Date: Fri 26-Feb-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Quick Words:

T-Rex-IMAX-Horton-Maritime

Full Text:

The Dinosaurs Are Back! And On The Biggest Screen Yet

(with cuts)

NORWALK -- Visitors to The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk can, until June 17,

travel back in time 65 million years for larger-than-life encounters with

Tyrannosaurus rex and other dinosaurs in T-Rex: Back to the Cretaceous , now

showing in the state's only IMAX theatre.

Through the magic of computer technology, the thrilling film brings dinosaurs

to life with groundbreaking detail, unparalleled realism and the awesome size

that is unique to the IMAX experience. The New York Daily News has said the

hulking star of T-Rex "...makes its menacing counterpart in Jurassic Park look

like Barney."

Dinosaurs are very much alive -- at least in the mind of Ally Hayden (newcomer

Liz Stauber). But the closest she has come to them in her world is in seeing

the dinosaur bone skeletons and artists' renderings in the museum where her

father, the world famous paleontologist Dr Donald Hayden (Peter Horton), has

his headquarters.

Like her father, Ally is fascinated by the way modern science and the study of

dinosaur bones can lead to uncovering the mysteries of what dinosaurs were

really like: what they looked like, how they moved, how and what they ate and

how they raised their young.

When Dr Hayden and his assistant Elizabeth (Kari Coleman) bring his latest

discovery back to the museum, Ally is excited that the oblong-shaped fossil

rock might be an as-yet-undiscovered Tyrannosaurus-rex egg.

Ally finds herself alone in the museum one night, waiting for her father to

return, when an accident in the museum lab sets her on an adventure in which

her present world begins to meld with the deep past. As she wanders into the

museum, the bones of the T-rex skeleton suddenly appear to grow skin and

muscle, and the extinct creature lunges to life.

When Ally retreats, she is hurtled through time, backward to the terrain and

territory of dinosaurs that are bigger than her imagination. Finding herself

in a strangely lush environment, Ally is awestruck by a herd of thirsty

Hadrosaurs drinking at a glacial lake. Continuing to explore, Ally thinks she

has found her way back to the modern day museum when suddenly Deinonychus

dinosaurs in a painting by Charles Knight (Tuck Milligan) jump to life. But

this time, the famous 1920s-era dinosaur illustrator himself appears in front

of Ally and she gets and easel-side audience with Mr Knight, and the

opportunity to ask and see how he created his imaginative renderings.

Ally's works shifts again, and she finds herself in the early 1910s on a

paleontology exploration with Barnum Brown (Laurie Murdoch), the most famous

bone hunter in history. Before the adventure is fully over, Ally will find

herself millions of years in the past and face-to-face with a real, live

Tyrannosaurus rex .

"The idea of putting dinosaurs on the IMAX screen was a natural," says

executive producer/co-writer Andrew Gellis. "And the opportunity to create a

45-minute story, bringing photo-realistic dinosaurs to life with IMAX was

irresistible. Audiences have affirmed that they love the way IMAX films take

them to places they would never get to on their own, and the Cretaceous period

of 65 million years ago certainly fits the bill."

T-Rex also incorporates the latest scientific knowledge, provided by the

world-renowned paleontologist Dr Philip Currie, about the creatures who roamed

the earth more than 65 million years ago.

"Our approach to the dinosaurs in this film is to make them as real as

possible," noted Charis Horton, who produced the film along with her partner

Antoine Compin. "This is the first large-format film to dare to incorporate 21

years of computer-generated imagery effects so extensively throughout the

film," said Mr Compin.

"Going back to the Cretaceous period is a really mystical experience," said

director Brett Leonard. "This is not about dinosaurs being scary or tearing

you to pieces. This is about using the IMAX experience to take [viewers] back

to see how these incredibly majestic and fierce animals lived during a time

that is almost impossible for us to imagine."

Screenings are at 11 am and 1 and 2 pm daily. Additional shows are offered at

4 pm on weekends.