Wow, Disney must be desperate. As Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars all have been flailing in their efforts to create great movies, Disney had to turn to somehwere. I just didn’t expect Jared Leto and Jeff Bridges to be their first call. As much as I nostalgically enjoy Tron and its 2010 Sequel, Ares lacks the soul and ambition those other two possess; maybe too much of The Dude got into the code for the grid.
The OG visionaries have left the Tron franchise, leaving in it’s wake 2 rivals to compete for technical supremacy. On one side is Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), pushing for the Ares (Jared Leto) supersoldier digital program that he hopes military companies will want to partner with his company Dillinger Systems on. On the other side ENCOM, now run by Eve Kim (Greta Lee). Eve’s on a trip to the arctic. Partially in mourning of the loss of her sister Tess (Selene Yun)…and partially because OG ENCOM CEO Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) might have left some ideas behind on how to make permanent digital projections into the real world.
I had high hopes for Tron: Ares. The previous 2 movies really tried something different and new in their own ways. This one…just doesn’t. It’s stuff we’ve all seen before: a program learning how to become human, the power of technology in the right/wrong hands, great special effects, incredible music, Jeff Bridges, etc. Purged are the new actors from the 2010 movie (Why?) in favor of newer actors, all overqualified for their broad, pointless roles here. The most unscathed is Greta Lee, who understands the assignment and at least makes Eve the most fun character. But even she can’t escape the movie’s empty attempt to refranchise Tron for mass consumption. The end of this movie is all teaser, hoping you’d be interested in what you just saw. Problem is, the “franchise” is hollow at the center, meaning Tron: Ares is going to just be forgotten, a sad state for a movie idea that was very interesting.
So where’s the joy? It’s in the window dressing. The special effects still look great. I could watch the bike and jet chases with red laser streaks over and over again, as Joachim Ronning finds fun new ways to destroy all sorts of vehicles and fly through the air in style. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross get their Nine Inch Nails on, and deliver another really killer soundtrack (though not quite the revelation Daft Punk’s was for 2010’s Tron: Legacy). And even though most of the visual style is stuff we’ve seen before, director Ronning has the most fun honoring the past, in a wonderful little homage to the humble 1982 roots of the story.
My suggestion for Tron fans is to just enjoy what’s come before. Ares doesn’t destroy it, but it feels more like a gasp of air instead of a deep breath and push to new heights. I hope we don’t see another one of these until we get a real, fresh, new idea, or pushing of technology into the future. Hell I’d even settle for a banger soundtrack or video game instead: a bigger version of the GTA V game.