Review of Tron: Ares – Despite Gillian Anderson Fails to Rescue This Incredibly Boringly Complex Science Fiction Film

The matrix of pointlessness is revisited in this tediously complex science fiction film, more a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. This is a threequel to the original movie Tron from the early 80s, a movie that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its day in a way that eludes this film and its forerunner Tron: Legacy from the previous decade. The new Tron film nearly comes to life just once – when Evan Peters' character gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson portraying his mum, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. This is a piece of tough love you might feel like administering to every producer engaged in this film, and it's sad to see the respected Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so lifeless.

Plot Overview of The New Tron Film

The situation currently is that an evil AI corporation with the obviously criminal name of Dillinger has become a competitor to the virtual reality firm Encom, first established in the 1980s gaming period by genius trailblazer Kevin Flynn, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger, acted by David Warner) is headed by the founder’s annoyingly geeky grandson Julian (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to design and create profitable things such as indestructible soldiers and armored vehicles in the virtual reality grid and then export them into the real world using a kind of 3D printer.

The problem is that however fearsome, these creations crumble into dust after 29 minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has uncovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence algorithm” which can maintain these entities for ever, and even keeps it on her person on a extremely basic flashdrive. So the dreadful Julian deploys his enforcer on her: Ares the warrior, the superhuman fighter which can exit the virtual realm for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the time-honoured way of robots, is beginning to show signs of disobeying what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith plays Ares's stoic deputy Athena and poor Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in wise white robes, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Character and Performance Analysis

Moreover, Ares – the protagonist of the film's name – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, beard and subtly omniscient grin, 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 ever find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Jared Leto, and I was incidentally very entertained by his broad (and critically misunderstood) comic turn in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, unrelentingly terrible in this film, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is supposed to allow him to display glimpses of “empathy” for Greta Lee's character and subcontract all the villainous actions to Athena, 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 band are superior to Mozart.

Franchise Elements and Final Impression

Consistent with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorbikes from the VR netherworld which speed around the place in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of classic video games (or even dance clubs); one even emits a lethal beam which cuts a cop car in half. But there is zero tension or jeopardy or emotional engagement throughout. This series now looks as relevant as an in-car CD player.