1. Jurassic Park (1993)
Compared to the glossy CGI bloodbaths that would follow in future Jurassic Park/World films, the OG that started all looks almost prehistoric, and that’s what makes it the most gruesome. Without advanced special effects producing swarms of Pteranodons and Quetzalcoatluses or toothy battles between gigantic T-Rexes, Steven Spielberg relied on giving us an unflinching look at the struggle to live. A man being snatched off the toilet and into the jaws of death feels more visceral than one computer generated dinosaur gorging on another. The stakes feel more real. Robert Muldoon (Bob Peck) stealthily being outsmarted by a Velociraptor in the jungle, before conceding the she’s a “clever girl” as his final words, might be the most iconic death in Jurassic Park/World history. In Jurassic Park’s case, less is more: human suspense will always trump CGI theatrics when it comes to blood and gore.
