Plot: A sequel to 1982's cult classic, Tron: Legacy follows the exploits of Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) the son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges). Twenty years after Sam's father disappears and leaves Sam the sole heir of his father's electronic empire, Sam is still haunted by his father's mysterious disappearance. When Sam is summoned to his father's old arcade by a page he suddenly finds himself transferred to "The Grid" a computer network populated with people known as "programs." With the portal back to the real world closing it's up to Sam to find his lost father and stop a menace from being unleashed on our world.
Review: It's been over twenty years since I've seen the original Tron and what I remember of it is fairly forgettable. The story was inanely boring and I remember the special effects being terrible. As I grew older I appreciated Tron for the fact that it was a precursor to virtual reality and for movies like The Matrix and The Thirteenth Floor. In many ways it was a movie ahead of its time without the advances in special effects to do it justice.
It was with mild optimism that I entered the world of Tron again on Friday in IMAX 3D.
I was presently surprised at the result. Tron: Legacy is the film its predecessor wished it could have been. Once we enter the world of Tron, the first half hour is a visual feast. Luminous highways, disc battles, and light cycle races abound. You could almost feel the energy crackling off the screen. Furthermore, the CGI that went into making Jeff Bridges look younger was quite impressive. Several times I forgot that CLU 2 (the main antagonist and bearing the likeness of Bridges) was actually a CGI creation. The visual element is the thing that carries Tron: Legacy and saves it from becoming a sci-fi schlock fest.
The acting itself was fairly pedestrian but then again you have to look at the source material. After all this is Tron not The Tempest. Hedlund is the strongest of the bunch and plays the role of reluctant leader and distant son well. Olivia Wilde, sporting a sexy new black hairdo, is decent as Quorra, the innocent ISO, a program that created itself--think of Genesis in the cyber world. Weakest however is Bridges. His performance as CLU 2 and Kevin Flynn feels like a snow job. Bridges seemed more like he was phoning in this role for a paycheck.
I have to give credit to Joseph Kosinski, Tron: Legacy's director. It's not easy to craft a sequel to a beloved cult classic but I think he did a strong job creating a cohesive and fast paced narrative. The sad thing is that he had to work with such a poor script by writers Sean Bailey, Jeffery Silver, and Steven Lisberger. Some things were just obvious rip-offs from other films. One shot of the tower at the center of the Tron city looked like it was right out of Blade Runner and a gun shootout towards the end of the movie was a clear theft of the Star Wars dogfight post Death Star escape. And I don't even want to get into the character Castor (Michael Sheen). His character of a David Bowie-like bar-owner is ridiculous and unnecessary.
However, what was not ridiculous was Legacy's music, which was done by the group Daft Punk, who also make a cameo in the film. The duo's electronic musical riffs and techno flair added a nice touch to the world of Tron. The music seemed right at home.
Obviously this film will have its detractors from both fans of the original and newcomers. Critics have largely lambasted the film and it only has a 49% approval rating on rottentomatoes. However I think that's a little harsher than necessary. Overall, I think fans of the original will be pleased by Tron: Legacy and so will most newcomers to the film.
My rating: 7/10
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