This is the one... this is the movie that will break the curse of all video game movies being terrible. So it has been said with every new video game film for the past decade or so. The last one that was supposed to be "The One" was Assassin's Creed, and it flopped badly.
This film? Well, I don't think it quite breaks the curse, but it shows there is light at the end of the tunnel.
This is, of course, a reboot/prequel to the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider films starring Angelina Jolie, themselves based on the 90s console games. It was said when the games first came out, and it holds true in this film as well: Lara Croft is basically Indiana Jones.
That's not necessarily a bad thing. After all, both Indy and Lara have a certain amount of charm in their personalities, as well as fulfilling arcs in their first outings (no pun intended for Indy there). In the case of Indy, his arc was going from a cocky and smarmy archaeologist who learns to respect what is beyond him.
In Lara's case, we see her struggling to deal with the disappearance of her father seven years earlier. She is seen as a woman trying to make an existence as far away as possible from the legacy of her name, for in order to embrace her legacy would mean declaring her father dead, so she lives in denial. However, she finds clues that lead to a message from her father that lead her to an island full of danger, both from the past and the present.
First the positives. This film actually has some fun elements to it, but the movie doesn't really hang a light on them in order to get a laugh and move on. The fun and humor feels organic and in service to the story itself, which is full of action and danger.
The action scenes in the beginning feel somewhat contrived, but are more at home once Lara reaches the island. The trailer shot of Lara leaping across the wing of a disintegrating plane wreck on a river is one of the more thrilling.
Also, our film's hero Lara does not seem invincible. She often gets bashed around significantly, and her injuries play into the film as it goes, much like John Wick and how his injuries play into the action later on.
However, that last point leads into some of the flaws with the film. While Lara does show strength in overcoming injuries at times, at other times she barely bats an eye as bullets whiz by or tunnels are disintegrating around her. This back and forth between realism and video game-ness breaks the illusion and can hamper the tension in certain scenes.
The villain too, feels underdeveloped, which is often the case in these films, but mystery is built around a hidden backer of the villain's actions who, once their identity is revealed, left me thinking "Ooookayy..." It really didn't feel earned by the build-up.
Finally, while Alicia Vikander's Lara Croft does grow on you eventually, she spends the majority of the movie in either one of two expressions: screaming and grunting in pain or blank stare. Even in emotional scenes, would it have killed her to muster up a tear or two? It felt like she lacked range, and the early parts of the movie suffer for it.
Overall, though, despite these flaws, I would say definitely go see this film in theaters. Don't make this film a flop too, because it shows genuine potential for video game movies to become better than they have been, and this progress should be encouraged.
Let's hope Rampage doesn't go the other direction.
This film? Well, I don't think it quite breaks the curse, but it shows there is light at the end of the tunnel.
This is, of course, a reboot/prequel to the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider films starring Angelina Jolie, themselves based on the 90s console games. It was said when the games first came out, and it holds true in this film as well: Lara Croft is basically Indiana Jones.
That's not necessarily a bad thing. After all, both Indy and Lara have a certain amount of charm in their personalities, as well as fulfilling arcs in their first outings (no pun intended for Indy there). In the case of Indy, his arc was going from a cocky and smarmy archaeologist who learns to respect what is beyond him.
In Lara's case, we see her struggling to deal with the disappearance of her father seven years earlier. She is seen as a woman trying to make an existence as far away as possible from the legacy of her name, for in order to embrace her legacy would mean declaring her father dead, so she lives in denial. However, she finds clues that lead to a message from her father that lead her to an island full of danger, both from the past and the present.
First the positives. This film actually has some fun elements to it, but the movie doesn't really hang a light on them in order to get a laugh and move on. The fun and humor feels organic and in service to the story itself, which is full of action and danger.
The action scenes in the beginning feel somewhat contrived, but are more at home once Lara reaches the island. The trailer shot of Lara leaping across the wing of a disintegrating plane wreck on a river is one of the more thrilling.
Also, our film's hero Lara does not seem invincible. She often gets bashed around significantly, and her injuries play into the film as it goes, much like John Wick and how his injuries play into the action later on.
However, that last point leads into some of the flaws with the film. While Lara does show strength in overcoming injuries at times, at other times she barely bats an eye as bullets whiz by or tunnels are disintegrating around her. This back and forth between realism and video game-ness breaks the illusion and can hamper the tension in certain scenes.
The villain too, feels underdeveloped, which is often the case in these films, but mystery is built around a hidden backer of the villain's actions who, once their identity is revealed, left me thinking "Ooookayy..." It really didn't feel earned by the build-up.
Finally, while Alicia Vikander's Lara Croft does grow on you eventually, she spends the majority of the movie in either one of two expressions: screaming and grunting in pain or blank stare. Even in emotional scenes, would it have killed her to muster up a tear or two? It felt like she lacked range, and the early parts of the movie suffer for it.
Overall, though, despite these flaws, I would say definitely go see this film in theaters. Don't make this film a flop too, because it shows genuine potential for video game movies to become better than they have been, and this progress should be encouraged.
Let's hope Rampage doesn't go the other direction.