Tron: Ares

Greetings User! Tron is a... unique IP, to say the least. When it released in 1982 there was nothing like it. Rotoscoping, green screen, hand drawn backgrounds and CGI mixed in with live action footage? It hadn't been done, not on that level, and it released to... middling reviews. Many praised its visuals and soundtrack whilst others complained that the narrative was flawed; some said it was too complex, others claimed it was too shallow. Whatever the case, the movie has since garnered a pretty significant cult following and is considered a classic in its own right. Then... it happened again. Tron: Legacy. Visually stunning, excellent soundtrack (many consider it to be the GOAT) but again it was found lacking in its script and was met with middling reviews and has since grown exponentially in popularity, many remembering it as on par or even better than the 82' original. Jump forward another fifteen years or so and here we are, with another gorgeous neon bathed movie with an excellent soundtrack that people can't seem to be able to make their minds up on how they feel about the contents of its script. It almost seems a right of passage at this point, but I imagine Tron: Ares like its predecessors will enjoy its fare share of devotees. The movie features a whole bunch of nods to 82' and Legacy, some of these are more welcome than others and I feel like it can sometimes feel a bit caught up in the past but it's clear at least that these people respect the series and that's more than can be said for a lot of blockbuster sequels released by major corporations in recent years. As I said, the visuals and soundtrack are sublime and though I didn't really connect with any of the users and programs in Ares the way I did with Kevin, Sam, Tron, etc. Nobody was egregious enough to stop me enjoying this movie. If you enjoy Tron as a franchise there will be things for you to enjoy here. I'm giving Tron: Ares a strong 6 to a light 7/10.

Hope you enjoyed reading this review, I'm hoping to do a deep dive of reviews for entire franchise (games and shows included) so if you're interested in those, check them out. End of Line.

Tron: Ares is the latest film in the Tron series revolving around two tech billionaires fighting to find a mysterious code while a AI soldier goes rogue as he starts to gain sentience. I haven't actually watched the previous Tron movies but I am aware of them and know generally what happens which was fine as the movie isn't a direct sequel. Visually the movie can be stunning when you get to the Grid world and when the Grid elements start to move into our world. The music is also phenomenal as Nine Inch Nails provides the soundtrack. I saw the movie in Dolby and it made it a great experience because I was just jamming to the music and just enjoying the visuals...... which is good because the movie is pretty bland. The story is extremely uninspired. Jared Leto plays Ares, the rogue Ai trying to gain sentience which goes exactly how all Sci-fi stories go with Ai. Leto isn't bad but he plays stoic the entire time so you don't really get emotionally invested in him. The other characters are also pretty bland stereotypes of what you see in Sci-fi movies. The mechanics of the technology also make zero sense and there is a lot of dumb moments the characters do throughout. You could enjoy the movie on the background while jamming out to its soundtrack.

I don't write reviews often, but I feel like I need to on this one. After seeing the critic reviews for TRON: Ares, I thought it would be a boring (or at least empty) movie. However, I found the storyline interesting, and found myself paying attention for the duration of the film.

As some might remember, TRON: Legacy was met with terrible reviews when it came out back in 2010, and audiences received it poorly as well, making it a box office flop. Now, however, I think most will agree that it's a classic. Unfortunately, I fear the same may happen with TRON: Ares. Just to be clear: I liked it a lot. The soundtrack was good, the visuals were stunning, and the acting was solid. Could it have been "better"? Sure, but a movie of this nature could realistically only peak at about an 8/10, so being a 7/10 is really good. GO SEE IT! It's absolutely worth the ticket price to see it in 3D or IMAX.

I watched the 1st Tron movie at the theater when it originally came out, as I did with Tron: Legacy which I also loved even when everyone else was trashing it. So much so, that when I was able to I bought a 110" screen and 3D projector and Dolby Atmos surround system to play my own Blu Ray of Tron: Legacy in 3D whenever I felt like being sucked into the Grid and it is still an event every single time I watch it.

Since then I've built up a sizeable collection of 3D movies including Gravity, Dredd, both Avatars, every Marvel 3D movie and any others I could find, and Tron: Legacy is still is one of the most immersive movies I've ever seen. It is also by far the most re-watchable 3D movie. And I should know. I've watched it countless times. It is one of my all time favourite movies.

Immersion and soundtrack aside, the father/son story line resonates with anyone with a complex father/son relationship both as a father and as a son. It also had some stand out complex characters like CLU who although being a totally digital character is given a distinct personality through Jeff Bridges superb voice acting. At the final confrontation with Kevin Flynn you can feel the pain in CLUs voice.

Add to that Sam, Quorra, the weasly Jarvis, and one of my favourites, Micheal Sheens Castor and Legacy is packed with personality, and emotion and the ending provided a perfect opening for the next Tron movie.

