This is the tale of a headstrong young woman and her first steps on the road to becoming an indestructible warrior.
The game plan is to capture a sense of the young Lara’s vulnerability, underlining all the physical and emotional wear and tear. But you are never in any doubt she will emerge triumphant.
When we first meet her she is stony broke and being pulverised in the boxing ring by a superior opponent. It has been seven years since her father lord Richard Croft (Dominic West) went missing.
All she has to do is sign the relevant papers to have him declared dead and the family fortune passes to her. Then she discovers a cryptic message, leading her to a secret lair that reveals her father had been seeking the tomb of Himiko, the first queen of Japan.
But he wanted all evidence of his findings destroyed to prevent it falling into the wrong hands. If Lara obeyed his request, there wouldn’t be much of a film. So she heads to Hong Kong and takes a voyage through the Devil’s Sea in search of the supposedly mythical island that contains the tomb of Himiko.
There is a lot of loopy, nonsensical plot to swallow in Tomb Raider and the story and special effects are reminiscent of the earliest Indiana Jones adventures or The Mummy films.
But in the end it’s all just a backdrop to the action sequences in which Vikander’s fiercely determined Lara runs at lightning speed, leaps into raging waters, scales cliffs, fights for her life and proves to be a dab hand with a bow and arrow.
Vikander’s physical commitment to the role is admirable. But the film is competent and watchable rather than anything special.
The villainous Mathias Vogel is blandly played by Walton Goggins and Lara’s sidekick Lu Ren (Daniel Wu) is given too few opportunities to shine. Kristin Scott Thomas makes more of an impression in the modest but significant role of Lara’s guardian Anna.
Tomb Raider comes alive when the pressure is on and the odds of success feel impossible. But for all its effort and efficiency, it still feels soulless and more than a little old-fashioned.