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The matrix of futility is revisited in this tediously complex science fiction movie, more a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. It's a threequel to the original movie Tron from 1982, a film that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that escapes this one and its predecessor Tron: Legacy from the previous decade. Tron: Ares almost comes to life just one time – when Evan Peters gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character playing his mum, in an traditional bit of real-world action. That's a bit of firm parenting you might want to administering to all the producers involved in this film, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so lifeless.

Story Summary of The New Tron Film

The scenario currently is that an malicious artificial intelligence company with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger has become a rival to the VR company Encom Inc, originally set up in the 1980s gaming period by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (originally set up by Encom executive Ed Dillinger, acted by David Warner) is headed by the founder's annoyingly geeky grandson Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to design and create profitable things such as indestructible soldiers and armored vehicles in the virtual reality grid and then transfer them into actual reality using a kind of 3D printer.

The problem is that however fearsome, these things crumble into dust after twenty-nine minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the plot-driving “permanence algorithm” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even stores it on her person on a extremely basic USB drive. So the dreadful 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 traditional way of androids, is beginning to show signs of disobeying what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith's performance portrays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena and poor Jeff Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in sage-like white garments, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

And Ares himself – the protagonist of the title – is played by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, beard and subtly omniscient grin, details that were possibly designed by typing the words “extremely annoying” into an AI human creation programme. No one who remembers the 1990s television classic My So-Called Life will always 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 movie House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, persistently terrible in this film, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “compassion” for Greta Lee's character and subcontract all the villainous actions to Athena's character, thus rendering her marginally more interesting. It is supposed to be charming when Ares the character says how he adores 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart.

Franchise Elements and Overall Impact

And in keeping with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorbikes from the VR netherworld which whizz about the environment in long straight lines, conforming to the rectilinear design of classic video games (or even dance clubs); a single bike even emits a lethal beam which slices a cop car in half. But there is zero tension or danger or emotional engagement throughout. This series currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.