KnightWing Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 Just saw this an hour ago. It wasn't quite what I expected, but that may be a good thing. Judging by the first film and the trailers for this one, I expected a lot more action and a faster pace than what we got. This is a rather subdued film, only really getting crazy for about 30mins or so. While the first movie was a bright, fun, 80s-cheesefest with high adventure and a sort of magical giddiness, this one's more of a character drama. The vast majority of it's spent with the characters just sort of standing around and talking about all the philosophical epiphanies that logically should have been in the first movie. While it does work, I have to admit that I spent a good portion of the middle of the movie thinking, "come ON! get back into the action!" What action there is is great, though one major problem is that about half the action scenes take place before the plot or characters are entirely set up, so the audience is left with very little in the way of emotional tension. The soundtrack only really kicks into high gear a few times in the movie; the rest of it's very low-key (sort of like the stuff you hear in Hans Zimmer's Batman scores). However, when it gets it right (in the opening scenes, the techno club, and the finale), it gets it DAMN right. Whether through electronic beats or orchestral swells, Daft Punk manages to craft an emotional and exciting audio narrative. They should've been contracted to do film scores a long time ago. There was one particular plot element that I (and a lot of the other people in the theater) found particularly lacking, perhaps on a more personal level. (mark this one a SUPER-spoiler; don't open 'til you've seen the movie) The reveal that Rinzler was TRON was rather... lacking. I'd already figured it out before I walked into the theater, just from the trailers and promotional materials (because Rinzler is the only named character with a full opaque mask, and he has the same four glowing dots on his chest that TRON had), so I spent the entire time just waiting for TRON to turn good. The flashback scene was great, but kept TRON out of focus and in the background for the most part. When the "turning" moment finally came, it was a bit too short. (though his "I fight for the Users" line nearly made me flip out with joy) He seemed to be "purified" by the water in the sea of simulation, but didn't de-rez, so I'm assuming he'll be back in a sequel? That reminds me. Cillian Murphy just jumped into the movie without anyone's notice, apparently playing the son of Ed Dillinger?! Hell YES! He only had one scene—which is odd for such a high-level actor—leading me to believe that he's going to come back in the sequels. Which would be AMAZING. But back to TRON... a lot of the people in the audience were waiting until after the credits to see if maybe there'd be a scene where TRON crawls up out of the waters, alive and well. Alas, we'll have to wait and see. So help me, if there's not a sequel or two to this movie, I'll be very let down. There's way too much material laid out here to just be left alone for another 28 years. One last thing: During one of the early scenes (dealing with Garett Hedlund being a rebellious kid), my friend leaned over and said "he'd make a GREAT Terry McGinnis." And he really would. He's a tiny bit old for the role, but man, he's really got that type of character down. And he can do action. Long as Beechen's not writing the script, that's a movie I'd like to see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Man Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 That was a really well rounded review, KnightWing. Good job. Your comments regarding the lack of action has me puzzled. It's a 3D Tron movie and it's not wall to digital wall with action? I'm surprised but also hopeful. Have they actually endeavored to tell a good story here? That would be great. Also, your point regarding early action and emotional tension is very insightful. There is nothing wrong with action eye candy during a prologue sequence to pique our interest but, eventually, the audience has to care about the characters if we are to invest ourselves in their jeopardy. This is especially true for high concept genre pictures like Tron. We need to ground ourselves in characters before we can fully buy into the fantastical world they inhabit. I'm definately going to try to see this in a theatre. Your review has made me curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koete Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 I'm already seeing Black Swan and True Grit in the theater, so this will probably be a Netflix rental for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Man Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 Well, yeah, Koete. With TRUE GRIT it's not 'try,' it's 'do' see it in a theater. I'm intrigued by BLACK SWAN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 I'm already seeing Black Swan and True Grit in the theater, so this will probably be a Netflix rental for me. That would be a mistake. This is one movie that NEEDS to be seen in the theater, in 3D. Honestly, this is one of those films that reminded me of why we still have theaters in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koete Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 People said the same thing about Avatar. Besides, if I did see it in the theater, I wouldn't see it in 3D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 Avatar is a crap movie. Tron is not. Even not in 3D, you should see it in the theater. