Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001)

The plot of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider involves the Illuminati, a planetary alignment, a magic clock and a triangle that controls time, and somehow it’s still boring. Simon West shoots the action in slow motion with a camera that can’t sit still, and every line of dialogue lands like a tooltip. Daniel Craig’s rival treasure hunter has an accent that travels more than Lara does. Angelina Jolie, though, is all in. She nails the voice, the swagger and the stunts, and her bungee fight against armed intruders in the mansion is the one sequence that feels like the game at its best. Her scenes with Jon Voight as her missing father have a surprising sweetness. It made $274.7 million worldwide on a reported $115M, and critics gave it 20% on Rotten Tomatoes. A 3.6 because Jolie is the perfect Lara in a movie that plays like a demo disc. $7,334 says you tie your hair back this week like you’re about to raid a temple, then go empty the dishwasher.

What works: Jolie commits to every stunt and pose, and the bungee fight in the mansion is the one scene that plays like the game at its best.

What doesn’t: The Illuminati plot is nonsense, the dialogue is stiff, and the action is so swoopy you lose track of who is where.

Who it’s for: Tomb Raider players curious about the first big-screen try, and anyone nostalgic for very shiny turn-of-the-century action.