Any movie centred around an archaeologist who eschews the tried and tested method of uncovering artefacts by spending 16 hours a day on their knees in the baking sun armed with a small brush and trowel, instead opting for booby-trapped pyramids and pistols, is going to find itself measured against the Indiana Jones films. It would take some feat to be better than Ford's bull-whip wielding hero but if anyone is going to mount a challenge then you would struggle to find a better candidate than Lara Croft.
After 5 PlayStation outings and ridiculous media coverage she is now a definitive icon of our generation and has a huge fanbase guaranteed to watch the movie. Unfortunately, while it is not as bad as it could have been in light of other recent game conversions, it is nowhere near as good as Indy. The basic story is the same as a Jones adventure, as expected there is a historic artefact up for grabs and our heroine is up against a rival explorer who doesn't just want to put it on display in his local museum but instead intends an altogether more nefarious purpose. In this case it is in two parts, which when combined give the owner the power to go back in time and change history.
It's amazing to think that at least six people were required to come up with this script - apparently three wrote it, director Simon West adapted it and then two more people produced the screenplay. But the plot is as straightforward and predictable as they come and seriously lacks any humour (hearing British people say rude words is not really comedy), while there is a gaping flaw in that Lara could have just destroyed the first half of the triangle and ended the film halfway through. Some characters seem entirely unnecessary (such as Lara's techno-wiz friend) and other plot points are left unexplained: why do the little girls appear to Lara, and why does she have premonitious dreams - is she supposed to be psychic?
If not, then it must be one of the few skills she is lacking, which is another problem with Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - you never really think Lara is going to lose. After she has taken out an entire team of heavily armed mercenaries any chance of failure is forgotten, especially when her adversary is clearly nowhere near her league (even though anyone who has played the games will know she can die all too easily!). Indy you always rooted for because he was human, he got beaten up, captured or scared by snakes and was constantly bumbling his way through. Lara just kicks ass.
Which is the film's saving grace, as at times when you forget about the plot and things gel it can be perfectly enjoyable. The action scenes are handled nicely, although the rest is sloppily directed by Simon West, with poor pacing resulting in too many scenes cut short or inserted merely to hurry the story along. I couldn't help thinking that John Woo would have been a better choice if action was the emphasis, after all the motorbike stunts and double handed gunplay are just stolen from his catalogue of films... plus his use of slow-motion would have let us appreciate Jolie to the fullest.
Because it really is Angelina Jolie's palpable attitude which is the main attraction here. She is nigh on perfect as Lara, even down to the accent and is rivetingly full of wicked grins, knowing winks and sultry stares; much has been made of her padded bras and fine figure but these quickly take a back seat to her sheer screen presence. Once more she is above and beyond the material and without her this film would be a disaster. As it is the signs are there that a sequel would be possible if some serious creases were ironed out of the franchise. |
