I Had A Jolie Good Time (Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (DVD))

Name: lisa2062

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Product:	Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (DVD)
Date:	11/06/06 (165 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Plenty of action to keep you entertained, good acting, and a great mix of special features.

Disadvantages: Jolie's English accent isn't always spot on.

Having been a fan of the Tomb raider computer games since their release, I was excited about seeing Lara Croft's character being transformed into a real life character on the big screen!
Having thoroughly enjoyed Angelina Jolie's first big screen outing as Lara croft, I was eager to see if the sequel could live up to it!
The critics gave it a very poor review but this didn't deter me from purchasing the DVD on the day of its release, and I certainly wasn't disappointed.

Plot

Lara Croft ( Angelina Jolie) returns in her second feature outing, and this time is on a round the world mission to recover Pandora's Box before it is found by a maniacal scientist ( Ciaran Hinds) who plans to use it for mass annihilation!
For this mission she recruits former lover Terry Sheridan (Gerard Butler), a mercenary who has previously betrayed the country as well as herself. Terry of course is the right man for the job, but can he be trusted?


My Thoughts on the film

Basically it's not going to win any awards for the most original plot. It has clearly been copied from the Bond films as well as the Indiana Jones films , but instead of having a hero we have a heroine. You do however have the typical evil villain seeking to take over/destroy the world, stunning locations which Lara travels to in her search for the box, and bucket loads of stunt scenes and special effects to hook you in!

What makes this better than the first film for me, is the fact that there is far more action to keep you entertained.
The first film had a few full on action scenes, but kept focusing more on Lara's emotional side with regards to her father dying when she was young. This time round although still focusing on her emotional side, mainly delivers what the computer games did, and that is action.

Paramount commented at the time in response to the critics slashing of this film, stating that they believed the disappointing reviews and sales of the latest Eidos Interactive game featuring Lara Croft, lead to the downfall of this sequel. They believed that as many people disliked the game, it was clouding their judgement over this film.
This I felt was truly unfair as the game wasn't that bad, and seeing as Croft's first outing fared well at the cinema, then this sequel shouldve been given the chance it deserved.


Angelina Jolie makes the perfect Lara Croft, and although at times her English accent drops, generally speaking it's spot on.
She comes across as very natural and displays the characters emotional and more feminine side brilliantly, without being over the top. Again she did many of her own stunts and really looks the part with some stunning figure hugging costumes.

Ciaran Hinds was well chosen as the villain in the film, as he certainly looked the part. Gerard Butler's gives a smouldering performance, and was spot on as Lara's love interest. His character fully matched Lara in terms of brains, and strength and the two characters really bounced off, of each other nicely. His chemistry with Jolie is totally believable and you really do feel like they could be a couple.


The supporting cast certainly didn't let the film down either, and it was nice to see Barrie and Taylor re prize their roles from the previous film. Christopher Barrie as you may or may not know played Rimmer in Red Dwarf, and Gordon Brittas in the Brittas Empire, both being repeated on Sky at the moment. I thought his transition from small screen, to big screen was truly remarkable and he certainly didn't look out of place in a big budget film with A list actors.

The whole film was beautifully shot, and the locations used in the film were just stunning. The film was shot in Greece, China and Africa to name but a few, and I felt that the true beauty of these countries was well captured. This ultimately became stunning backdrops to the ongoing adventures of Miss Croft.


Full marks must also go to the special effects team who created some mind blowing scenes. One scene in particular impressed me, and that was an underwater scene where Lara takes on a shark. Unlike the jaws films where it was so obvious that the shark wasn't real, the one in this film would certainly have you fooled, to me it looked unnervingly real. Other jaw dropping moments are the usual hand to hand battles and amazing blazing shoot outs, which again are well shot and seem very real.

Director Jan De Bont takes the reigns from the first film's Director, Simon West with exceptional ease. Fans of both the Speed films and Twister will know what to expect from this man.
It's fast past, with plenty of action to keep you entertained throughout. Also on board the team were some of technical assistants firm the Bond films, and they did a terrific job supplying some razor sharp gadgets that the Bond films are famous for.

The soundtrack that accompanies the film was perfectly chosen.
Featuring the likes of Kasbian and the Dandy Warhols to add more drama to the action scenes without being too overpowering and drowning out the scenes.


Special features

While watching the film you have the option to turn on the commentary by Director Jan De Bont!
This is better done after you have watched the film for the first time as it can become a bit annoying after a while. Very interesting though, as the director talks us through the scenes and how they were made!

There is the usual deleted scenes and alternate ending with optional commentary from the director. Basically scenes that were considered too long and got cut for the final take! I didn't find them all that interesting as they weren't all that different from the ones in the film, and so were a waste of disc space.

There is a featurettes section containing the training that was involved for the action sequences. The vehicles and weapons that were used and how they were adapted for a particular scene. As well as the stunts, visual effects and scoring!
Well worth a look in my eyes if you want to know a little more about how the film came together!

There are two music videos by Korn and The Davey Brothers to watch, both containing scenes from the film.

As an added bonus you can put the DVD in your computers DVD drive and find out more about the myths and legends behind ' The Cradle of Life' as well as information on the cast and crew, exclusive video on location, interviews and various downloads such as wallpapers and screen savers!
I found the myths and legends section very informative, as they gave detailed knowledge for those of us interested in that area.


The DVD itself is well presented with the picture vibrant and crisp in colour, and a clear sound presented in Dolby Digital. The menu is set out clearly and easy to navigate and comes with the choice of various subtitles, English/hearing impaired, Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian and Swedish.


Summary

So as you can see, I totally disagree with the many critics on this one who slated it. I thought it was a well written and directed Action/Adventure film, with amazing special effects and locations, with a leading lady who has plenty of bottle and kicks ass! I Would recommend this film, to fans of the first film as well as fans of James bond and Indiana Jones. With eye candy for both the the boys and girls, this film should not be missed.
The extras were above average, so I would definitely recommend purchasing this on DVD.

This film is rated as being an:-

Action/adventure film
Cert 12 - contains moderate action violence and fantasy horror.
With a running time of 113 mins approx!
Released in 2003

Retails for around £5 at Amazon

Summary: Spectacular action scenes and special effects to keep you fully entertained.