Talking to investors, an executive of Jurassic World says that regular dinosaurs used to be entertainment enough, but they’ve lost their wow factor. To boost profits they’ve introduced a new dinosaur, named “Indominus Rex”. A lower-level worker wearing a Jurassic Park t-shirt complains that the original dinosaurs were cooler.

This seems like a conversation that could have occurred at Universal Pictures about this movie, but it’s actually a conversation in the movie itself: the executive, Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard), runs the park and has developed the dangerous hybrid dinosaur to increase revenue. The point of this meta-commentary becomes clear once sexy, rugged dinosaur trainer Owen (Chris Pratt) appears on the scene. Unlike the managers, he treats the dinosaurs as living things instead of mere investments, and through him, the movie suggests it is paying attention to what makes these adventures fun: creating meaningful relationships with its characters and creatures.

In some ways the movie succeeds. With stellar CGI, a sweeping score, fun performances and gripping, deliberately paced action scenes, Jurassic World is a star attraction. If you see this movie in a packed cinema with a group of like-minded filmgoers you will almost certainly have a good time – one of my friends, wearing his Jurassic Park t-shirt, literally squealed in joy during the climactic action scene.

So why only three stars? Well, Jurassic World is just not as clever as it thinks it is. The references to how heartless the main monster is does not change the fact that the Indominus Rex is not particularly interesting as an antagonist – frequent references to it being a hybrid of many different species never truly pays off. It never feels like more than a very big dinosaur. The film also makes winking allusions to corporate sponsorship – Claire proclaims, “Verizon Wireless presents the Indominus Rex!” – but this doesn’t make the intrusive product placement from Coca-Cola to Mercedes any less off-putting.

The most aggravating issue with the movie for me is the lack of character development. Several actors elevate the roles they are given, but ultimately the cast feels like a checklist. Vincent D’Onofrio for example plays the cocky military man who wants to use the velociraptors as weapons. You can probably guess what happens to him. The obligatory romance, between Owen and Claire, comes from the school of thought that says that putting two characters of the opposite sex in close proximity, having them stare at each other, and allude in passing to a past failed relationship is enough to make them a sizzling onscreen couple.

Chris Pratt has in the past shown he can mix heroism with humour. But here he is surprisingly straight-faced, staring everything down with a seriousness that feels like a missed opportunity. He rides his motorcycle alongside a pack of velociraptors without the hint of a smile. That’s not to say he’s not perfectly workable as a gruff leading man, but it seems akin to getting your hands on a versatile, high-end computer, only to use it as a doorstop. It may do the job just fine, but it feels like a waste of potential.

That sums up Jurassic World – it does its job just fine, but it feels like something is missing. They put all the bones of the original back together and jolt it into movement, but it never truly comes to life.