FNBE MARCH 2015

1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING & DESIGN
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL & BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Name: Kimberley Fay Bernard Lo
Student ID No.: 0324237
Films Selected: 2012 (Disaster Film) and Jurassic Park III (Adventure Film)
Word Count: 985 words
Subject: English 2 (ELG30605)
Written Assignment 1: Compare-Contrast Essay
Lecturer: Mr. Gopighantan Mylvaganam
Session: Friday (2pm-4pm)
Submission Date: 4th December 2015

2. Prewriting
1st paragraph (intro)
 Details of the essay
o Explanation of the meaning of disaster-adventure movies
o Explanation of the meaning of genre
 The chosen two movies
o Disaster movie – 2012
o Adventure movie – Jurassic Park III
 Brief synopsis about 2012
 Brief synopsis about Jurassic Park III
2nd paragraph
 First similarity between 2012 and J.P III
o Family
3rd paragraph
 Second similarity
o Death
4th paragraph
 Third similarity
o Survival
5th paragraph
 Fourth similarity
o Teamwork
6th paragraph
 What I have learned from writing this essay
 Briefly describe the overall essay

3. A movie genre is defined as a term that categorize movies of different genres. A few
examples of movie genres are disaster, adventure genre, sci-fi, action, historical and many
more. What are disaster movies? What are adventure movies? Well, disaster movies are
movies that consist of disastrous events where the disaster is used as a monumental
spectacular event with the human nature’s struggle against itself is used as the main focus. As
for adventure movies, it is defined as exciting stories that revolves around the conquest and
explorations of a character usually found in exotic places. The disaster movie that I have
chosen is 2012 and the adventure movie I chose is Jurassic Park III. 2012 was directed by
Roland Emmerich and produced by Harold Kloser, Mark Gordon and Larry J. Franco. The
main character of the movie is played by John Cusack potraying a frustrated writer who
struggles to keep his family alive when a series of global catastrophes threatens to annihilate
mankind. It is basically two and a half hours of heaving and cleaving and crashing and
crunching (Pond,2009). While Jurassic Park III is a movie directed by Joe Johnston and
produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Larry Franco. The main character is played by Sam
Neill. It is about an odd couple that convince Dr. Alan Grant to go to Isla Sorna, resulting in
an unexpected landing and unexpected new inhabitants on the island. Jurassic Park III is
cynically amusing, not least when it takes digs at the previous films, and, most surprising of
all, it actually may leave you wanting more (Chattaway, 2001). Thus, I would like to explain
the similarities that I have found between the two movies.
There are many similarities that can be found between 2012 and Jurassic Park III,
first of which are in terms of family. In both movies, main character Jackson Curtis and Dr.
Alan Grant travelled with families in search of safety. In 2012, Jackson Curtis travelled with
his two children alongside several other people to survive the disaster that were happening on
earth. They were to travel to find the 9 arks in the world where they could find safety and
survive the mass destruction that was ongoing. While in Jurassic Park III, Dr. Alan Grant
travels to Isla Sorna alongside the Kirby’s a wealthy family. Isla Sorna is known for having
dinosaurs everywhere. Dr. Alan Grant and The Kirby’s mission was to find the Kirby’s
missing son Eric who travelled there with his friend Ben.
Furthermore, another similarity I have discovered while understanding these two
movies were death. Throughout the movie, Jackson Curtis met a few companions along the
way and seen them died. Likewise with Dr. Alan Grant, a couple of his followers died along
the way too. In 2012, Jackson and his children’s travel towards finding one of the 9 arks with
friends that are alongside them including Sasha a pilot who flew them to China is killed after
trying to save them. Also from this movie, many lives were lost due to the natural disasters
that were happening including mega tsunamis and massive earthquakes. As for Jurassic Park
III, during Dr. Alan Grant and the teams search for Ben and Eric, they encountered a dead
Ben’s body which was decomposing on a tree. Soon after, Dr. Alan Grant and the team were
separated leading to one of them to die being attacked by velociraptors, a type of dinosaur
found on that island.
As for the third similarity that I have found is the ability of the characters in both
movies to survive. Both main characters of each movie, Jackson Curtis and Dr. Alan Grant’s
main role were to survive with the people they were travelling with. They both went through
great extent of survival and near death experience to survive. From the movie 2012, it can
clearly be understood that with all the chaos and havoc happening everywhere because of the

4. end of the world, the characters main point was to survive and find shelter in one of the nine
arks. Same goes with the movie Jurassic Park III, in the movie it is shown that Dr. Alan Grant
and his team’s main purpose was to survive the Island that are filled with carnivorous
dinosaurs while looking for Eric and Ben, and get back home to shelter.
The last similarity that I have found while comparing these two movies is the
teamwork between everyone. Since Jackson Curtis and Dr. Alan Grant’s main idea was to
survive, having a stable teamwork was the best option in hopes of survival. In 2012, it is
portrayed that Jackson and his family met many different people along the way, they all
worked together to help each other to safety. Showing that as disaster stroke, everyone are to
work together no matter of different culture. Similarly to Jurassic Park III, Dr. Alan Grant
and the Kirby’s worked together to save each other in the island as soon as they were
attacked by the carnivorous dinosaurs that were roaming around the island. This shows that
helping each other out is the best key to survival.
As a conclusion, after writing this essay I have compared and contrasted a bit of
both movies in term of their similarity. The info research that I have found from both movies
concludes how giving up is not the key if survival is what you seek. Both main characters of
each movie shows great dedication to viewers that in life teamwork is the only option we
have as we encounter difficult situation in life no matter what race or country you are. It gives
me great happiness that I could see the dedication in Jackson Curtis and Dr. Alan Grant’s to
make sure everyone that they have met and are with them are safe, even with the dangerous
situations that they encountered along the way. Lastly, I believe that with the hard work that
is put in helping each other will all be rewarded at the end of the day although they may be
mishaps along the way but I know that after every bad situation, good things will arise.

5. Reference
Chattaway, P.T. (2001). Review: Jurassic Park III (dir. Joe Johnston, 2001)
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/filmchat/2001/07/review-jurassic-park-iii-dir-joe-johnston-
2001.html
Jurassic Park III (2001) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0163025/
Pond, N. (2009). Movie Reviews “2012”
http://www.wilsoncountynews.com/article.php?id=25402&n=movie-reviews-2012
2012 (2009) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1190080/