Much was made of Angelina Jolie’s costumes in the original Tomb Raider movies, with many critics arguing that she was deliberately made to wear illogically short clothes in a gratuitous effort to pander to teenage boys. The makers of Alicia Vikander’s reboot movie, which released in India on March 9, took serious steps to correct this, but it seems like a certain section of the internet is still unhappy.
A Twitter war has erupted over one particular tweet posted by a person who voiced his disapproval of Vikander’s appearance in the film. Without mentioning the fact that the Swedish actor is an Oscar-winner and had undergone a physical transformation that shocked even her cast mates, he wrote, “Do I have to be the a$$hole who says her t**s are too small for me to see her as Lara Croft? Do I have to be that guy? Do I have to be the one who f*****g says it?”
The tweet got over 2000 replies, with many calling out the glaring sexism and backward thinking exposed by it.
Here are some responses:
— Casper Fox (@CasperFox) March 11, 2018
you also have the option to not be trash
— derek (tired) (@derekdirge) March 11, 2018
Soon, the debate escaped outside this one tweet, and others joined in. Several people pointed out that Vikander is an established actor who has delivered acclaimed performances in the past.
alicia vikander is an academy award winning actress who's remarkably portrayed diverse women but some men only care about her breast size because she's new lara croft who's been terribly objectified for years.
— ana (@rileyseverdeen) March 12, 2018
if you're one of these men: don't go and see a movie. we don't need u pic.twitter.com/FjFPnmLF2H
Imagine looking like this and complaining about Alicia Vikander looks pic.twitter.com/sMIbr8l3Bl
— A boy has no name (@ItsDavery) March 11, 2018
'critics' and 'fans' who write negative reviews on tomb raider not because they didn't like the plot and because 'alicia vikander is not as sexy as angelina jolie' can choke
— ana (@rileyseverdeen) March 10, 2018
One person shared a screenshot of a professional review of the film, published in the Philly Voice, in which the critic had written that Vikander “never comes across as having an ounce of Jolie’s sex appeal, and at times, looks like she could be 16.”
Sure enough, a separate war of words ensued over this tweet.
This week in "Male Film Critics Who Should Shut Up"! pic.twitter.com/jThYuy3t67
— Jacob (@JEBermanator) March 14, 2018
Just saw that Philly Voice actually tagged Alicia Vikander in their tweet of this garbage take 🤬 https://t.co/RlDcXfYYzY
— Meredith Borders (@xymarla) March 15, 2018
The funny thing about everyone sharing the "bad opinion of Vikander in Tomb Raider" from Philly Voice right now is that that at the same time, I've been watching this gif over and over for 20 minutes in awe of how she's in amazing shape. https://t.co/VdxvMMfenn
— sarah sprague (@sarah_sprague) March 15, 2018
Reminder that the only acceptable reason for talking about Alicia Vikander's body in your Tomb Raider review is if you're discussing how CRAZY FUCKIN JACKED OUR GIRL GOT pic.twitter.com/rbakiFSxg8
— Kate Halliwell (@Kate__Halliwell) March 14, 2018
Vikander’s appearance in the new film was modelled after the updated version of Lara Croft that debuted with the 2013 reboot of the video games. Gone are the shorts and crop tops in favour of a more utilitarian outfit.
Tomb Raider has received mixed reviews from critics so far. It will open across the world this weekend, after debuting in a handful of Asian territories on March 9. You can read our review of the film here.
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