Tron Ares plays on some very real fears
The Average Dude remembers watching Tron and Tron Legacy in theaters. Tron the original was ground-breaking for it’s time, the great great grandfather of CGI. It started something I don’t think anybody really comprehended. For better or worse is a debate for another time (and with lots of beers).
Tron Ares returns to the story of Kevin Flynn, the creator of ‘the Grid’ from where the world of Tron originated, and brings it to the waking, physical world. Tron Ares doesn’t spend any time at all trying to strap any psuedo-science to how that is possible. For the sake of storytelling, the abity to created living, breathing beings and fully functional science happens nearly instantaneously and seemingly out of thin air. There is one drawback. The tech that spawns Ares will only remain stable for 29 minutes before colapsing like a tower of Legos that got Thanos-snapped.
What we need…is a MacGuffin!
To solve this problem, the greatest tech powers in the world are frantically searching for ‘the Permanence Code’. This a plot device that will allow their constructs to maintain cohesion. Literally, for better or worse. The Better: Encom CEO Eve Kim, searching for the code to allow them to create food, medicine and other resources to help humanity. The Worse: Dillinger Systems. Led by the soulless Julian Dillinger. He wants to use the tech to create a horrifyingly powerful military. With Master Control Program Ares as the leader, Dillinger creates an endless cadre of super-soldiers. Was there a need for such an overwhelming fighting force? No idea.
Apparently, they made this AI too I
As the leader of the Dillinger Grid consciousnesses, Ares was, for reasons unknown, able to reason things more deeply. Deeply enough to begin questioning his created purpose. From that awakening morality, Ares sussed out the unethical motives of Julian Dillinger. And when Ares was commanded to capture Eve and deliver her to the Grid (where the newly discovered Permanence Code could be extracted), he declined to obey. The Ares rebellion was on.
That’s the basic thrust of Tron Ares. You can kind of guess the nuts and bolts of the rest of this movie. Another Master Control Program is appointed to take down Ares. Lots of modernized callbacks to the classic Tron tech (like the light-bike, the floating behemoth Recognizer, even the Bit character made a cameo). And, of course, an obligatory appearance by Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn. All the remember-berries were there and that was great.
I know I’m in the minority here…
I don’t know if there is enough excitement over Tron Ares to spawn a sequel (to the sequel to the sequel, that is). Jarod Leto did a perfectly serviceabe job making the most of a script that was pretty vanilla and relied on great CGI. And I’m going to go on record saying that I didn’t hate Leto’s take on the Joker in the much (and deservedly) maligned Suicide Squad. He owned it, turned it on it’s side and did the very best he could. No one disagrees that Ledger’s take was permanently established as the gold standard. Leto commits, and I love that. Sorry, not sorry.
The walking out of the theater grade is…
The Average Dude is giving Tron Ares a decent score of 3.6 out of 5. It was a popcorn pusher very much like Jurasic Park: Rebirth was. Watch it, chew some corn and chocolate (I love putting them both in my face at the same time) and step out of the world for a couple of hours. As Matthew 6:34 says, “…tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” It’s okay to get away for a bit.
Not every one is meant to earn a statue
Speaking of Jurasic Park: Rebirth and Tron Ares, I have to take exception with a few of the other reviewers I follow out there.
I don’t know whether it’s a pitfall of constantly watching movies and grading them (for you…always for you, my Average Legion). But I feel like some once-trusted and enjoyable reviewers (looking at you, Critical Drinker, you irascible but lovable curmudgeon, you) have gotten maybe a wee bit too critical in their reviews. I know…it’s right there in the name…I get it. Even so….
Your Average Dude continues to look for the good in every movie and can still suspend disbelief and feel the ride. It’s what movies were made for, after all. I hope you don’t completely lose that joy.
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