🔗 Share this article

The matrix of pointlessness is reloaded in this mind-bendingly dull sci-fi film, more a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. It's a threequel to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a movie that was mould-breaking and courageously innovative for its time in a way that escapes this one and its forerunner Tron Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares nearly awakens just once – when Evan Peters' character gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character playing his mother, in an old-fashioned bit of real-world action. This is a bit of firm parenting you might want to handing out to all the producers involved in this movie, and it's unfortunate to see the respected Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith's character being made to look so uninspired.

Story Summary of The New Tron Film

The scenario now 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 80s arcade-game era by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn's character, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger's role, played by David Warner) is headed by the founder's odiously nerdish grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to develop and produce lucrative items such as indestructible soldiers and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then export them into actual reality using a sort of 3D printer.

The issue is that however fearsome, these things disintegrate after 29 minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim's character (Greta Lee) has discovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence code” which can keep these things alive for ever, and even keeps it on her person on a extremely basic USB drive. So the dreadful Julian deploys his enforcer on her: Ares, the humanoid uber-warrior 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 not doing what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays Ares's stoic deputy Athena's role and unfortunate Jeff Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in sage-like white garments, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Character and Performance Breakdown

And Ares himself – the hero 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 inputting the words “incredibly irritating” into an artificial intelligence character generator. Nobody who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Jared Leto, and I was also quite amused by his expansive (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Leto is consistently, unrelentingly terrible here, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “empathy” for Eve Kim's role and subcontract all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus rendering her marginally more interesting. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares the character says how he adores 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart's compositions.

Series Features and Final Impression

And in keeping with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorcycles from the virtual underworld which whizz about the place in long straight lines, adhering to the rectilinear design of antique arcade games (or indeed dance clubs); a single bike even shoots out a lethal beam which slices 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.