‘Tomb Raider’ manages to be both a faithful adaptation and a wildly entertaining movie

Posted on March 23, 2018

By MARK VIOLA

I’m sure you’ve heard it before, since I tend to harp about it, but there seems to be a curse in Hollywood when it comes to adapting video games for the big screen. Sure, there have been some enjoyable ones over the years, like the original “Mortal Kombat” film as well as 2001’s “Tomb Raider,” and even 2016’s “Warcraft,” but those are definitely in the minority, with many more failed attempts littering the cinematic landscape, such as the ill-conceived disaster that was “Assassin’s Creed.”

In 2013, the latest (at that time) “Tomb Raider” video game rebooted that franchise, so it’s not a surprise that we now have a new “Tomb Raider” movie, rebooting the short-lived film franchise starring Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft in 2001 and 2003. Like the video game, this is a bit grittier and more realistic (but not too much), while giving us a younger, less experienced Lara — played by Alicia Vikander (“Ex Machina”) — who hasn’t yet begun raiding tombs.

The result is not a film that definitively breaks the curse or delivers a mind-blowing experience that will be remembered for years to come, but it does offer solid popcorn entertainment for its two-hour run time, which is not only what I expected from a “Tomb Raider” movie, but also what I wanted. This film is, simply put, a lot of fun.

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