A bit of this and that, here and there

Lara the Croft

The first 15-20 minutes of the movie, we explore more about Lara herself. She practices martial arts which explains her excellent physique and strength (which is very useful further down in the movie). She is rebellious, fearless but smart. She has a huge inheritance, but decides to become a bike courier instead.

Lara’s father, Richard Croft, was an established businessman. But he was missing 7 years ago and Lara still has a hard time to admit that he is gone. When her father’s lawyer gives her a puzzle from Richard’s will, she discovers a clue about her father’s secret “hobby”. Here she uncovers the legend of Himiko and where her father might be.

Here, the movie manages to enhance the game. The game starts straight away in the boat scene, without revealing much about Lara’s personality and family background (to be explored more in the 2015 game). The movie, then, presents a stronger motivation for Lara to go through all the adversity in finding Himiko and Yamatai Island.

Lu Ren who?

Pic from: https://otakugame.fr/rise-of-the-tomb-raider-encore-une-fournee-dartworks-inedits/

Lara flies to Hongkong to find a drunk captain named Lu Ren (which according to my Chinese speaking friends means: passerby). Lu Ren was never part of the game and he proves himself to be a mere passerby in the movie by not contributing much to the overall story (except allowing Tomb Raider movie to be screened in China). Compared this to more than seven crews that sailed with Lara in the game, who add a lot of support and emotional roller coaster for Lara throughout her struggle in the island. This brings me to…

The (Not So) Mysterious Island

Pic from: http://lara-croft-tomb-raider.wikia.com/wiki/Yamatai

Nothing much, really. The island is pictured to be in the Devil’s sea. However, it seems like they are only struck with bad luck because a storm attacks their boat and strands them on the island. There is nothing mysterious, no supernatural storm, no old creepy castles or mysterious storm guards. It’s just a plain small island out of nowhere with forest and caves.

The island itself is never explored. Well, it’s impossible to compress all that 12+ hour from the game into a mere 2-hour movie. But surely, they can take some mysterious elements of it.

Here Comes the Boring Villain

Pic from: http://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Walton_Goggins

Mathias Vogel appears and presents himself as an evil corporate slave who was working for a giant evil organization named Trinity trying to steal Himiko’s secret power to be used as super weapon (Really? Must everything about super weapon?). He is stupid, use a lot of brute power to solve issues, relies a lot on his mercenaries, pro-slavery and then carelessly kills the slaves whenever he likes. A typical bad guy in movies that is pure evil and everyone totally hates him.

The Mathias in the game, however, shows a more complex personality. Yes, he is as brutal, but he has a deeper reason to do so. He was stranded in the island, long before Lara and he was trying to get out the island but he couldn’t because of the supernatural storm. He had tried many ways and probably gone mad, resorting to sacrificing Sam to Himiko to escape the island. He is as desperate as Lara to survive and he is just doing what he knows to endure.

Dad? You’re alive?

Pic from: https://archaeologyoftombraider.com/2018/01/06/six-things-we-learned-from-total-films-tomb-raider-exclusive-preview/

It seems too good to be true. After 7 years living alone in the island, hiding from Mathias and his mercenaries, almost loses his mind, Lara finds him alive and well.

However, Richard is super consumed with the Himiko legend that he keeps on blabbering about Himiko even though he just met his dearly beloved daughter after 7 years. Should he be more worried about Lara? “Why is she in the island in the first place?” “What happened to her with all the injuries?” Doesn’t he want to spend as much time with his daughter? Doesn't he regret leaving Lara behind and would do anything in the world is to get back to her? Nope. He's just all about Himiko and saving the world. Not my ideal father type.

Run, Jump, and Shoot

Pic from: https://blog.dolby.com/2013/03/designing-sound-for-tomb-raider/

There are a lot of action scenes in the movie and I love how the actions follow the theme of the game. Jumping cliff to cliff, climbing old rusty plane, falling off old rusty plane with parachute, stabbed on the right abs, the climbing axe and the bow and arrow. Sadly, there are not many archery and axe scenes, albeit these are the iconic Lara's weapons. Instead, she fights and kills mostly with her wrestling moves. Lara also misses the opportunity to shoot and explode some barrels, a typical Lara Croft’s move.

Does It Fit Here?

Pic from: http://tombraiders.net/stella/walks/TRAwalk/details/sanctuary10.html

The Himiko tomb is presented as a cave, instead of a castle. The cave, however, is equipped with many cave traps and pattern style puzzle. Take the collapsing floor trap. Here Lara and the group must find the corresponding pieces to display certain color to stop the trap and open the door. How does the trap work? Where would the light source be if the person did not accidentally cross the door before activating the trap? What does the colored light shine onto? What did the trap creator think when he designed the cave?? Well, this sounds ridiculous but might be a closer reference to the older games puzzles.

The 2013 game includes puzzle as well, but more realistic. The puzzles are more about finding way. In ruined caves/temples, how can Lara get to the top floor to collect the treasure?

My Lady Himiko

The legend says that Himiko is a full evil. The game had Himiko tries to move her soul to Sam so that she can live forever; a very supernatural event at the end of the game. The movie, on the other hand, proves that Himiko is not bad or supernatural at all. The legend says that she is evil but actually a savior who sacrificed herself in order not to spread a deadly disease by isolating herself inside a tomb in a mysterious island. This is a very interesting plot twist, a revelation that explains something supernatural and makes it logical. But somehow Richard didn't know it or refused to reveal the secret and does not seem to be surprised. Neither do Mathias.

Sequel?

Pic from: http://villains.wikia.com/wiki/Ana_Miller

The story ends with Richard sacrificing himself, Lara kills Mathias and run from a collapsing cave. Greeted by Lu Ren who was waiting and did nothing the whole time, they escape the island easily using a helicopter (Can all the slaves fit inside the helicopter?). Not a single turbulence.

She is back to her father’s office, signs off her father's will and uncovers another secret that her father's most trusted staff is maybe the person behind Trinity this whole time. This will be the plot for the sequel (if any), like the Rise of the Tomb Raider game launched in 2015.

Last word

Pic from: http://comicbook.com/gaming/2018/03/20/tomb-raider-film-worldwide-box-office-draw-alicia-vikander/

As a movie it is decent. It is enjoyable and good for casual viewers who don't know about Lara Croft. But as someone who enjoyed the game, the movie does not live to my expectations.

The movie fails to capture Lara’s character growth. In the game, we can see Lara learning to survive in the island. She started as an apprentice, learning to heal herself, uncovering the secrets of the island and the legend, gathering useful items from the forest, crafting, learning to shoot, and keep growing her mental and survival skills until she comes out a warrior.

The movie does not include many of the memorable scenes and angles from the game and they even changed the whole plot! It toned down the brutality, avoiding blood and dead bodies. Worse, they removed the Endurance crew and introduce Lu Ren and Richard??