Review: Tron Ares
So, let’s get it out of the way: Tron: Ares is a boondoggle.
This movie comes 15 years after its predecessor, Tron: Legacy, and forms more of a direct sequel to 1982’s Tron. Ares makes reference to Legacy but only in the sparest, “Let’s be in the same universe” way.
In any case, this is a $150 Million movie that, like Legacy will underperform. It doesn’t have broad appeal, but in the following paragraphs I’m going to defend why I actually LIKE this movie, and it might be worth a watch, even if you’re not sold on the Tron universe.
Plot Summary
The plot is fairly sparse and a pretext for various chases, similar to the first Terminator movie. We open on Julian Dillinger (Even Peters) of Evilcorp demonstrating his new tech for 3D printing…umm…I mean bringing items like tanks, fighter jets, and light cycles out of “The Grid” in seconds using laser. But, wow, it’s not just stuff…it’s full AI android killing machines. They even make jokes.
Thing is, they only stay solvent for 29 minutes. After that they melt into nothingness.
Jump-cut to our female protagonist Eve Kim (Greta Lee) furiously loading 5 1/4" floppies into an IBM PC in a quonset hut in rural Alaska (?) looking for “The Permanence Code”. Once she finds it Encom–of which she is CEO–can do the same 3D printing trick with lasers, but the stuff doesn’t melt. Spoilers: She finds it after 4 days of looking. They try it out and make an orange tree bloom in Alaska. Not conspicuous, that. Couldn’t have tried a pine tree?
So they pack up and fly back to “Somewhere city” with the code on a flash drive. Starlink and ftp do not exist in this universe.
From there it could be sort of a conventional McGuffin chase movie with Evilcorp trying to get the code from her. That’s 50% of it, but the other 50% is Ares (Jared Leto) himself. The ultimate killing machine and the ruler (Master Control Program) of Evilcorp’s version of “The Grid”, Ares begins developing a conscience. In researching Eve to find and kill her, he absorbs “Frankenstein” and understands he’s the creature. Eventually, he disobeys.
That disobedience and the need to resolve the permanance, combined with the “29 minute clock” animate the last act.
Why I liked this movie
It’s exciting and chaotic. This is much more a popcorn flick than the Zen-like “Legacy”. Lt’s be honest, aside from Wilde’s Quorra and Sheen’s Castor/Zuse, the 2nd act of Legacy drags. All of the original Tron drags if we’re honest.
Greta Lee She really carries the movie, forming its emotional heart and becoming the audience surrogate. I was really excited when she gets a moment on the Grid, but it’s only a moment. And, she’s no damsel in distress.
Jodie Turner-Smith as Athena. Her role is a trope, but she plays it with a clarity that steals every scene. Given the material, it’s amazing how much she’s able to get across in her character’s motivations and inner thoughts. She exhibits genuine menace and single-natured mission we haven’t seen since Arnold in T2.
Gillian Anderson as The Mom. Sometimes, you’ve created a monster. It’s sad when you realize it. This one slaps.
It’s beautiful, easily rivaling the cool aesthetic of “Legacy” with an overwhelming chaos that would benefit repeat viewing. One particular chase scene seems like an excuse to light $25 million on fire in rendering time alone. It’s all on the screen in 8k.
Soundtrack. Intentionally not bold. It’s…fine. I’m not a NIN fan, and arguably “Legacy” was a great Daft Punk album with a movie attached. This tries to be that. At times it succeeds.
Summary
Yes, Jared Leto produced this film and apparently put himself in the starring role. They ditched (?) the rest of the cast from Legacy aside from wheeling out Jeff Bridges in animated form one notch shy of Harold Ramis in “Ghostbusters: Afterlife”. They lost control during edit and some scenes switch from day to night in the space of 5 minutes. Many cool ideas get brushed aside. All that is true.
However, it’s a fun time. Leto’s Machine -> Man transformation serves its purpose and he doesn’t chew the scenery, thank God for small miracles. The ensemble, no-name cast does a good job, and the visuals delight.
I went in expecting to hate this movie, but I came out pleasantly surprised.