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Movie Review
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life
By Gareth Von Kallenbach Published July 24, 2003
US Release: July 25, 2003
Directed by: Jan de Bont
Starring: Angelina Jolie , Gerard Butler , Chris Barrie
PG-13
Running Time: 118 minutes
Domestic Box Office: $65,654,000
Directed by: Jan de Bont
Starring: Angelina Jolie , Gerard Butler , Chris Barrie
PG-13
Running Time: 118 minutes
Domestic Box Office: $65,654,000
C
Badly in need of a pulse
Following on the success of "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider," star Angelina Jolie is back in the new adventure "Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life."
Jolie plays the title character ? a wealthy English heiress who travels the globe in search of treasure and adventure. Following an earthquake in Greece, Lara uncovers a long lost tomb of treasure and is attacked by members of a crime syndicate who take the mysterious globe she has uncovered, leaving her companions dead in the process.
It is learned that the globe is the key to the mysterious Cradle of Life where the legendary Pandora?s Box is set to reside. Legend tells of civilizations being destroyed should the box be opened, with an evil arms dealer Reiss (Ciaran Hinds) specializing in selling genetic weapons to the highest bidder, and will think of selling the box to the highest bidder. Needing to locate the gang who stole the globe, Lara enlists the help of an old flame named Gerrard (Terry Butler) who has been imprisoned after a life of crime despite his training in the intelligence community.
What follows is a series of action sequences that take the duo to locales such as Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Africa as they attempt to recover the globe and unlocking its secrets. The first half of the film has some nice moments and Jolie is perfectly cast as the polished yet deadly Croft; she speaks with an upper class tongue but is just as deadly with her quips as she is with all manners of weapons.
What does the film in is the final part of the film ? the finale was not all that interesting, as plot points were resolved in a very perfunctory manner. I allow a lot of logic gaps in action films, but a shark in very warm Mediterranean waters who growls and can be stopped with a single punch came across as very laughable for all the wrong reasons.
Some of the action is good but it suffers from a weak setup. Director Jan De Bont is no stranger to action having "Speed," "Lethal Weapon 3," and "Twister" as just a few of the films. He has been involved, but the script does not allow the characters to grow and does not set up the action scenes to the point where the audience is gripped. While better than the first film, "Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life" is badly in need of a pulse.
Jolie plays the title character ? a wealthy English heiress who travels the globe in search of treasure and adventure. Following an earthquake in Greece, Lara uncovers a long lost tomb of treasure and is attacked by members of a crime syndicate who take the mysterious globe she has uncovered, leaving her companions dead in the process.
It is learned that the globe is the key to the mysterious Cradle of Life where the legendary Pandora?s Box is set to reside. Legend tells of civilizations being destroyed should the box be opened, with an evil arms dealer Reiss (Ciaran Hinds) specializing in selling genetic weapons to the highest bidder, and will think of selling the box to the highest bidder. Needing to locate the gang who stole the globe, Lara enlists the help of an old flame named Gerrard (Terry Butler) who has been imprisoned after a life of crime despite his training in the intelligence community.
What follows is a series of action sequences that take the duo to locales such as Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Africa as they attempt to recover the globe and unlocking its secrets. The first half of the film has some nice moments and Jolie is perfectly cast as the polished yet deadly Croft; she speaks with an upper class tongue but is just as deadly with her quips as she is with all manners of weapons.
What does the film in is the final part of the film ? the finale was not all that interesting, as plot points were resolved in a very perfunctory manner. I allow a lot of logic gaps in action films, but a shark in very warm Mediterranean waters who growls and can be stopped with a single punch came across as very laughable for all the wrong reasons.
Some of the action is good but it suffers from a weak setup. Director Jan De Bont is no stranger to action having "Speed," "Lethal Weapon 3," and "Twister" as just a few of the films. He has been involved, but the script does not allow the characters to grow and does not set up the action scenes to the point where the audience is gripped. While better than the first film, "Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life" is badly in need of a pulse.
Gareth's Grade: C
Gareth's Overall Grading: 50 graded movies
| A | 6.0% | |
| B | 44.0% | |
| C | 40.0% | |
| D | 10.0% | |
| F | 0.0% |
'Tomb Raider 2' Articles
- Lee's review C-
August 2, 2003 An action/adventure flick that is lacking both action and adventure -- Lee Tistaert
