Most of this summer's blockbuster films generally either follow the theme of old comics or are sequels to another hit film like "Laura Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life" starring Angelina Jolie. Similarly, in the summer of 2001, the video game turned summer action movie "Tomb Raider" hit theaters in an attempt to bring Lara Croft, one of the sexiest and most hard-core computer-generated video game characters, to life. Casting directors gave the part, appropriately enough, to Jolie.
Fans of both the game and actress flocked to theaters to experience their deepest fantasies come true in that 'big screen' kind of way.
Since sequels are so huge this summer, Jolie is coming back as Croft in the Tomb Raider sequal.
The sequel is eagerly anticipated from the fans of both Jolie and Croft and is almost guaranteed to be a success. Despite the blockbuster success of the original flick, the critics gave the movie less-than-great reviews and after that, paid little attention to the film. So, how does Jolie feel about the risks involved in making this movie?
"I had my own feelings about the first Tomb Raider and I don't tend to care about the critics," Jolie said in a June conference call. "But I personally wanted it to be different and better, I'll be happier with the second one. I kind of would critique myself." Jolie is not the kind of actress who fears what the public has to say about her work. As far as the debate over big or low budget films - if they call she will answer. The size of a film doesn't determine whether or not she takes it seriously. It certainly doesn't make her feel bad to do a film with a big budget either.
"I have never gone into a project because of the size of it either way," she said. "Recently I've done small films like 'Original Sin' which ended up being marketed as a big film. It was really a very, very small film in the budget and the way it was made."
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With the "Tomb Raider" films, Jolie said she did the project for the love of the character and filmed another small movie on the side called "The Fever" which Jolie figures "no one will ever see" in comparison to the popularity and hype of the mainstream "Tomb Raider" movies. Still, she feels that her work is nicely balanced this way.
In order to get acquainted with Croft, Jolie had to explore a few different aspects of her character. She said the game didn't help much.
"I've played the game very briefly and used to just make her die all the time because I thought she sounded funny," Jolie said. "But I had no patience for the game."
When asked if she thinks the "Tomb Raider" movies have the staying power of similar films like "Indiana Jones" she replied, "I loved the 'Indiana Jones' films growing up. I'm not sure, I think we'll know after the next one comes out and have a better sense of that."
"Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life," Jolie's latest film, opens in theaters everywhere Friday.
