Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is a fun and entertaining action-adventure, in the cheesy kind of way that features a charismatic performance from Angelina Jolie who seemed to have been made for the part and some absurd CGI to go along with Daniel Craig’s laughably bad American accent.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
(2001)
Genre(s): Action, Adventure
Paramount | PG13 – 100 min. – $31.99 | February 27, 2018
Date Published: 02/17/2018 | Author: The Movieman
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Note: All screen captures are from the Blu-ray disc.
THE MOVIE — 3.25/5 |
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Plot Summary: Exploring lost empires, finding priceless treasures, punishing villains in mortal combat… it’s all in a day’s work for adventurer Lara Croft (ANGELINA JOLIE). But a secret from her father’s (JON VOIGHT) past is about to lead Lara to her greatest challenge: The Triangle of Light, a legendary artifact with the power to alter space and time. Lara must find the Triangle before it falls into the clutches of the Illuminati, a secret society bent on world domination. To stop the Illuminati, Lara will have to survive a cross-continental chase filled with unimaginable danger against formidable foe Manfred Powell (IAIN GLEN) and an ex-lover and fellow Tomb Raider (DANIEL CRAIG).
Quick Hit Review: Make no mistake, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is not a good movie but I guess if one would grade on a scale and compare it to other video game to film adaptations, it sadly one of the better ones out there with nothing on the horizon that appears all that promising, and that includes the Alicia Vikander Tomb Raider reboot. As for this incarnation, I actually have enjoyed it the now 3-4 times I’ve watched over the years. No, the acting isn’t all that great, though Angelina Jolie embodies the role of Croft rather nicely (mainly physically if you catch my drift) but the action set-pieces were pretty good while the CGI was hit or miss, but adequate for 2001. On the downside, Daniel Craig’s attempted American accent was awful yet hilarious as he strained his lines and Iain Glen as the bad guy was a bit weak but serviceable enough.
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SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.0/5 |
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This release comes with a glossy slip cover and inside a code for the Digital copy. Audio Commentary – Director Simon West sits down for a low key but still informative track talking in-depth on the project and working with the cast. [Also on 4K UHD disc] Featurettes:
All of these are basic behind-the-scenes featurettes with some interviews by members of the crew as well as Angelina Jolie discussing the game and providing a glimpse into how certain scenes were shot. Deleted Scenes (7:18; SD) – Nothing too amazing here and wouldn’t have offered much else, though we do get one scene where Powell, the villain, does kill the old man and the way it shot in the movie, seemed like a more dire consequence for that character. Music Video (4:02; SD) for U2’s “Elevation” (Tomb Raider Mix), a song I still kind of dig. Alternate Main Title (2:06; SD) is a lot slower moving compared with the final version. Rounding things out is the Theatrical Trailer (2:19; HD) and Teaser Trailer (2:03; HD). |
VIDEO – 4.25/5 |
| Lara Croft: Tomb Raider jumps its way onto the 4K Ultra HD format presented with a 2.39 widescreen aspect ratio and given a 2160p resolution transfer. This is a good news, bad news kind of thing here as on the one hand it’s not exactly a stunning looking UHD disc, especially going up against other catalogue titles, and yet it is a solid upgrade over its so-so Blu-ray counterpart. Colors during the daylight scenes are generally bright, skin tones are natural looking and detail in most shots was sharp, though in others were on the softer side. |
AUDIO – 4.25/5 |
| The disc comes with a plethora of audio language options, including the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which isn’t exactly dynamic, yet there is some okay depth outputting clear dialogue levels primarily through the center speaker while the surrounds are relegated for the various action sequences and the LFE does kick in to rattle the floor rather well. |
OVERALL – 3.75/5 |
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Overall, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is a fun and entertaining action-adventure, in the cheesy kind of way that features a charismatic performance from Angelina Jolie who seemed to have been made for the part (both attitude and physicality) and some absurd CGI to go along with Daniel Craig’s laughably bad American accent. This 4K release offers up above average video and audio transfers and the features are adequate enough. |
Check out some more 1080p screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.