When at the theatre to see "Black Swan" I was waiting for the person I was seeing it with to show up. As I waited I noticed a table set up with a few people sitting behind it, just giving away tickets to TRON. As I am a fan of free stuff I couldn't pass it up. (especially since a single ticket at that theatre is $12.50, fuck that!)
Having never seen TRON I didn't really know what to expect from this sequel. I knew there were motorcycles in it, that The Simpsons and Family Guy had both made fun of it, and that it was all just special effects.
Kevin Flynn was a computer programmer twenty years ago, and a video game maker. He disappeared right on the verge of a break through, something big enough to change everything about our world and solve its problems. His son (Sam) now an orphan is left to watch the company his father started become everything he was against. After a page comes his way from a number long disconnected he looks into it. That's when he accidentally transports himself into the world of TRON.
There's not much to say for the story, its basic, easy to follow, and leaves the narrative open to have tons of action and special effects battles to keep everyone entertained. That though was part of my problem with it, we get into this virtual world much to quickly. The story of Sam being an orphan and fighting the system was interesting, enough to keep the movie afloat with just that. But they rush it so then they can get into the "bread and butter" of what people came to the theatre to see.
When seeing a coming attraction for this my interest was piqued. Not so much in the story, I could care less, or the action, how much different could it be? No, I was interested in the lighting. Their suits although mostly dark latex or leather is contrasted by the lines of literal light they have going over them, they are lighting themselves. In a world that has no sun that makes their suits vitally important. When alone in a room its darker than if there are fifty people, interesting, and fun to play with. Sadly they don't push it hard enough, they don't use it to its full potential. In a world that is an ideal virtual world it doesn't have the room to be gritty, everything is slick and even. Which itself was really cool, every surface is polished and clean.
The acting is incidental to the story, it doesn't really matter, and Kevin Flynn, Jeff Bridges playing the character he did in the original is just having fun with the role. After winning an Oscar, and playing the U.S. Marshal in the up coming and for me very highly anticipated Coen brothers film "True Grit", I say let him have a little fun. Sam, played by Garrett Hedlund is adequate, he doesn't have to do much but be good looking, look confused most of the time, and then kick a little ass, but mostly watch other people do it. For me the real star of the movie was Olivia Wilde, for no other reason than she is gorgeous, and looks so in this movie. They must have had to pour her into her costumes. She also kicks a lot of ass, she does more fighting than anyone else in the movie, and was good at.
The effects at parts were pretty awesome, and seeing it in 3D, the second film I've seen in 3D in the last twenty years (The other being Alice in Wonderland) was interesting. I am not a fan of 3D for the most part, for to many reasons to start listing in this entry. But the 3D fit this well, and for the most part didn't mess with my eyes to much other than a few shots that were strange to have in 3D. Another problem I had with the effects was that there is a character called CLU, he is a computer version of Bridges, but hasn't aged at all since his creation. So he is basically a complete computer creation (funny right) since Bridges is to old for the role now. But his skin looked waxy, his lips didn't seem to move right, it was just generally a bother to watch him since I could tell so much that he was fake, surrounded by real actors.
The landscape of the virtual world was also problematic, instead of letting us see it for as it was, they just hid it behind mist. Mountains, oceans, everything but the city was obscured by this mist, and since there's no sun, and the light never changes, neither does that. Perhaps I'm putting to much expectations on a movie that's merely meant to be a spectacle, and a movie I didn't really care if I saw anyway. I can say that I was entertained for the most part, so I guess it worked and did the job it set out to do.
My few complaints aside I was amused while watching it. This was not meant to be much, cringing at the dialogue and throwing my hands into the air when the plot didn't make sense is merely a side effect of expecting it to be as good as other movies I've seen, its not going to be. Turn your brain off, stare at the pretty lights and girls and just enjoy it for what it is. 6/10 stars.
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde
P.S. Either have TRON be a main character, or at least important, or don't have him at all. He was a tacked on character that didn't make sense. With a story arc that was as bad and short as I've seen in some time.
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