There was a ready made story there just begging to be written.

Instead the executives seemed to have concluded that all they had to do was pack the new movie with CGI and a banging soundtrack, drag Jeff Bridges in for a token appearance, sprinkle a pinch of nostalgia from 82, and shoehorn a storyline that left Legacy stuck in the Grid forever to somehow drag the corpse of Tron to the end credits and concoct yet another money milking never ending storyline franchise.

And this was after Tron: Legacy was finally getting the recognition it deserved with increasing watch alongs and favorable reviews on Youtube over the last few years. And these watch alongs and reviews weren't even of the 3D surround sound version. Take the 3D and surround sound out and Legacy is still a great movie in it's own right.

Tron Ares is a trademark Disney visually stunning, awesomely sounding 2 hours of nothing. Take the 3D IMAX experience out and there's really nothing memorable there except for the soundtrack which Legacy also outshines with a pitch perfect soundtrack and the seamless way Daft Punks cameo slotted into the Tron universe. With plastic cookie cutter characters, one-liners that fall flat on their face and not a single memorable line that I could quote off the top of my head Ares is near forgettable once you exit the theater.

Judging by the comments the high ratings of Tron: Ares now are overwhelmingly influenced by the 3D IMAX experience and that's understandable. And despite my obvious disappointment and critique of Tron: Ares, it is still worth watching in IMAX 3D because it is a visual treat. Watch it and judge for yourself. Others have watched and enjoyed it, and you may too. It's just a shame that it's such a massive jarring misstep for fans of Legacy. It's like watching the first half of a soccer match, waiting 15 years for the second half only to find that it will be completed with a rugby match instead. Sure the two halves may be somewhat entertaining, and connected because they both involve two teams playing with balls but the entire match becomes an infuriating meaningless farce.

After a 28 year gap, Legacy STILL managed to tie itself to the original film AND take it in a new direction where fans were prepared to follow the story of Sam and Quora. Two characters who had nothing to do with the first movie.

And with a mere 15 year gap by comparison, Ares couldn't even manage any of that. It failed to do what Legacy had already done. If any character deserved to enter the real world after the ending of Legacy in search of Sam and Quora it was Tron. If Kevin Flynn could be brought back after the ending of Legacy, then bringing Tron into the real world should have been a piece of cake.

Even as a Tron fan I know that the story has limited appeal and can only go so far. The 1st Tron explored the Grid. The second introduced the possibility of the digital world entering the real world and the effects of that on humanity.

And the 3rd should have been about just that and in the process tying all the loose ends and wrapping the story up. The last in the Tron Trilogy. A final confrontation between a version of AI that elevates humanity against the kind of AI that dominates it. The battle of Utopia vs Dystopia. Tron, Quora and Sam Flynn on one side versus Edward Dillinger, the MCP and Ares on the other.

I would in fact have marketed it as the last Tron movie. A 43 year saga coming to a close and in doing so being incredibly relevant to one of the biggest issues facing humanity right now: At a time where even the developers of AI have no consensus on its future impact, what if both versions battled for supremacy and where would that leave us? It could have been a mind blowing philosophical yet entertaining masterpiece blended into an audio visual extravaganza and gone out with an absolute bang with real world impact on the discussion over AI.

Following that ending if popularity demanded it then Disney could always then branch off in a "new direction" with Ares, an ISOs origin story, a following on from Tron: Uprising or whatever else. I know I'm suffering from franchise fatigue and just can't follow all these endless meandering universes anymore.

Disney are addicted to trying to turn every franchise into an MCU style endless money sucking saga. You're supposed to be making blockbuster movies, not a TV series for the big screen. Make it a trilogy, or at most a quadrilogy and bring the story to a close. Sadly, it may be too late for Tron because Disney may have ended up killing off their own franchise.

Well done Disney you overvalued useless organization. You've done it again.

You're really messing with my Zen thing man.

In anticipation of Tron: Ares, I rewatched the original Tron (it definitely shows its age, but still earns a solid 8/10 from me for the impact it had on the genre) and Tron: Legacy (still my favorite of the three). Naturally, my expectations for Ares were high.

When I heard Jared Leto had been cast as one of the leads, I was disappointed-he's never really delivered for me, with his Joker performance being the low point. Surprisingly, though, he impressed this time. He was convincing, grounded, and even held his own in scenes with Jeff Bridges.

What Tron: Ares ultimately lacks, however, is soul. Unlike the previous films, I couldn't connect or empathize with any of the characters. What's left is a dazzling visual experience-absolutely worth seeing in IMAX 3D-with a pulsing, energetic soundtrack.

But once the credits roll and you step out of the theater, it's completely forgettable.