If the film catches on with the general public - and it's loud, wild, and free-wheeling enough that it has the potential to do so - it could be a huge hit. They alone almost guarantee that the movie will be a success. Tomb Raider fans will be salivating over what he has accomplished here. West's history behind the camera isn't sterling (previous credits include the made-for-Bruckheimer Con Air, followed by The General's Daughter), but he seems to be the right man for the job. But the screenplay, coupled with his own vision, convinced him that Tomb Raider could break free of the confines of its humble beginnings. The film's director is Simon West, who initially balked when offered the project because he was leery of the whole computer game concept. With the exception of Sigourney Weaver in the Alien movies and Linda Hamilton in the Terminator duo, the cinematic American action arena belongs to men. The fact that she's a woman makes her more intriguing, because female superheroes are in short supply. There's never a thought that she might be killed she's as invulnerable as Superman when there's no Kryptonite around. She's cool and unflappable, has all sort of neat gadgets, faces danger head-on, and even owns an Aston Martin. It's involving, although not quite exhausting.Įven though Tomb Raider owes a debt to Raiders of the Lost Ark, Lara is more like James Bond than Indiana Jones. This results in a showdown for the ages, with all sorts of special effects and Matrix-inspired action. In their way is Lara Croft, who is acting on written instructions from her dead, beloved father, Lord Croft (Jon Voight, Jolie's real-life dad), to stop them. In their employ is Manfred Powell (Iain Glen), who oozes the kind of charm that only a villain can. If they succeed, they will have control over time. Now, as the nine planets are about to align for the first time in 5000 years, a secret society of Illuminati are trying to find these two hidden pieces and bring them together. A fabled artifact called the Triangle of Light has been broken into two pieces. Who" ("The Key to Time", for anyone who cares). Lara Croft may hail from a video game, but her first movie is all comic book in style and approach. She certainly has as much vitality as Batman or any of the X-Men. We even feel for Lara at times - a sure sign that the character has managed to attain a semblance of life. She's action and sex appeal blended and personified. Sometimes as light as a panther, sometimes as violent as a force of nature, Jolie's Lara jumps, whirls, leaps, dodges, and shoots. And it's an impressive body, to be sure - hard and soft, in all the right places. Jolie does a lot with her stares and her body language. Her name is Angelina Jolie, and she imbues her character with a third dimension that didn't exist on the written page, where Lara Croft is all height and width with no depth. It doesn't take a film critic to ascertain why Tomb Raider works. Of all this summer's mindless blockbusters, this is arguably the most fun - it's certainly a cut above The Mummy Returns. (Although a slightly less hyperactive camera would have been appreciated - are all of those lightning-fast cuts really necessary?) Tomb Raider moves at a fast clip, and represents top notch eye candy. Focus instead upon the action pieces, which are all expertly produced. Don't think too hard about the story - it simply won't stand up. When you consider that Bond movies are not exactly known for their writing, this puts Lara Croft's first cinematic endeavor in perspective. It's like Indiana Jones meets James Bond with a female protagonist and most of the plot siphoned off. It seems likely to achieve a little of both.įor what it is, Tomb Raider does a good job. The intent with Tomb Raider is to change all of that - and, if not to make the computer game-turned-motion picture respectable, at least to make it profitable. Other entries, such as Super Mario Brothers and Wing Commander, have earned the ire of fans and non-aficionados alike for their laughable scripts, plastic characters, and dull action sequences. Only Mortal Kombat has been well enough received to rate a sequel. To date, this small genre has met with disappointing box office returns and an even less enthusiastic critical response. (Then again, when it comes to product placement, you can't get any more obvious.) Unlike nearly every other Hollywood product based on a computer/video game, Tomb Raider seems more like the summer blockbuster that it strives to be than a 90-minute big-screen commercial. A backhanded compliment? To be sure, but at least the experience of sitting in a theater watching this movie doesn't create a longing for the interactivity of actually playing the game. What Tomb Raider can claim is that it's the best computer game-turned-motion picture to date. It's not Casablanca, or even Die Hard, for that matter.
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