Tomb Raider: Anniversary was one of Angelina Jolie’s first big roles and the action-packed film thrust her into near-blandry land and branded her as a powerful lady capable of tackling tough dude films. It was a huge success and Jolie, in her first non-topscore film, had an eight-year-long career. She would go on to star in four more films. Let’s look at them.
First up is Tomb Raider: Anniversary, a follow-up on the successful horror filmials of Tomb Raider. Now with a new chapter, Angelina Jolie returns as Tomb Raider. The heroine this time is the daughter from a wealthy family living in Los Angeles. When her best friend is killed, she assumes the role of protector and seeks out her own personal guru, a man who can help her find her long lost father.
Tomb Raider Anniversary follows the plot of the first video game, and while it picks up shortly after the events of the second game, we get to revisit the ‘protector’ duties once again. The story revolves around the evil plans of a group of scientists who are trying to make a video game out of cloning. This means that instead of just being an ordinary gamer, Angelina must now play the role of the savior of mankind. If you like Tomb Raider then you’ll love Anniversary, as it includes some of the cut scenes from the first game.
Tomb Raider: After Rise 3 is the third installment of the Tomb Raider saga. Angelina Jolie plays the role of the heroine. This time, we see that with the help of a mysterious video game (not this one, though) she’s able to save the world instead of just her own life. The storyline is the same as that of the first game, but this version adds a few interesting twists. Tomb Raider: After Rise stars Angelina Jolie as the lead character, along with Dylan O’Brien and Ki Hong Lee, and Dexter Darden.
While it isn’t necessary to actually know anything about the first Tomb Raider game before watching the sequel, most people who played the original know how difficult and cerebral the first game was. Fortunately, Tomb Raider: After Rise manages to maintain the interest of fans of the original while still managing to be enjoyable for a modern fan. The reason why is because the film follows the well-known science fiction tale that’s been told many times over. For someone who grew up reading science fiction, it’s easy to understand why this type of movie would become such a hit.
A good example of this is that Tomb Raider started as something that all kids were talking about. The first movie involved a team of researchers that were searching for a mythical metal called “The orb”. They needed it to activate an energy portal that would take them to safety, but unfortunately, they weren’t able to find it in time. The team was left stranded on an unknown planet, without any means of travel, due to this failure. They had to rely upon others for survival until help arrived because of their limited resources.
Although the main story line of the film revolved around a science fiction adventure, the lead character of Angelina Jolie certainly didn’t let that rule out of her mind when casting her movie role. Despite having small roles in previous science fiction flicks, Angelina Jolie seemed like she was completely prepared for her role in the first Tomb raider video game. It may have just been a small role, but to someone who was unaware of the role ahead of time, it seemed like she was a perfect fit. Angelina Jolie, who has a history and relationship with Tomb Raiders before this film, was the perfect choice for Lara Croft.
The film did not do Tomb Raider any favors for its story, and this is probably why Angelina Jolie was ultimately cast to play the lead role. However, the film did do her a world of good as she was able to channel her anger and frustration from the film into one of the best acting performances of her career. Although the movie failed at the box office, it did rake in an incredible amount of revenue thanks to excellent marketing and ticket sales. In the end, it can be said that Angelina Jolie delivers another great performance as the foul-tempered and slightly annoying tomb raider.