mowglisj

No doubt about it. Angelina Jolie is quite easy on the eyes. But overall, this movie was one of the hardest movies to watch as I've seen in a long time.

I love action-adventure flicks, especially ones set in exotic locations. I can even tolerate a bit of cheese and sketchy science, if it's done with style. "Tomb Raider" has been compared to the "Mummy" and "Indiana Jones" movies. If plagiarism constitutes inspiration, than this movie was quite inspired. It's an insult to the intelligence; enough to make a five-year-old roll his eyes with disbelief. Certain scenes and images were practically carbon copies of "The Mummy" and "Indiana Jones", but it failed miserably at capturing the charm and wit that made those movies so much fun.

Its ludicrous and incongruous "plot," if you can call it that, appears to have been conjured up by a couple of thirteen-year-old potheads... which leads me to believe that this was probably the target audience.

But what should I expect from a movie based on a video game? It certainly had all the suspense and intrigue of "Space Invaders" and the character development of "Asteroids". And the F/X weren't much better.

If you value your time, stay away from this movie. Don't rent it, don't even watch it when it makes its shameful "world network premiere", which is inevitable. (Of course, no self-respecting network will pick it up, but UPN or FOX might.) It consumed 100 minutes of my lifespan that I can never regain. Don't let the same thing happen to you.

I've never been big on the coming-of-age genre of films, but this one is a notable exception, and it just joined my small DVD collection which says something...

It's been accused of being contrived and sentimental, and I will grant that there is a kernel of truth to that--its biggest weakness probably lies in the broad assortment of values it tries to cover in an overly idealistic fashion--family, hope, loyalty, self-sacrifice, and so forth. It probably would have been more effective had its moral focus been a bit narrower.

Nevertheless, the story and characters are very engaging. The acting was excellent, in particular, that of Elijah Wood. What can I say? The kid can act. His challenging portrayal of a complex character alone makes the movie worth watching.

It's a beautifully-shot, well-acted period film (with a great soundtrack!). If you can forgive its occasional un-subtle lapses into philosophical preachiness, you will enjoy the film very much.

I will never see that $4.25 again. Why did I rent this movie?

I sit here, in utter shock at just how terribly awful this movie was, on practically all accounts. Oh, how naive I used to be, to think that even the worst movie would have some redeeming qualities. This one had none whatsoever.

The wretchedness of the acting was obscured only by the abysmal script. The basic plot line (high school students from wealthy families, kidnapped and held captive in the Everglades), if it had been used to its full potential, could have become a C-minus teen thriller.

I would typically call a poorly developed character "two dimensional." Now, to call ANY of the characters in this waste of perfectly good celluloid as "one dimensional" would be an obsequious compliment. There WERE no characters in this movie. Just bad guys and worse guys.

My recurring thought throughout the movie was "Please, please, Mr. Alligator, just eat SOMEBODY, ANYBODY, EVERYBODY." In this small thing I was not disappointed.

Stay away from this movie! Stay away! Please, please, for the love of all that is good and decent, STAY AWAY!