Review of Tron: Ares – Even Gillian Anderson Fails to Save This Boringly Complex Science Fiction Film
The framework of pointlessness is reloaded in this tediously complex sci-fi film, more a screensaver than an actual film. This is a threequel to the original movie Tron from 1982, a movie that was groundbreaking and courageously innovative for its day in a way that eludes this one and its forerunner Tron: Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares almost awakens just one time – when Evan Peters' character gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson playing his mother, in an old-fashioned bit of real-world action. That's a piece of tough love you might feel like handing out to every producer engaged in this movie, and it's sad to see the respected Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so uninspired.
Story Summary of Tron: Ares
The scenario now is that an evil AI corporation with the obviously criminal name of Dillinger Corp has become a competitor to the virtual reality firm Encom, originally set up in the 1980s gaming period by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn's character, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (initially founded by Encom executive Ed Dillinger's role, played by David Warner) is headed by the founder’s annoyingly geeky grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to design and create lucrative items such as indestructible soldiers and tanks in the VR world and then transfer them into the real world using a sort of three-dimensional printer.
The problem is that no matter how intimidating, these things crumble into dust after 29 minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has uncovered the plot-driving “permanence code” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even stores it on her person on a very low-tech flashdrive. So the ghastly Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares, 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 starting to exhibit symptoms of not doing what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith plays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena and unfortunate Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in sage-like white garments, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton.
Acting and Roles Analysis
And Ares himself – the protagonist of the title – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, facial hair and faintly all-knowing smile, touches that were possibly designed by typing the words “extremely annoying” into an AI human creation programme. Nobody who remembers the 1990s television classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Mr Leto, and I was also quite amused by his broad (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, persistently awful here, although his performance isn't aided by a limp plot point which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “compassion” for Greta Lee's character and subcontract all the villainous actions to Athena, thus making her marginally more interesting. It is meant to be adorable when Ares says how he loves 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart's compositions.
Series Features and Overall Impact
Consistent with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorbikes from the VR netherworld which speed around the environment in linear paths, adhering to the rectilinear design of antique arcade games (or indeed dance clubs); one even shoots out a lethal beam which cuts a cop car in half. But there is no drama or jeopardy or human interest throughout. This franchise now looks as relevant as an in-car CD player.
