Tomb Raider: Her Adventure Returns

Release Date:  March 16, 2018
Running Time: 1 hour and 58 minutes
Rated PG-13
Grade B–

You shouldn’t have come here but I’m glad that you did.

Lara Croft mourns her father’s disappearance seven years.  She works as a bicycle courier and trains at a martial arts gym, even though she can’t afford the monthly dues.

Ironically, a business empire awaits Lara if she will only sign documents stating that her father, Lord Richard Croft, is deceased.  After a brush with the law and encouragement from her father’s business partner, Ana Miller, Lara agrees to meet and sign the documents.  Before she can look at the documents, Mr. Yaffe hands her a puzzle box which she swiftly solves.  The contents of the box lead her to her father’s secret office, where she discovers information about this last destination.

Despite a recorded video warning from her father, Lara and her backpack leave London to find Lu Ren, a boat captain in Hong Kong, who is mentioned in correspondence between him and her father.  Her adventure leads her on a dangerous voyage through the Devil’s Seat to the Island of Yamatai.

Once there, she meets Mathias Vogel, her father’s nemesis and rival archeologist. She learns that Vogel has been stranded on the island since the disappearance of her father and is determined to open tomb of the mythical Queen of Yamatai.  Danger is around every corner as Lara liberates herself from Vogel’s capture and tries to keep him from releasing a dangerous power that threatens all of mankind.  Will Lara prove that she is her father’s daughter or not that kind of Croft?

“You taught me to never give up”

Warner Brother’s Tomb Raider is a nice reboot to a film franchise created on the 1996 action-adventure video game created by a British gaming company Core Design. The screenplay is from a story by Evan Daugherty and Robertson-Dworet based on the 2013 video game of the same name.

Norwegian film director Roar Uthaug does an excellent job in his first major release.  The cinematography by George Richmond (Snow White and the Huntsman and Kingsman: The Secret Service) is well outstanding.  Tomb Raider was filmed using Arri Alexa XT Plus cameras known for high dynamic range, excellent color separation and sharp, natural images.

 “Sacrificing one life is worth saving millions”

The film stars Academy Award Winner Alicia Vikander who scored an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for The Danish Girl.  She also starred in Ex Machina and The Man from U.N.C.L.E.  Vikander reminds us that she has the grit and determination to film the perilous action scenes. She is supported by a fantastic cast, including Walton Goggins (Mathias Vogel) known for his roles in Justified and The Hateful Eight and the talented Daniel Wu (Lu Ren) has been in several supporting roles, but none of them have catapulted him to a leading role.  I really hope to see more of Wu in the future.

Tomb Raider is an adventurous film with plenty of action, harrowing moments and intrigue.  I enjoyed the puzzles and plot twists and the film vaguely reminded me of the Raiders of the Lost Ark. Make plans to watch Lara’s legend this spring break with friends and family.  ~ A.S. MacLeod

Directed by: Roar Uthaug
Screenplay by: Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Alastair Siddons
Starring:
Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft
Dominic West as Lord Richard Croft
Walton Goggins as Mathias Vogel
Daniel Wu as Lu Ren
Kristin Scott Thomas as Ana Miller
Derek Jacobi as Mr. Yaffe
Nick Frost as Max