Review of Tron: Ares – Despite Gillian Anderson Can't Rescue This Boringly Complex Sci-Fi Movie

The matrix of pointlessness is reloaded in this tediously complex sci-fi movie, more a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. It's a third installment to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a film that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its day in a way that eludes this film and its predecessor Tron Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares almost comes to life just once – when Evan Peters gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson's character portraying his mum, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. This is a bit of firm parenting you might want to handing out to every producer engaged in this film, and it's unfortunate to see the respected Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith's character being made to look so uninspired.

Plot Overview of The New Tron Film

The situation now is that an evil AI corporation with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger Corp has become a rival to the VR company Encom Inc, originally set up in the 1980s gaming period by genius trailblazer Kevin Flynn's character, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (originally set up by Encom executive Ed Dillinger, acted by David Warner) is led by the founder's odiously nerdish grandson Julian (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create profitable things such as invincible troops and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then transfer them into actual reality using a sort of 3D printer.

The problem is that however fearsome, these things crumble into dust after twenty-nine minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the plot-driving “permanence code” which can keep these things alive for ever, and even stores it on her person on a extremely basic flashdrive. So the ghastly Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares the warrior, the humanoid uber-warrior which can leave the VR world for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is beginning to show signs of disobeying what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena's role and unfortunate Jeff Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in wise white robes, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton.

Acting and Roles Analysis

Moreover, Ares – the hero of the film's name – is played by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, facial hair and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were possibly created by inputting the words “incredibly irritating” into an AI human creation programme. No one who remembers the 1990s television classic My So-Called Life will always find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Mr Leto, and I was incidentally quite amused by his broad (and widely misinterpreted) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, persistently terrible in this film, although he isn't helped by a limp plot point which is intended to allow him to display glimpses of “compassion” for Greta Lee's character and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus making her marginally more interesting. It is meant to be adorable when Ares says how he adores 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode band are superior to Mozart.

Series Features and Overall Impact

And in keeping with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorcycles from the VR netherworld which speed around the place in linear paths, conforming to the rectilinear design of classic video games (or even dance clubs); a single bike even emits a lethal beam which cuts a cop car in two. But there is no drama or jeopardy or human interest throughout. This franchise now looks about as urgently contemporary as an automobile CD system.