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The
new flick follows the plight of Sam Flynn (the nice-to-look-at but
charisma-less Garrett Hedlund), a rebellious 27 year old who is haunted
by the mysterious disappearance of his father Kevin Flynn (Tron original, Jeff Bridges).
When
Sam investigates a mysterious page (remember pagers?) sent from Flynn's
abandoned Arcade (Video Arcades, remember them?) he finds himself
pulled into the technobabble world of Tron where his father has been trapped for 20 years.
From here, very little makes sense plot-wise. There
is the fearless warrior Quorra (Olivia Wilde, the hottest young thing
on screens at the moment - not including Mila Kunis) learning about
"human things", a father and son life or death journey (which doubles
as a way of dealing with "Daddy Issues") across a visually-stunning
digital universe, double crossing, some weird Nazi parallels, some God
talk, as well as the sorts of vehicles and weapons that have made Tron the cult it is today. Make no mistake, there are plenty of problems with Tron Legacy... plenty!
The
story never quite makes sense (even if you are familiar with the
original), there are plot holes galore, some super creepy CGI of a
young Jeff Bridges (which, while not perfect now, will lead the way for
cinema in the future to allow Brad Pitt to play a 20 year old well into
his 70s), the inexplicable reason for old Jeff Bridges being "The Dude"
from The Big Lebowski and the severe lack of action and games in favour of endless (and ultimately pointless) exposition.
Yet, try as I might, I can't quite bring myself to say I disliked the movie. Much like Avatar (whose story was far simpler, yet just as useless), Tron Legacy
really thrives in it's ability to take you into the world of The Grid -
which is literally what a world created by an iPad would look like. Having
seen the film now on normal 3D cinema screens, IMAX 3D and DVD, I can
honestly say - IMAX 3D is the only way to see the film. The only thing Tron Legacy
has going for it is the visuals, no questions asked (you have to wade
through almost two hours of talking to find the visuals... but they're
there) - and it won't be delivered any better than in IMAX 3D. Sadly,
the DVD version struggles to hide the problems with the booming weight
of audio and depth of the cinema experience very much lacking leaving
little to really engage with. That said, the Blu Ray edition looks
spectacular and is the only way to go if you are a home-cinema buff. Look - you could do a lot worse then spend your cash on Tron Legacy,
so while you will finish up somewhat confused - if you leave
your brain at the door and enjoy the shiny sparkly things then all will
be right in the world. It's good fun, visually mind blowing... if not taken seriously. DVD Special Features
Again, the DVD isn't the best way to experience Tron
Legacy both in terms of the film and special features. What's on offer
here are some pretty lacklustre featurettes (including a First look at the Disney XD Animated SeriesTron : Uprising, Visualizing TRON and Installing The Cast) which - like the film - never quite answer the questions you need answered.
So, again, 3D Blu Ray is the way to go with this one.
However, if you need any real excuse to look at the amazing eyes of Olivia Wilde in this flick - you need your head checked! Conclusion:
Movie 65% Extras: 60%
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