Lara’s back in the game
TOMB RAIDER
Swedish superstar Alicia Vikander swings into action in this big budget reboot of groundbreaking video game character, Lara Croft. Famously made flesh by fellow Oscar winner Angelina Jolie in 2001 and 2003, Vikander offers a grittier and more punishing interpretation.
This one is based on the 2013 version of the game and explains how Lara becomes a kick-ass, globe-trotting explorer.
So we see how she evolves from an aristocratic cycle courier to a cold-hearted killer, cultural vandal and unrepentant destroyer of antiquities.
The script leans heavily on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, but lacks any interest in protecting or learning about historical artefacts, which apparently do not belong in a museum.
Dominic West cuts an avuncular dash as her father, Lord Croft, who went missing years ago while searching for a legendary Japanese witch queen. He left Lara a secret home video recording as a clue to his whereabouts.
Proudly pig-headed, Lara refuses to use her inherited millions in finding her father, as she’s angry with him for abandoning her to a life of unimaginable privilege as a teenager.
Walton Goggins plays the bad guy who’s a member of the shadowy Trinity organisation and her rival in the search for the queen’s tomb. Despite being set in the here and now, the film’s smartest move is pretending the potentially plot-wrecking internet doesn’t exist.
Smartphones, social media and especially Google maps are absent.
There’s no faulting the location work and the film’s highlight is an impressively staged extended stunt sequence involving an ancient aeroplane and a waterfall.
But there’s a lack of urgency and giddy escapism, plus the dialogue and humour fall as flat as Lara frequently does during her attempted heroics.
This is a long backstory to introduce a new franchise and if you want to see the fully formed pistol-packing version of Lara, you will have to wait around for the sequel.
Cert 12A Running time 118 minutes Despite being set in the here and now, the film’s smartest move is pretending the potentially plotwrecking internet does not exist