Tron: Ares has arrived to smother a confounding sci-fi franchise in star power, sex appeal, and nostalgia, hoping for fresh relevance. But right out the gate, it already feels behind the times.
Sure, back in 1982 when Tron hit theaters, it was groundbreaking with its flashy visual effects and delving into the AI discourse well before it was part of our everyday news cycle. But now, 43 years later, Tron: Ares has nothing all that intriguing to say about technology. Instead, this third entry in a franchise that's always centered on corporate intrigue suggests that technology can be a tool or a weapon, depending on who wields it.
Sure, plenty of media has said as much. But this movie boasts impossibly attractive stars like Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Jodie Turner-Smith, Gillian Anderson, and Jeff Bridges. Plus, it's got a soundtrack by Nine Inch Nails that absolutely rocks. So, while Tron: Ares might have all the depth of a kiddie pool, it still bests Tron and the awful 2010 sequel, Tron: Legacy. (I'm not over what CG de-aging did to Jeff Bridges, and I'm not alone.)
What do you need to remember about Tron and Tron: Legacy to watch Tron: Ares?
The new film begins with a montage of news reports to catch audiences up on how Tron: Ares connects to where Tron: Legacy left off. But in case you need a bit more or a refresher: The first two films established that game designer (and eventual ENCOM CEO) Kevin Flynn (Bridges) got sucked into "The Grid," a virtual world where computer programs appear as people and hacking computer systems resembles hand-to-hand combat.
By the end of the second film, Flynn was trapped in The Grid, but his son, Sam (Garrett Hedlund), and their AI buddy Quorra (Olivia Wilde) escaped, planning to lead ENCOM into a new age of excellence. However, at the start of Tron: Ares, Sam is long gone with his "mystery woman," and tech genius Eve Kim (Lee) is running ENCOM.
What is Tron: Ares about?
The short answer is corporate espionage. Reverse engineering the laser from Tron — which for whatever reason transports oranges and humans into The Grid — Eve is looking to bring things designed in the computer to the real world. However, this is also the goal of her business rival Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), CEO of Dillinger Systems and grandson of Ed Dillinger, the bad guy from Tron.
They have different aims for these lasers that can 3D print anything from plants to vehicles to super soldiers in minutes. There's just one problem: Neither ENCOM nor Dillinger Systems can get these Grid-based things to last beyond 29 minutes. That's bad news for Ares, Dillinger's Master Control security system, because every time he's printed to complete a mission for Julian, he has 29 minutes in the real world and then dies, turning into pixelated ash. And for reasons I didn't understand in Tron or Tron: Legacy, programs feel pain. So, repeatedly, Tron: Ares shows Ares and his second-in-command, Athena (Turner-Smith), screaming in agony as they turn into dust in the wind.
That repeated pain might be enough to prompt Ares to shift into self-preservation mode. But he's seeking Flynn's long-lost "Permanence Code" because Julian wants it for his warmongering. However, Ares hopes to pull a Quorra and speed off into the real world for good. Then, while cyberstalking Eve for the code's location, Ares goes all Eros and falls in love. He wants to live and for Eve not to be killed by Julian's merciless quest to be the best tech CEO, even if that means having her murdered by a rampaging Athena.
Tron: Ares is preachy and sometimes fun.
To the credit of screenwriter Jesse Witgutow, Tron: Ares has more real-world stakes than the previous two films, which were basically about a copyright dispute and who'd run ENCOM. In this film, the 3D printing capability could change the world for better or worse. To Julian, it's the perfect way to wage wars, printing off massive battle vehicles with an endless supply of Ares and Athena, who he tells his board are "100% expendable." Meanwhile, Eve is looking to solve world hunger by trying to create an orange tree in the Arctic.
Don't think about how, even if she could, there's no logical reason that tree would then survive, Permanence Code or not. Tron movies are not for thinking. That's clear by how Witgutow spoon-feeds audiences the thesis, not only through a charming (albeit requisite) cameo from a sage classic Tron character, but also by having Ares say, "The thing about life…" before literally just explaining what he — and by extension us — should have learned from his journey.
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And yet, about an hour into this two-hour movie, I was enjoying myself. It wasn't so much the action, which director Joachim Rønning sprawls across The Grid and a real-world metropolis with an expected array of neon-red flare. It was a weird blend of cool nostalgia and dad-joke-level humor that warmed my cold, Tron-averse heart. For instance, Eve and Ares are fleeing an on-mission Athena, and Ares makes a goofy accidental pun by talking about his love for Depeche Mode. How did he get into Depeche Mode? Again, shut up. That's not what Tron: Ares is here for. The point is, he likes it. And in a very Jordan Catalano way, it's charming that Leto's once again got long hair (which for some reason is always in "wet look" mode) and a dim rocker-boy allure.
Props to Greta Lee, because while the programs (Ares and Athena) are mostly stoic (when not turning to ash), she's got to carry the emotional weight of the movie as the human caught up in the center of all this mayhem. Peters brings plenty of tech bro energy, of course, but mostly of the megalomaniac man-baby kind. Arturo Castro, who stole scenes in the Road House reboot, makes for some of the biggest laughs as Eve's helper/comic relief. Turner-Smith is exciting as a full-metal badass (with great eye makeup), and Gillian Anderson takes on the thankless role of an underwritten female character, which has been part of the Tron franchise since its inception. Hey, you need someone to be shocked when the bad guy does something bad!
Truly, the Nine Inch Nails soundtrack is reason enough to see Tron: Ares in IMAX.
If you're more into the Tron aesthetic than I am (which is very likely), then the IMAX presentation will surely thrill. The blend of CG and practical effects is seamless when it's meant to be. And when things take on an '80s look, it can be amusing in a nostalgic way. But that score will rattle your bones and raise goosebumps.
On some level, Nine Inch Nails is an odd choice for a movie that has a character championing the songs of Depeche Mode (which does make a soundtrack appearance). But band members Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross have been making scorching scores for movies like Challengers, Gone Girl, and The Social Network, winning an Oscar for the last. So there's also a level of "no duh" to this choice. And man, if you get nostalgic about The Crow soundtrack (on which Nine Inch Nails appeared), you'll resonate with Tron: Ares' score.
The throbbing electronic music gives a darkness to the throwback vision of futuristic sci-fi. The score's driving sex appeal bolsters the growing yearning between Ares and Eve, even though they don't really have time — in this life or deletion battle — to explore it. And seeing Tron: Ares in IMAX means that score will pump right through you, past your pores and into your bloodstream. In that sense, it pulls you into the movie by allowing you to feel swallowed by something, like The Grid, and excited by its possibilities. Where the movie is beholden to IP and a placid message about great tech power meaning great tech responsibility, this soundtrack feels as ruthlessly savage and rebellious as "Closer."
All in all, Tron: Ares is heavy-handed, dunderheaded, and over earnest, but also occasionally funny, charming, sexy, and thrilling.