Watch Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - The Cradle of Life For Free

Wonderful character development!

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Whoever said "Angelina Jolie IS Lara Croft" should simply delete that review and stick to video games rather than movie reviews. Because Angelina Jolie pretty much used those movies to show off her body and make morons think she's invincible. Alicia Vikander is so much better in the role. Not to mention the whole 2018 recreate blows the original out of the water. It's actually a movie you can watch without shaking your head every thirty seconds. She rides a bicycle. Shes not a show off with all her ridiculous modes of fantasy transportation.

Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003): Dir: Jan De Bont / Cast: Angelina Jolie, Gerard Butler, Noah Taylor, Ciaran Hinds, Djimon Hounsou: About as much fun as being thrown down a flight of stairs and landing in a huge pile of nails. What is the cradle of life? It sounds like an episode of Rugrats. This is yet another Hollywood excuse to show off special effects while intelligence is neglected. Laura Croft kicks the crap out of villains in search for an orb and Pandora's Box. It winds down to Croft being sent on a mission and beating people up…and beating up more people…and beating up even more people. It all ends when there is no one left to beat up. She decides to surprise us and shoot her last victim. One of Jan De Bont's worst films and that is quite the achievement to create something that is even worse than Speed 2: Cruise Control. He also directed the original Speed as well as the remake of The Haunting. Angelina Jolie is reciting something that wasn't good the first time around, let alone worthy of a sequel. She looks the part but acting is far from her biggest concern with this film. The production values rapidly become the entire film and replace the actors as the film's real star. Gerard Butler, Ciaran Hinds, Djimon Hounsou, and Noah Taylor appear in what amounts to nothing. Pointless encore of stupidity that should crushed in a vise. Score: 1 / 10

To its credit, (the awkwardly-named) "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - Cradle of Life" sets out to put some zip in the franchise's step. The direction's more assured, Angelina Jolie labors to liven up her character's personality, and the story cuts right to the globe-hopping (minimal languishing at Croft Manor). But it still suffers from Awful Villain syndrome, and it's . . . well it's kinda dumb. But at least there's some energy to this thing, and there's also Ms. Jolie in quite the pleasing swimsuit. Also, she punches a shark. It's still not a great movie, nor does it do anything for the "video game movies suck" reputation, but parts of this can be kinda fun in a goofy way.5/10

One of the most popular characters in video gaming lore returns to the big screen! I've always wanted to like the first Tomb Raider film, and it does have its moments, but something about it always threw me off. I blame it on its indulgence in style over substance, with its chopped-up action scenes, choppy narrative, and one too many surreal scenes. As it is with any sequel, I expected improvements. Even though both films were poorly received by critics, I do believe that the second Tomb Raider film delivers the solid, straightforward adventure story I always expected.If nothing else, TR:COL cuts to the chase and maintains a clearer narrative than its predecessor. It still has its excesses (do we really need to see Lara doing flips on a jetski?), but the pacing is tight and even throughout. This sequel is still really high on style and action, but it is a smooth and fluid experience; while the first film was rather choppy, this movie is smooth with its camera work and editing, allowing the action to flow and stand well on its own. There are plenty of smashing shoot-out scenes (especially in the Hong Kong scenes), and quite a few impressive stunts. Special effects are used quite liberally, for better or for worse. Overall, the action and style is satisfying.The substance suffers a little, especially since the strengths of the first film are absent. This film keeps the characters one-dimensional. The best that can be said is that they try to develop chemistry, which is meant to resonate stronger by the film's conclusion, and it is partway successful. As far as the plot goes, it's pretty standard adventure fare, but I felt that the quest for Pandora's Box was a fairly interesting subject. The film does suffer from some ridiculous scenes (such as Lara punching a shark...really?!), but for a brainless popcorn flick, I've seen way worse.This film is really smooth and slick, with stylish and solid photography and editing. Acting is not a huge standout, but it's not as cringe-worthy as the first film. Angelina Jolie returns and does her best to bring Lara Croft to life; even though she still only channels the single-dimension action heroine of the late 90s and early 00s, she does a decent job at it. Gerard Butler puts in as much charm as he can, for better or for worse. Everybody else is passable. Writing is average. This production has some great-looking locales, and features some slick sets, props, and costumes. Special effects are fairly pretty to look at, but are often frivolous and still rather fake-looking. Music is cool; the soundtrack features a number of good songs, while Alan Silvestri's score pretty much uses the same melody as The Mummy Returns to strike up the right tone.I personally enjoy this film, because even if it is a shallow run-of-the-mill cash-in, it is a good-looking action-packed one. Really, it's only recommended to die-hard fans.4/5 (Entertainment: Very Good | Story: Average | Film: Pretty Good)