Review of Tron: Ares – Despite Gillian Anderson Fails to Save This Incredibly Mind-Bendingly Dull Science Fiction Film

The framework of futility is revisited in this tediously complex sci-fi film, closer to a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. It's a third installment to the original movie Tron from the early 80s, a film that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its day in a way that escapes this film and its forerunner Tron Legacy from the previous decade. Tron: Ares nearly comes to life just once – when Evan Peters gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character portraying his mother, in an traditional bit of analogue reality. This is a bit of firm parenting you might want to administering to all the producers engaged in this film, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so uninspired.

Story Summary of Tron: Ares

The scenario now is that an evil AI corporation with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger Corp has become a rival to the virtual reality firm Encom, first established in the 1980s gaming period by genius trailblazer Kevin Flynn, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (originally set up by Encom executive Ed Dillinger's role, played by David Warner) is led by the founder's annoyingly geeky grandson Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to develop and produce profitable things such as invincible troops and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then export them into actual reality using a kind of 3D printer.

The issue is that no matter how intimidating, these creations crumble into dust after 29 minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim's character (Greta Lee) has uncovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence algorithm” which can keep these things alive for ever, and even keeps it on her person on a very low-tech USB drive. So the dreadful Julian deploys his enforcer on her: Ares, the humanoid uber-warrior which can leave the VR world for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the time-honoured way of robots, is starting to exhibit symptoms of disobeying what he is commanded. Jodie Turner-Smith plays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena's role and poor Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in sage-like white garments, like a Poundshop Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

And Ares himself – the protagonist of the film's name – is played by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, beard and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were possibly designed by typing the words “incredibly irritating” into an AI human creation programme. Nobody who recalls the 1990s television classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Mr Leto, and I was also very entertained by his expansive (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is unremittingly, persistently terrible here, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “compassion” for Greta Lee's character and subcontract all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus making her slightly more engaging. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares says how he loves 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart's compositions.

Series Features and Overall Impact

And in keeping with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorbikes from the virtual underworld which whizz about the environment in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of antique arcade games (or even dance clubs); a single bike even emits a death ray which slices a cop car in half. But there is zero tension or danger or emotional engagement anywhere. This series currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.