Blockbuster Architecture: From Jurassic Park to Millennium Park

This study examines the pursuit of virtuosity, which culminates in the current practice of architecture with the intention to leave the spectator in a state of wonder at the skill and technical mastery that lies behind its construction. Focusing on Hollywood science-fiction films, it compares the special effects of the cinematic spectacles and technological advances displayed in the architecture of the late twentieth- and early twenty-first centuries. It argues that both produce work that aims to leave the spectator mesmerized in the methods used to construct these spectacles. As is discussed below, they strategically confront viewers with a technological tour de force.