🔗 Share this article

The framework of pointlessness is revisited in this tediously complex science fiction movie, more a screensaver than an actual film. It's a third installment to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a film that was groundbreaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that eludes this film and its predecessor Tron: Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares nearly awakens just one time – when Evan Peters' character gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson playing his mother, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. That's a piece of tough love you might feel like administering to every producer 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 lifeless.

Story Summary of Tron: Ares

The scenario now is that an evil AI corporation with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger has become a rival to the virtual reality firm Encom Inc, originally set up in the 80s arcade-game era by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger's role, acted by David Warner) is headed by the founder's annoyingly geeky grandson Julian (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to develop and produce lucrative items such as invincible troops and tanks in the VR world and then export them into the real world using a sort of 3D printer.

The problem is that no matter how intimidating, these things crumble into dust after 29 minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim's character (Greta Lee) has uncovered the plot-driving “permanence algorithm” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even stores it on her person on a very low-tech flashdrive. So the dreadful Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares the warrior, the superhuman fighter which can exit the virtual realm for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the time-honoured way of robots, is starting to exhibit symptoms of disobeying what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith's performance portrays Ares's stoic deputy Athena's role and unfortunate Jeff Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in sage-like white garments, like a Poundshop Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Character and Performance Breakdown

And Ares himself – the hero of the film's name – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, facial hair and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were perhaps created by typing the words “incredibly irritating” into an artificial intelligence character generator. No one who remembers the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life series will always find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Jared Leto, and I was incidentally quite amused by his broad (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Leto is unremittingly, unrelentingly terrible here, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to display glimpses of “empathy” for Greta Lee's character and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus rendering her marginally more interesting. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares says how he adores 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart's compositions.

Series Features and Final Impression

And in keeping with the franchise identity of the franchise, there are motorcycles from the virtual underworld which speed around the place in linear paths, conforming to the rectilinear design of antique arcade games (or indeed dance clubs); a single bike even shoots out a lethal beam which cuts a cop car in two. But there is no drama or jeopardy or emotional engagement anywhere. This franchise currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an automobile CD system.