There is perhaps one game franchise that I have continually continued to play throughout it's entirety despite that the quality of the games in the series have been on a steady decline only to rise once or twice every now and then. That franchise is of course Tomb Raider. The series as everyone is undoubtedly aware follows the adventurer Lara Croft as she treks around the world after relics of unimaginable power. Of course along the way there are gunfights, animals in tombs that have no been visited by humans or been home to any other animals in centuries, and people trying to stop her and take the treasures for themselves.
The series since debuting in 1998 has had around nine games I believe, countless novels, a comic that ran for 55 issues, and two feature films starring Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft. Neither of the films turned out to be any good and since then there have been no others. Since the video game series is being rebooted with 2012's highly anticipated Tomb Raider, the films are going to be rebooted and get a fresh start. The series does indeed need a fresh start and I'm very glad that they're going the route of showing us Lara's origin story because I want to be explored again but in a new way like the movie will do.
With this new game, Lara Croft finally is getting the love and attention she deserves. Before, the Tomb raider were nice to look at but played like games from seven years earlier. There was a neat little Trilogy with Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld which all told one pretty good story but all lacked in gameplay. This new one finally starts over and gets rid of the whole giant tomb aspect and the platforming and made it more modern. It seems to be a lot like Lost instead of Indiana Jones and that's got me excited.
Director
For this film I really want somebody who isn't extremely familiar with the series so that we can get a more modern Lara Croft film that at least has some realism in it. That was a problem with the other films-you couldn't believe anything you saw and there were no real characters either. I think the director should really take a lot of inspiration from Square Enix's upcoming reboot because it sets boundaries and creates a Lara Croft that is believe and doesn't insult the the other group of people who play the games-women. I'm not a woman but I don't really like the way she's been portrayed in the past.
Now if there's one director out there who seems to have a clear understanding of how to make movies and makes movies with consistent quality. That is JJ Abrams who has directed quite a few good films and also co-created one of the most fascinating shows I never bothered to watch-Lost. Since the new game gives me that Lost kind of vibe, I think he's perfect for this movie. He knows how make a thrilling movie and juggle quite a few characters at the same time.
Lara Croft
One of the things the films need to succeed is casting an unknown for Lara Croft. Angelina Jolie was casted mainly for her star power and well that's just one of the many reasons why the two films starring her weren't very good. Of course actresses like Bridget Regan who was suggested for Wonder Woman in that failed TV pilot. Then there's also Skidd's favorite actress-Kate Beckinsale who could certainly play the role but the fact of the matter is, she's 38 and this is an origin story. Any other day of the week and I'd love to cast her as Lara Croft but unfortunately she's too old these days.Casting an unknown is pivotal because you don't have expectations and therefore the studio can't the market primarily around it's star. Casting unknowns or relative unknowns has worked in the past like Brandon Routh in Superman Returns and Harrison Ford in Star Wars. Of course casting an unknown is a huge risk because you have absolutely no idea if anyone will like whoever is chosen for the role and so therefore the whole film becomes a big risk.
I love the character of Lara Croft and have stuck with the series throughout it's ups and downs but I can't help but feel that she has always been portrayed as too much of a sex object rather than an actual character. That is also something important for the films as the actress casted should sort of look like how Lara looks now and also not be too sexy. Sure Lara is great looking right now and the actress should be as well but she shouldn't be casted for her looks.
As at this time that we don't know what characters are in this new Tomb Raider franchise, I can't cast any supporting roles because I want to keep consistent with how the games will be. I would think that at some point in time her parents might be mentioned in the game but we don't just yet. When the rest of the supporting characters are revealed and whether or not her parents will still be who they were, then I can complete this further.
