You know that feeling you get when you skip a few consecutive meals until your hunger grows into a giant unstoppable force? When I get such strong hunger pains, food is all I can think about, and I mean any kind of food. When this kind of hunger takes control of me, even a bag of rotten broccoli can satisfy me (and I don't enjoy broccoli). Maybe that's what happened to me recently with a newly released film.
Upon my return to Utah, after being away from any movie theater for nine consecutive days, I felt excited and refreshed to watch the science-fiction thriller, "Tron: Ares." And you know what? I wasn't filled with annoyance or disappointment. Could that be because I hadn't watched a movie on the big screen for so long? Or could it be that this film was actually good? My pleased reaction is probably due to a bit of both factors.
"Tron: Ares" continues the quest of invention, technology, and corporate espionage viewers last saw in the 2010 film, "Tron: Legacy" (which was a sequel to the original "Tron" film from 1982). A new cast of characters in this new sequel includes the fearless Evan Peters ("X-Men: Dark Phoenix," 2019) playing an obsessed tech company director who creates an artificial intelligence security system that can be printed to live and function in the real world.
This computer system is called Ares and is printed into the handsome form of Jared Leto ("Morbius," 2022) wearing a sleek motorcycle helmet with a matching red and black jumpsuit. Ares is sent on a mission to steal the code of a secret software program from a rival tech company by any means necessary. But his artificial intelligence and exposure to the real world causes a crisis of morality which pushes him to disobey his orders and shake up the established dominance of his company (and the control it holds).
As we have seen in the two previous "Tron" films, it's challenging to give a computer program a personality and directions for such a program to develop emotionally. Jared Leto does a moderately impressive job balancing the robotic stiffness audiences have come to expect with high-tech machines and the simultaneous burgeoning humanist heart of a childlike hero. His performance fits the bill fine, but that's not what makes this film entertaining. It's the look and style of the film that had me wide-eyed. And nobody should be surprised by me saying this since that's where Disney usually succeeds in their live action films.
After this film ended, I leaned over to my friend and said, "That was so much better than I expected." And I'm honestly still enjoying the surprise I felt when leaving the theater. The live-action unit of Disney's film studio is continually circling the drain of irrelevance only releasing sequels, spin-offs, and remakes the past few years. Does anyone remember the "Lilo & Stitch" remake from May this year? The "Snow White" remake from March this year? "Mufasa: The Lion King" from December last year? Or "Moana 2" from November last year? (I know those last two are animated, but you get the idea. Believe me, I could go on with more failures.)
But this sequel "Tron: Ares" was fun while also giving thoughtful nods to its preceding films. (Something else Disney takes pride in is its strong hold on the nostalgia of its past films.) The visual effects, synthesized music, and propulsive cinematography are so sexy, I felt transported into a video game. I felt this transportation especially during a whooshing nighttime motorcycle chase through a grid of busy city streets.
Constant nods to the grid of computers and their network of software systems makes this film earnestly and visually focused with a few moments even reaching the height of pure digital art. Linear designs are found throughout from soldiers uniforms to a maze of data servers to a blinking cursor on a computer screen. Even the fighting scenes show sharp geometric lines following the arc of a spear, the path of a missile, or the wings of a soaring spacecraft. These design elements make "Tron: Ares" feel like a 3-D experience without the need for glasses.
Yes, the dialogue has plenty of dumb juvenile moments trying to be funny or giving away too much information. But there were thankfully fewer of those moments than I was expecting. Maybe screenwriters and actors working under Disney producers are managing to show us a bit more maturity than in past films. While it isn't in my top five films of this year, "Tron: Ares" is a visual triumph and has some great moments of emotional depth to keep everyone watching. At only two hours long, the time rushed by before I realized it.
