Here and there, Disney produces something decidedly unique and groundbreaking. 1982’s Tron is certainly one of the most striking examples of such a project. Its extensive use of computer-generated imagery (CGI), its at-the-time bold leap into the realms of computing as a source of setting and plot elements, and its distinctive visual design all left an imprint far larger than the film’s box office. I recall being struck, as I wandered the aisles of VHS rental tapes as a kid, that Tron looked like nothing else.
Also occasionally, Disney returns to a property that wasn’t one of its huge, core animated musical smashes of the past. And so 2010 saw the release of Tron: Legacy, a very ambitious sequel play on that quirky landmark of the 80s. I had watched Legacy once for sure, before. Maybe twice, parts of it. But it had been a while and it seemed like a fine thing for a Second Look…
Back Then
In the mid-late 00s I went for a while without really watching many new films, and missed out on seeing Tron: Legacy in theaters. That remains one of my biggest regrets in the realm of lost big screen opportunities. I did finally watch the film a couple of years after its release, at home. My recollections of the movie more or less fall into two thoughts: it’s total blast for the senses; and I didn’t remember a ton about the story beyond a few key beats and memorable scenes. Was is, is it, a memorable movie?
Grid Research
I decided to revisit the original 1982 Tron film first, in order to have its foundational context in mind. It’s a fairly straightforward story, though articulating its core theme with brevity a slight challenge. The message isn’t ambiguous, but the real world core of it—that software should be ethically operated in service of the users—gets taken for a whimsical ride inside the world of the computer.
There, the concept of “freedom for the system” is somewhat anthropomorphized (for lack of a better term) into a conventional save-the-kingdom type narrative. Which is part of what’s fun about Tron–its fusion of tech with the storytelling forms of a classic fable.
Anyway, the core narrative follows Jeff Bridges’ Kevin Flynn as he gets zapped into the digital realm–where programs take the form of people–by a laser matter transformation device, and aids the heroic program Tron in defeating the villainous Master Control Program, restoring utopian freedom and transparency to the system of software company ENCOM. That’s where we leave off…
Tron: Legacy Revisited
More came to mind to talk about than I expected when I gave the TRON: Legacy Blu-ray a spin. This writeup may be a little long, so I’ve broken it down in an effort help readability. To summarize my basic feeling, I think that I’m slightly more underwhelmed in some ways, yet slightly more appreciative in others.
1. Story & Theme
How does Legacy work as a continuation of the original Tron? I sense myself being drawn into a pattern of dual-thoughts, and one of those pairs is that on one hand I think that the core “new” concept at the center of Legacy is a very good one. On the other, I feel that the film’s overall frame for said concept is a little disappointing.
Kevin Flynn’s son Sam (Garrett Hedlund) is the main character, and decades after his dad disappeared without a trace, old friend and fellow ENCOM programmer Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner) gets a page from the now-closed arcade that Kevin used to own. Alan suggests that Sam go and check it out, and when the latter finds dusty computer terminal and calls up the last thing that the previous user was doing, he is laser zapped into the Grid, a “digital frontier” that his dad had been building and had told him about as a kid.
A lot of things happen, but the central storyline is that Kevin, his personal digital proxy Clu (Codified Likeness Utility) and Tron were attempting to build “the perfect system”. All purpose-written code, or to use this franchise’s way of expressing it, the work of human Users, either directly or via user-created programs like Clu and Tron. But then something unexpected happened: native digital life forms, ISOs (isomorphic organisms), appeared. Kevin regarded this as a wonder; Clu as an aberration. The latter staged a coup, trapped Kevin in the Grid, and seemingly destroyed all the ISOs.
The ISOs are the new concept that I was talking about, a “miracle” that leads to questions, may promise answers, may or may not make sense, but is in any case a really cool idea. Sam eventually discovers that the ostensible program who rescues him from Clu and takes him to his father, Quorra (Olivia Wilde), is an ISO, the last living or free. Kevin believes that her code has the potential to transform humanity in the real world. I’m willing to go along with that without scrutinizing it too much, because the idea is that something beyond intention or understanding has happened.
Wilde is the actor who makes the premise work. She plays the role with a perfect combination of a slightly restrained robotic body language, along with a personality full of pure joy and curiosity. I can believe that this is a new form of life. Her relationship with Bridges’ old, bearded Kevin Flynn (he has aged during his digital exile) offers an interesting dynamic. She regards him with deference–does she refer to him inaccurately as her “creator”? I cannot recall–and while he is her teacher and mentor, he is clearly in awe of her as something beyond even his expert understanding. This part of the film is where Legacy goes the deepest, and in my opinion, succeeds.
