🔗 Share this article

The framework of pointlessness is revisited in this mind-bendingly dull science fiction film, closer to a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. It's a threequel to the classic Tron film from 1982, a movie that was groundbreaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that escapes this film and its predecessor Tron: Legacy from the previous decade. The new Tron film almost comes to life just one time – when Evan Peters gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson playing his mum, in an traditional bit of analogue reality. That's a bit of firm parenting you might want to administering to every producer engaged in this movie, and it's unfortunate to see the respected Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith's character being made to look so uninspired.

Plot Overview of Tron: Ares

The scenario currently is that an malicious artificial intelligence company with the obviously criminal name of Dillinger Corp has become a competitor to the VR company Encom, first established in the 1980s gaming period by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn's character, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger's role, played by David Warner) is led by the founder's annoyingly geeky grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create profitable things such as indestructible soldiers and armored vehicles in the virtual reality grid and then export them into actual reality using a kind of 3D printer.

The problem is that no matter how intimidating, these creations crumble into dust after 29 minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has uncovered the plot-driving “permanence code” which can maintain these entities permanently, and even keeps it on her person on a very low-tech USB drive. 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 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 wooden legacy appearance in wise white robes, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Character and Performance Breakdown

And Ares himself – the protagonist of the title – is acted by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, beard and faintly all-knowing smile, touches that were perhaps designed by inputting the words “extremely annoying” into an AI human creation programme. No one who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life series will ever find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Mr Leto, and I was incidentally quite amused by his broad (and widely misinterpreted) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is unremittingly, persistently terrible in this film, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is supposed to allow him to show flashes of “empathy” for Greta Lee's character and subcontract all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus rendering her marginally more interesting. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares says how he loves 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode band are superior to Mozart.

Series Features and Overall Impact

Consistent with the franchise identity of the franchise, there are motorbikes from the virtual underworld which speed around the place in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of antique arcade games (or even dance clubs); one even shoots out a lethal beam which cuts a police vehicle in two. But there is zero tension or danger or human interest anywhere. This franchise now looks as relevant as an in-car CD player.