Someday someone may do an affectionate documentary retro (if it hasn't happened already) of "mockbusters," the digital-video-era phenomenon of quickie, low-budget genre films that aspire to grab a few dollars by being cheeky, obvious copies of more illustrious properties. In the mockbuster realm, anything goes; one might almost admire Jurassic Island director Dominic Ellis maintaining a straight face as he blends two fantastic-flick regulars, Michael-Crichton-style CGI dinosaurs...and zombies.
Heroine Ava (Sarah T. Cohen) is searching for her missing "archaeologist" father (do you imagine the writers actually didn't know the difference between an archaeologist and a paleontologist, or figured viewers did not care?). She and some fellow adventurers venture—via a very nice-looking sailboat, maybe the most expensive thing in the picture—to his last known location: an uncharted island where dangerous dinosaurs still dwell.
The viewer already knows the island's most insidious menace is a leechlike parasite. Its bite infects humans and turns them into pasty, blank-eyed, drooling maniacs of the 28 Days Later variety. Between zombies and hungry dinosaurs, the casualties mount.
By mockbuster standards, Jurassic Island is not the worst of its ilk. Acting by an unrecognizable (UK) cast is serviceable. There is no sex or nudity, and gore is unrealistic enough to be laughed at. Indeed, the CGI budget apparently did not cover the animated dinosaurs (superimposed on Dover Beach-looking scenery) being able to interact with the human actors to much extent, so devouring remains out of lens range. Zombie stuff is a bit more intense. And it is over quickly enough.
Maybe there's a very slight vibe of the seagoing terror tales of William Hope Hodgson, but remember, we said maybe. The real question is whether the derivative low-grade material merits collection space, purely as a horror/curio/sub-cult item, or if mainstream buyers would be wiser just to spend more on extra copies in the Jurassic Park franchise itself. Optional for public library shelves.
Discover more titles with our list of adventure movies.