Beyond the ISO story, though, I’ve got some issues. A mostly minor one is the visible influence of other franchises. A little Star Wars here, a Nolan-esque shot practically blaring “THE DARK KNIGHT” there. The echo that I find the most distracting is the snazzy club on the Grid run by Michael Sheen’s Zeus, which feels straight out of The Matrix and not very Tron-like to me. To be clear, not a big deal. But having just watched original Tron, I find the sequel to be somewhat less self-possessed as its own thing.
My bigger issue with Legacy is that I’m not sure that Clu’s rebellion and crusade really make sense. I can buy that Clu, tasked with “creating the perfect system”, would regard the ISOs as imperfections to be removed. But why would he, a program, regard Kevin Flynn’s embrace of the ISOs as some sort of betrayal, and then begin railing about the “tyranny of the user” as he basically becomes the old Master Control Program and prepares to attempt an invasion of the real world?
It’s possible that all of this makes sense because Clu is actually somehow a warped copy of Flynn’s younger self, with all of his human quirks; Legacy seems to maybe be suggesting this. However, the Clu of the original film, briefly seen before being deleted, and indeed all of the programs aside from the MCP, are shown to be dutiful functionaries who simply do their jobs. They aren’t truly AI, and it’s unclear how the one exception (the MCP) gained self-awareness and a thirst for power. In the original film, that doesn’t particularly matter as it is simply the opening landscape with which we’re presented. A program written like a dictator has become even more of one than intended.
Here, the notion of a falling-out and subsequent reign of vengeance feels a bit too much like a dramatic concession, versus a logical extrapolation of this saga’s building blocks. Maybe someone else here has read or explored the wider Tron universe more than I have, and can offer some insight.
(I have some additional thoughts about the nature of programs in the Tronverse, which I might throw into a comment so as not to extend this section.)
2. Aesthetic
Legacy is a uniquely gorgeous film with a phenomenal soundtrack. The latter, by Daft Punk, is probably almost everyone’s favorite thing about the movie, to the extent that not much needs to be said about it. When pieces like “The Son of Flynn”, “Rinzler” or the recurring main theme play, it still sends shivers up my spine. What a great pairing.
Visually, Legacy to some degree reinterprets but also redefines the style of Tron. In trying to come up with a reference point, I decided that the costumes, sets and vehicles are kind of like the look of a Power Mac G4 Cube, pulled like taffy and with night-mode theming. Blacks, both matte and gloss, are crossed by rivers of brilliant white-blue light. Or sinister red-orange light in the case of the bad guys. Transparent curves wrap gamespaces and viewports. It’s beautiful.
Does that look serve the story as well as the original Tron’s design language, though? I’m gonna say…not quite. The original, however primitive by comparison, feels like its choices were informed by circuit boards and an attempt to imagine life inside a computer. Legacy feels more like (again) an exercise in hardware/external design. There is some logic to that, the idea that this Grid–as opposed to the earlier System–is sort of an interface that abstracts the gears of lower-level code in order to be user friendly. In that, fair enough. Still, for all the splendor on display, I think that the inside/outside contrast is a little weaker here than before.
3. ISO-lated
On its own terms, this is certainly a fun film. The frustrations that I’ve mentioned probably don’t matter to a viewer approaching without any Tron background. I think that the core story is easy to follow and played out by actors who inhabit their roles well. The fantasy adventure geometry and presentation of programs as people allow this story about a software war to be not far off from a classic Disney tale, or again, some blend of Star Wars and The Matrix.
My one criticism from this level would be that even though it’s a feast for the senses, Legacy‘s quality of being engaging is uneven. When Jeff Bridges speaks, or the music pounds as light-cycles race, it’s riveting. In between the peaks…the best way that I can think of to put it is that I don’t always feel that I have to be paying close attention.
Final specific thought, the last scene is a great one. Sam and Quorra are back in the real world, riding Kevin’s old motorcycle. Holding on to Sam, Quorra looks off at the sun rising through clouds and morning rain, her hair blowing in the wind. It’s a callback to an earlier scene on the Grid, and it’s the perfect final note to end on.
📀 Summary 📀
My takeaway from this rewatch is that Tron: Legacy succeeds in fusing incredible style with a compelling core idea. At the same time, it definitely bears the hallmarks of what is still—in the context of blockbuster filmmaking—a somewhat nerdy concept being stretched into more mainstream form. That is completely understandable, and maybe a good thing.
Either way, I remain very glad that Disney pumped an ocean of money into this film. I try not to overuse words, but you really can’t say “cool” too many times in this case.
End of line.