'll even volunteer to take the neighbor's kids just to watch good children's films.)

In a nutshell, if you liked Jurassic Park, you'll love The Lost World. And if you watched The Lost World before seeing Jurassic Park, seeing Jurassic Park afterwards is like having a hot dog for desert when the entr?e has been steak. Unless of course you're a classicist who prefers the originals to the I, II and III versions.

And if you're not into blood and guts, you won't be crazy about either of them. On the other hand, if you like special effects, this is the way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

The Lost World is about a slightly eccentric venture capitalist named John Hammond, whose scientists engineer a method to re-create dinosaurs from elements of DNA that were discovered in pieces of amber. With them as the main drawing card, he builds a theme park in Costa Rica.

But something goes wrong in the process. The dinosaurs escape and the park has to be closed. Everyone - Hammond's company, the Costa Rican government - are busy fleeing from liability. The scientists involved in the project want to fine out what really happened and want the truth to come out but they have been sworn to secrecy. Nevertheless, they try to find a way…

(Philosophical questions are raised in this paragraph; skip ahead if you're not into it.)

The fact that people die, even some good people, in both these movies, which are marketed to children, may show a swing in public opinion about what is appropriate for children. Even children'adventure movies that end "happily ever after" include some gory deaths.

Controversy over this issue erupted over The Lion King also (in which some good animals died). Perhaps there has been a change and more and more violence and death is being shown in children's films because film mirrors the real world. Kids are no longer protected from reality like they once were, so critics who see nothing wrong with violence in film (here the perpetrators are some overgrown lizards with long necks) figure, If they can watch it on TV and read about it in the papers, they can see in on the big screen.

Morals and Messages

The moral of the story of The Lost World, like the moral of Jurassic Park, has to do with the dangers of humans tampering with nature, with people sacrificing themselves to save others, with perseverance, with bravery, with teamwork, with ingenuity, with friendship and with love.

What can I say? These are all good messages.

When it got kind of hair-raising, near the end, I kept covering the eyes of my seven-year-old so he wouldn't be scarred for life. He kept pushing my hand away. Finally I admitted that what I really needed was for him to hold it. He was a true gentleman and helped me get through the rest of the film with emotional support from a loved one.

I asked him to contribute to this review. He said, "I liked it because I liked looking at the dinosaurs."

So much for messages.