It has been three years since the end of the first Jurassic World trilogy, a reinvention of one of the most beloved franchises of all time, complete with a new cast and angle. And, while it started out with best intentions, it has become a laughing stock for the franchise. Unfortunately Jurassic World Rebirth hasn’t improved the series’ reputation.

On yet another secret Caribbean island, within further hidden laboratories, dinosaurs were experimented on, created, tortured, and more. 17 years later, Zora Bennett (played by Scarlett Johansson) is hired by mangy pharmaceutical representative Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend) to acquire three unique samples from the island, Ile Saint-Hubert, and potentially make a lot of money along the way. This somewhat fresh take on the Jurassic Park/World series is a far cry from its previous outings, and it makes that clear to viewers early doors.

Within minutes of its opening scenes, Jurassic World Rebirth establishes that the events of the previous trilogy have been tucked away. Dinosaurs are no longer a threat – except for around the equator where it’s warmest.

With this plot hook, Jurassic World Rebirth does well to entice its viewers with new ideas, but unfortunately audiences will wish the franchise stayed fossilised.

Teamed up with a particularly bland Jonathan Bailey as Dr Henry Loomis, Johansson leads a team of mercaneries to acquire these samples while also trying to figure out how to do “what is right”.

Throw in a shipwrecked father and his daughters (and painfully Gen-Z boyfriend) and the entire Jurassic Park formula is more or less in place. So then, why doesn’t it work?

The answer is: a few reasons.

Sadly, the Marvel star struggles to give a performance that matches up with her back-catalogue. Although, this isn’t her fault. Her somewhat hardened mercenary was plagued by a distinct lack of pathos, encouraging dialogue, stand-out scenes, or even any quippy one-liners. Compared to her heady days as Natasha Romanoff – the Black Widow – in the MCU, this feels simply sad.

She isn’t alone in this issue, though. Abhorrent writing runs through the entire film, as well, while pale imitations of Jurassic Park’s narrative blueprint is pumped into the series’ corpse.

From using loudly-crunched mints as a punchline to 1,000ft tall dinosaurs disappearing in 4ft long grass, Jurassic World Rebirth begs its viewers to suspend their disbelief while the Wizard of Oz yanks his levers and tinkers with his machinations in full view.

Although Jurassic World: Rebirth is a complete mess, it does have its moments.

There are plenty of dinosaurs throughout the adventure. Some are more tooth-baring than others, but the variety is there, and any viewer could find a thrill.

The standouts were the velociraptors and the T-Rex. Instead of being peppered throughout the film, these tentpole creatures – which were the main standouts in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 epic Jurassic Park – were used sparingly. As a result, they featured in the best parts of the film, with stakes, joy, and that Jurassic je ne sais quoi.

Sadly, these moments are all too short. And before long, viewers are catapulted back into a facility’s underground network, that is connected to the ocean, which was brought to its knees by a Snickers wrapper (no, really).

Between mind-numbing character decisions and a T-Rex-style plodding plot, this is one of the weaker Jurassic entries. It is simply saved from being at the bottom of the barrel because Jurassic World Dominion exists.

It’s not one I’ll ever watch again. And I’ll likely never eat another Snickers again.

Jurassic World Rebirth arrives in cinemas on July 2.