Tomb Raider

Something something video game movies. With that out of the way, here's the review:

Based on the 2013 reboot of the popular video game franchise of the same name, Tomb Raider stars Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft. Lara is a young woman who is constantly being told by everyone that she is wasting her potential. Her father has gone missing for about 7 years and ever since then, Lara has struggled to find her purpose and gave up on her bright future and family fortune because she refuses to accept her father's death. 

(Wait a second. Didn't I just watch this movie last week? Actually, this movie does share a very similar plot to last week's big release A Wrinkle in Time. Both featuring female leads whose fathers disappear and lead the main characters to squander all their potential because of their refusal to accept their fathers' deaths. Thankfully, Tomb Raider is a much better movie than last week's. )

After finally realizing that her father wouldn't have wanted Lara to mope around her whole life, Lara decided to finally accept her families fortunes. In doing so, she finds out that her father left behind clues to a secret hidden in their mansion. A secret that will lead Lara to travel to a remote island off the coast of Japan where her father was last seen searching for the tomb of Himiko. On the island, Lara will face challenges that she could have never prepared for and try to uncover the mystery that took her father away from her. 

So this movie was actually pretty good, not great, but pretty good. The best part of the movie is by far Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft, she definitely played the character as good as it could possibly be. Considering the movie is heavily focused on her character, it's very good that she is as great as she always is. Action movies just don't really work when you have a lead that you don't care about and seeing Lara Croft go through all the dangerous scenarios does make it a lot more compelling when you actually care about what happens to her. 

The story that drives the movie is fine and like I said before, very similar to the last movie I watched A Winkle in Time. That's not really any problem, but it is kind of funny and I thought worth mentioning. The story basically follows the main points of the video game and even includes some memorable moments in the video game recreated for the movie, so if you played the 2013 game you'll probably enjoy that like I did. It was never incredibly interesting (the story), but it did enough to keep me watching and never feel bored at all. The action sequences were fun, but nothing groundbreaking that had me in awe or in shock. The story is also mostly predictable, but that doesn't really take away from the fun of following along as it all happens. 

All the action scenes are done really well and fun to watch. There really isn't anything new or groundbreaking here, but that doesn't mean it's not a good time. Some fun chase scenes, shootouts, near-death moments and fighting. Between the moments of exposition and character building, the action helps keep things exciting.

I had a good time watching this movie, there was a lot to like and the flaws didn't keep me from enjoying it. Alicia Vikander was great and the supporting cast was mostly fine. The villain I didn't talk too much about is pretty generic for the most part, not really much information about him is given. The action is fun and the story was good enough to keep my attention throughout. It's a fun movie, one that probably won't be eager to revisit anytime soon. Vikander as Lara Croft definitely elevated this movie and is the main reason to give this one a watch.

Overall Grade: C+