Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life

Explain two ways in which the narrative (the characters and events) in the extract fits the action adventure genre. Use examples form the extract.

In this extract of ‘Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life’, there are certain elements that really showcase the action and adventure theme. 

The first part of the movie/extract is Laura croft herself. Laura croft is the heroine of the action movie and in the extract is shown as the only woman which sets her apart immediately. Action and adventure movies always include a hero or heroine with an objective and Laura croft is shown entering an ancient tomb with a group of helpers/men. The music illustrating the scene as they enter the tomb is very triumphant and victorious showing that the finding of this tomb must have been part of the objective. Angelina Jolie has been cast as the Laura which because of her popularity as a celebrity and in Hollywood means that the movie can borrow interest. A typical action adventure includes the hero or heroine as extremely attractive while the villain or the person trying to stop them reaching their objective is unattractive. Laura croft is very feminine in looks with long hair, big lips, petite nose and attractive figure however she is also shown as a typical hero/heroine.

 

We are shown that she is courageous when the tomb they are in begins to violently fall apart and instead of rushing out she says: ‘two minutes’, to her comrade showing that she isn’t scared and is more interested in reaching her objective. Her intelligence is apparent when the whole tomb has literally fallen apart and she has to swim deeper and deeper into the water to get away from the rubble and so she has to come up with a plan to get out. She cuts herself to release blood into the water attracting a shark that she then punches to stop it from attacking before grabbing onto its fin and letting it carry her to the surface of the ocean. The fact that she was willing to come into close contact with a shark also shows her courageous nature. Her athleticism is shown when she is shot in the leg and falls from a great height however is able to stay in control of the situation and carry on defending herself and when she climbs the statue and does all those acrobatic moves. 

Another way in which the extract shows the action and adventure genre is through its use of props and location. It is set in an ancient tomb or temple that could not be stumbled on but would have had to include an exploration to find as they characters came in through water. These kinds of places/locations are only seen in action and adventure movies otherwise they would be tourist attractions which this one definitely wasn’t. There was also a lot of props used that really conveyed an adventure, spy vibe for example at the beginning of the extract the character came through the water mobiles as well as they costumes worn which were all tight wet suits and body suits. Everything was very high-tech like the enemy’s scuba kit and the guns and weapons used for defense.

However this extract also has differences to many action and adventure movies. Firstly most action adventure movies have a male hero and so having a female heroine sets this movie apart. Also Laura croft is very much challenging the stereotypical views of woman as being weak and more of the prize or person who needs to be saved. However in this she is the heroine reaching her objective and surviving through the terrible occurrences.