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The second installment in the cinema incarnation of ace video game series Tomb Raider takes our heroine to the very source of life itself.

Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life

Angelina Jolie returns to UK cinemas this August in a film that seems certain to storm the box office. Oscar-winner Jolie takes to the big screen once again as arguably the most celebrated (certainly one of the most iconic) multi-media action heroines of all time – Lara Croft.

The new movie - Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life picks up from where the original film outing - Lara Croft: Tomb Raider left off. This time around, archaeologist and explorer extraordinaire Lara Croft journeys to a sunken temple that leads her to a sphere containing the mythic Pandora's Box.

Having made this amazing discovery our top-heavy heroine then finds the treasure trove stolen from her - by the mysterious Chen Lo, leader of a powerful Chinese crime syndicate. Lo, it seems, is in league with a bad guy named Reiss who may want to unleash the power of the box as a doomsday weapon!

"Playing Lara Croft is one of the most challenging roles I’ve ever undertaken," admits Jolie. "I thought at some point, with all the working out, I’d eventually get to where I felt every inch the action hero. But the truth is, it’s hard to snap into ‘Lara’ mode every day, ready to take on the world."

Still, Jolie says she enjoys the challenge of playing such an atypical heroine, and when the Cradle of Life came along, she was eager to play Croft again to take the character to greater heights.

"Lara is not a stereotype in any way, shape or form," observes Jolie. "She has some mystery about her, and she’s not all wrapped up in herself like a lot of heroines."

The first movie – the original spin-off from the hugely popular video game series – turned into a massive box office blockbuster and had a fantastic opening week - grossing £3.8million in the first weekend. That picture went on to gross nearly $300 million worldwide and now the makers of the sequel are hoping to replicate or improve on its phenomenal success.

Tomb Raider

Brought to the screen by the original Tomb Raider producers, Lawrence Gordon (Die Hard, 48 Hours) and Lloyd Levin (Boogie Nights), Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life is directed by Jan De Bont (Speed, Twister), and stars Angelina Jolie (Girl Interrupted, Original Sin) along with returning cast members Noah Taylor (Vanilla Sky) and Christopher Barrie (Red Dwarf). Gerard Butler (Timeline), Ciaran Hinds (The Road To Perdition, The Sum of All Fears) and Djimon Hounsou (The Four Feathers, Gladiator) join the cast of the film, which is executive produced by Jeremy Heath Smith (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider).

"The combination of an action director like Jan De Bont and our greatest asset, Angelina Jolie, makes this the perfect marriage," says producer Lawrence Gordon. "In addition, we have an incredibly inventive story that entertains and advances the characters." "We're raising the stakes significantly with the sequel, telling an edgier, more dangerous and exciting tale," adds producer Lloyd Levin. "Lara is taking us on a wildly ambitious journey this time, and I'm especially looking forward to watching how The Cradle of Life develops the character of aristocratic Lara Croft, the beautiful sexy heroine of Eidos Interactive's phenomenally successful, Tomb Raider game series. For an action director like Jan De Bont, the film is exactly the kind of roller coaster ride that made his reputation.

Fantastic Franchise

"I have always been in love with the Lara Croft character in Tomb Raider and was convinced it would make a fantastic franchise," says De Bont. "To have an incredibly exciting heroine like her is the most ideal thing for a director like me. Add to that Angelina Jolie, who is both talented and daring enough to do her own stunts, and we have something really amazing." Dean Georgaris' script is based on an original story by Kirk Petruccelli and Lloyd Levin.

Stemming from the Eidos Interactive Game Series developed by Core Design, The Cradle of Life pits Lara Croft against her greatest challenges and dangers yet, and her physical prowess is tested as never before. During the course of filming this latest installment of the Lara Croft saga, the production travelled from Hong Kong to Kenya and from Wales to Greece. A great deal of principal photography on the feature also took place on the Greek island of Santorini.

In addition, elaborate interior and exterior sets, built at the production's home base, Pinewood Studios, located outside London, will bring the world of Lara Croft vividly to life. Before she took on the role of Lara Croft, Angelina Jolie embarked on a serious training regime to regain the physical aptitude she displayed in the first Tomb Raider.

Academy Award

Since completing that enormously successful film, Jolie appeared in Life or Something Like It earlier this year, and she most recently filmed Beyond Borders, directed by Martin Campbell, scheduled for release next year. Girl, Interrupted not only garnered Jolie an Academy Award for 'Best Supporting Actress', but also her third Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

She earned her first Golden Globe Award for the TNT production of George Wallace and her second for HBO's biopic of supermodel Gia Carangi - Gia - and both telepics brought her Emmy nominations. Additional films in Jolie's impressive filmography are Gone in Sixty Seconds, Dancing in the Dark, The Bone Collector, Pushing Tin, Foxfire, Hackers, Hallmark Hall of Fame's True Women and Playing By Heart, for which Jolie was awarded the 'Breakthrough Performance Award' by the National Board of Review.

The brand new Tomb Raider game - Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness is available to buy from November on PlayStation 2 and PC formats. Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life is out now.

More information available in DVD / Home Video, Gaming