Unfortunately we don’t seem to expect much from movies anymore. In the old days, they made epics. Now a lightweight TV show like Charlie’s Angels seems to possess content satisfying enough to transfer to the big screen. So why not a computer game?

Tomb Raider is based on a wildly popular computer game starring none other than the wealthy, British, buxom, gun-wielding Lara Croft (actually Lady Lara Croft). Angelina Jolie is perfectly cast in the role (I really had doubts about this before I saw the first trailer). Her real-life father, Jon Voight, shows up for a small role as her deceased father, Sir Richard Croft.

The movie is produced and directed with spot-on precision and some truly admirable special effects. It’s fun, goofy, and, ultimately, lightweight summertime entertainment -- very lightweight. There is a plot, but there’s no real use in trying to explain it because it’s hardly a reason to see the movie, and that’s where it fails. Sure, I know this is supposed to be meaningless fun, but the makers of Raiders of the Lost Ark realized that you have to have more than just visuals to keep an audience entertained. There must be substance behind the style. So, Tomb Raider has the looks but not the guts, and it ends up committing the worst of movie sins because of that. It’s boring. Yes, Angelina Jolie is good to look at, for a while, but when the novelty wears off, well, we’re just left with the rest of what’s on the screen.

So, is it worth seeing? If you want adventure and your movie pick is between this and the dreadful The Mummy Returns, this is much better even though it only gets a **1/2 rating.

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