Sequel plays to Lara's strong suit

Posters for "Lara Croft, Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life" arrivein theaters next week. Whether they'll remain there for the film'sJuly 25 release or be plundered by fans is another question.

Attired in a wet suit that can only be described as painted on,Angelina Jolie teases moviegoers with her trademark lips and Croft'strademark boots. No standard wet suit would do for Lara Croft, saysdirector Jan de Bont, "because Lara is not an ordinary woman."

Jolie says she hasn't seen the poster but is surprised that it'screating such a fuss. It did apparently draw some attention away fromthe skimpy bikini she dons in the film. "Maybe we slipped the bikiniin without anyone noticing," she says with a laugh.

The suit is "perfectly suited for what Lara has to do and who Larais." That includes a knife strapped to her leg, which de Bont says is"just as much Angelina as Lara." Jolie is a knife collector.

"Cradle of Life" has added some action--a sexy love scene--thatwas notably absent from 2001's "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider." De Bontsays, "You'll feel a sexual tension, there is a chemistry" betweenJolie's Croft and the character of ex-love Terry Sheridan, played byGerard Butler.

Will fans of the video game approve of the latest movieinstallment? Definitely, says de Bont, director of action flicks"Speed" (1994) and "Twister" (1996). "It has triple the action of thefirst."

Gannett News Service