🔗 Share this article

The matrix of pointlessness is revisited in this mind-bendingly dull sci-fi film, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. It's a threequel to the original movie Tron from 1982, a movie that was groundbreaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that eludes this one and its predecessor Tron: Legacy from 2010. The new Tron film almost awakens just one time – when Evan Peters gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson playing his mum, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. This is a piece of tough love you might feel like handing out to every producer engaged in this movie, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so lifeless.

Story Summary of The New Tron Film

The scenario 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, originally set up in the 1980s gaming period by genius trailblazer Kevin Flynn, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (initially founded by Encom executive Ed Dillinger's role, played by David Warner) is headed by the founder's annoyingly geeky grandson Julian (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to design and create lucrative items such as indestructible soldiers and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then export them into the real world using a kind of three-dimensional printer.

The problem is that no matter how intimidating, these creations disintegrate after 29 minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim's character (Greta Lee) has uncovered the plot-driving “permanence algorithm” which can maintain these entities permanently, and even stores it on her person on a extremely basic flashdrive. So the ghastly Julian Dillinger deploys his enforcer on her: Ares the warrior, the superhuman fighter which can leave the VR world for twenty-nine minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is starting to exhibit symptoms of not doing what he is commanded. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays Ares's stoic deputy Athena's role and poor Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in sage-like white garments, like a Poundshop Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

Moreover, Ares – the protagonist of the title – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, beard and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were perhaps created by inputting the words “incredibly irritating” into an artificial intelligence character generator. No one who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will always find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Jared Leto, and I was also very entertained by his expansive (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is unremittingly, persistently awful in this film, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “empathy” for Eve Kim's role and subcontract all the villainous actions to Athena's character, thus making her slightly more engaging. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares says how he adores 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode are better than Mozart.

Franchise Elements and Final Impression

And in keeping with the franchise identity of the franchise, there are motorbikes from the virtual underworld which whizz about the place in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of classic video games (or indeed dance clubs); one even emits a death ray which cuts a cop car in half. But there is no drama or jeopardy or emotional engagement throughout. This franchise now looks as relevant as an in-car CD player.