Reboot hits Crofty heights

struggling to focus my gaze on any one element before the shot changed, and changed again. It was physically uncomfortable to watch, which is a shame considering how good some of the choreography is.

The actual tomb-raiding thread of the story is pretty well written, which is a huge relief. It could have just been a contrivance forced into the story in order to earn the title, but the mythology behind the tomb was nicely done, and even the inevitable booby traps made perfect logical sense, given the reason for the catacomb’s creation. As a bonus, it was also pretty damn spooky.

And all the good storytelling work around that ancient Japanese myth pays off nicely with a well-timed twist that also makes perfect logical sense when it happens, slotting in with very satisfying precision.

Sadly there are a few niggling plot holes dotted throughout the story, and the characters occasionally make some very odd choices that appear to exist solely for the purposes of driving the plot into an interesting situation. Again, it all looks great, but the thin spots in the storytelling are a bit jarring.

The producers are clearly setting this up to be an ongoing franchise and I think I’m actually looking forward to it.

As a first chapter, Tomb Raider is a little choppy and clumsy, but it also does a pretty top job of establishing its main character, making sure it is her personal arc that sits at the centre of our attention.

Pretty good, really.

(M) is now showing at Village Cinemas and Cmax. Rating: