Two months ago I decided to take a break from blogging on my Dutch site. I did this for various reasons and have not returned writing and it has given me a lot of time to spend on other things which aren’t movie related, including gaming. If you’ve been reading this blog for a longer time you might know I’ve been gaming since Pong machines, but during the last couple of years I didn’t play as much anymore. With my newly found “extra time” though I decided to play some games I had bought and once started (probably something like three years ago).
One of them was 2013’s Tomb Raider, an very good looking game which was a reboot for the franchise. It made the character a more realistic person, both physically and in her reactions to what she was going through. She was very vulnerable. The game quickly got me hooked and I finished it within two weeks and found out there was a sequel available (Rise of the Tomb Raider), which I immediately ordered. It was even better and I finished that yesterday. Wanting to head to the cinema I asked my oldest daughter pick out a movie she wanted to see, which happened to be Tomb Raider. With both games really fresh in my mind I was interested in seeing if it would follow the same storyline and portray the character in a similar way.
Although the story is based on the 2013 game, it differs vastly. Lara (played by Alicia Vikander) is getting by delivering food by bike. Even though she can inherit a big fortune from her father (who has been missing for seven years), she isn’t willing to sign forms to declare him dead. She discovers clues which might help her uncover what happened to him and decides to head to a remote island. It turns out she isn’t alone though and she has to survive, trying to solve puzzles while staying out of the hands of the bad guys.
Which might sound close to the game, but the writers have made significant changes with the goal of adding more personal moments. The end result is a movie where Lara mostly isn’t alone as much and traversing hazardous environments. She mostly is around other people, something I have mixed feelings about. It definitely adds something, but at the same time gives the film a bit of a different vibe. In the game there are horrendous moments, fights with animals and supernatural forces, which the movie lacks. It does make that up with a lot of fun action moments which make sure the film never loses steam. Vikander is great for the role and is believable as the young girl who is just starting her tomb raiding career. I wouldn’t mind a sequel (which it sets up), but nowadays you never know if that will happen. At least if it doesn’t, you will be able to play the game to find out more…
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