LARA CROFT - TOMB RAIDER
A Paramount Pictures release 

review by Joseph B. Mauceri

SYNOPSIS: TOMB RAIDER, Lara Croft, is on a mission to stop the Illuminati from finding two halves of an ancient artifact that will allow them to control time.

REVIEW: Just about the only good thing I can say about TOMB RAIDER is that Angelina Jolie has the hustle and the muscle, not to mention the accent, to potentially create the female counterpart to Indiana Jones. The key word here is potential, because the film lacks the caliber of vision and depth of storytelling ability of Spielberg and Lucas.

Right from the beginning you get the feeling of how much TOMB RAIDER is going to suck and that's sad because you can see just how good Jolie is. The production design on the opening sequence smacks of a set up, and it is. It looks more like a poor museum diorama then a film set. The rest of the fantastical sets lack the grand scale or sense of location found in even lesser adventure films such as "The Phantom" or "The Rocketeer." Overall, the digital visual effects in TOMB RAIDER once again prove that just because you can do something digitally you should.  Many of them would have been more effective had they been done the physical Ray Harryhausen way (you are sorely missed Ray). There is no grandeur, no mystery, no menace. Oh, and no story.

It seems that the filmmakers are operating under the premise that there are enough people out there who have played the games, are therefore familiar with the character, and so they don't have to worry about creating much of a background story. Or in other words, they're not interested in attracting a new audience. With so little to the story it really leaves hardly anything for the characters to talk about. TOMB RAIDER could easily win an award for the least amount of dialogue in a feature film, which was previously held by "Driven." The only saving grace is that with so little dialogue there aren't any cliched lines, just stereotype characters.

At the helm of TOMB RAIDER is director Simon West, who's previous films include "The General's Daughter" and "Con Air." Given the nature of RAIDER and "Con Air," one can quickly see what a difference a good producer makes. Unlike his work under the watchful eye of producer Jerry Bruchheimer, West's action sequences are repetitive and flat. Instead of mixing things up, the camera is often more in love with Mrs. Thor...  Jolie then it providing her with challenging opponents. Most of these "guys" -- why wasn't there at least a female henchwoman minor villain? -- are just faceless foes for her to off. If Lara takes out a massive killer machine in the opening sequence, then what chance does a bunch of mercenaries have?  Oh, like "The Mummy Returns," there are these big battle sequences -- explosions, bullets flying -- where there is an unseen body count and not even the faintest trace of blood. I remember when in a "PG-13" film a shaman priest could tear the beating heart out of a man.

At the screening I attend the studio attempted to stack the odds in favor of the house by turning over seats to more of the general public then the media. It is an idea that back fired. The atmosphere was generally upbeat at the opening, but there were boos and hissing by the credits. Can you blame them? When you figure that at night out for two to the flicks, with all the trimmings, is going to run you about $40.00, that's the average cost of a new Lara Croft game. The film is about two hours, where as the game is hours of game play, plenty of story, action, effects and music. So unless they can come up with a sequel that offers more then Ms. Jolie, perhaps TOMB RAIDER should be left to the playstations and personal computers instead of the marquee.

OFFICIAL WEB SITE:
http://www.tombraidermovie.com

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