Tron: Ares Review – Despite Gillian Anderson's Efforts Fails to Rescue This Incredibly Mind-Bendingly Dull Science Fiction Movie

The matrix of futility is reloaded in this mind-bendingly dull science fiction film, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. It's a threequel to the original movie Tron from the early 80s, a movie that was mould-breaking and courageously innovative for its time in a way that escapes this one and its forerunner Tron Legacy from 2010. The new Tron film almost comes to life just one time – when Evan Peters' character gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character portraying his mother, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. That's a piece of tough love you might want to handing out to every producer engaged in this film, and it's sad to see the respected Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith's character being made to look so lifeless.

Plot Overview of Tron: Ares

The scenario now is that an evil AI corporation with the obviously criminal name of Dillinger has become a competitor to the virtual reality firm Encom, first established in the 1980s gaming period by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (initially founded by Encom executive Ed Dillinger's role, acted by David Warner) is led by the founder's odiously nerdish grandson's character Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to develop and produce profitable things such as invincible troops and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then export them into the real world using a sort of three-dimensional printer.

The issue is that however fearsome, these creations disintegrate after 29 minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the plot-driving “permanence algorithm” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even stores it on her person on a very low-tech USB drive. So the ghastly Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares, the humanoid uber-warrior which can leave the VR world for twenty-nine minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is starting to exhibit symptoms of not doing what he is commanded. Jodie Turner-Smith plays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena's role and poor Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in sage-like white garments, like a Poundshop Jor-El on Krypton.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

Moreover, Ares – the protagonist of the title – is played by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, facial hair and subtly omniscient grin, touches that were possibly created by inputting the words “extremely annoying” into an AI human creation programme. Nobody who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Mr Leto, and I was also quite amused by his expansive (and widely misinterpreted) comic turn in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Leto is consistently, unrelentingly awful here, although his performance isn't aided by a limp plot point which is intended to allow him to display glimpses of “empathy” for Greta Lee's character and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena's character, thus rendering her slightly more engaging. It is meant to be adorable when Ares the character says how he adores 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode band are better than Mozart.

Series Features and Final Impression

Consistent with the franchise identity of the franchise, there are motorbikes from the VR netherworld which whizz about the place in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of antique arcade games (or indeed nightclubs); a single bike even shoots out a lethal beam which slices a cop car in two. But there is no drama or jeopardy or human interest throughout. This franchise currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.