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stavros Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 I'll go see it, and I'll see it in 3-D because the artificial enhancement seems appropriate for the film, and the colour degradation won't matter as much because there's only about 3 colours in the film. This is one of those rare occasions when I think 3-D is ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted December 17, 2010 Report Share Posted December 17, 2010 The only drawback to the 3D was that the screen was darker and less vibrant. It was a lot sharper, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stavros Posted December 20, 2010 Report Share Posted December 20, 2010 I shouldn't have bothered with 3-D, although I did like the idea that it only kicked in when they were in the CG world. Overall I thought this was just ok, a three star film. To be honest, I thought the Matrix explored the possibilities of this concept far better, it was like a looming presence over this film throughout. It was fun on a basic action adventure level but there wasn't really much to it overall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stavros Posted December 22, 2010 Report Share Posted December 22, 2010 Actually I've realised what annoyed me most about Tron: Legacy. The title character is barely in it, and in the end gets only the most prefunctionary redemption. We never even see his real face again. Seriously, what major movie franchise would reduce it's title character to a evil flunky in a sequel and then never show his face after he turns good again? It's not like it wasn't possible, they had him mask-less earlier in the film. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted December 22, 2010 Report Share Posted December 22, 2010 Actually I've realised what annoyed me most about Tron: Legacy. The title character is barely in it, and in the end gets only the most prefunctionary redemption. We never even see his real face again. Seriously, what major movie franchise would reduce it's title character to a evil flunky in a sequel and then never show his face after he turns good again? It's not like it wasn't possible, they had him mask-less earlier in the film. That was the worst part about it for me, too. And going by general fanboy reaction, it's the worst part of the movie for all the fans of the original film. I mean, I'm not unhappy with the story we got, and if TRON hadn't been in the movie at all, I'dve probably been fine with it. But since we got that tease and reveal, it seemed rather disappointing. However, they totally left that open for a sequel, and I'd be really happy if TRON had the same role in the next film that Kevin Flynn had in this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug Posted December 22, 2010 Report Share Posted December 22, 2010 Just saw Tron Legacy. Wasn't aware that the director who did Lady GaGa music video's also did movies. (In reference to the suit up scene) All seriousness aside, I like it. I'll post more when I'm not so tired. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TFG1Mike Posted January 1, 2011 Report Share Posted January 1, 2011 Just saw Tron Legacy today... loved it. Especially after I finally saw the first one. I like both Tron films. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Venneh Posted January 1, 2011 Report Share Posted January 1, 2011 Saw this earlier this week, liked it a fair bit, haven't seen Tron yet but I have it on my flash drive. Very pretty (I want Jeff Bridges' jacket, NOW), good balance of action and quieter moments, and a wholly unexpected God allegory to the whole thing. But, if Jeff Bridges were god, I think I could solve a lot of my issues with religion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted January 1, 2011 Report Share Posted January 1, 2011 ... a wholly unexpected God allegory to the whole thing. That's actually a bit more present in the first one, where you've got I/O towers as churches and "belief in the Users" as a religion being squashed by the humanistic (programistic?) government system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koete Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Lots of Tron DVDs and Blu-Rays to choose from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 That's just ridiculous. I don't even care about the 3D Blu-Ray. Well, at least they're finally re-releasing the original TRON on Blu-Ray. Disney's getting a good $55 of my money this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dc20willsave Posted March 3, 2011 Report Share Posted March 3, 2011 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THcItXSnngA&feature=player_embedded I want to go to there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted March 3, 2011 Report Share Posted March 3, 2011 Oh wow; that looks better than I thought it would. Hopefully this one can have the "fun" that Legacy was lacking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dc20willsave Posted March 30, 2011 Report Share Posted March 30, 2011 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgZs4reDohk&feature=player_embedded Excuse me for a second. SQUEEEE!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted March 30, 2011 Report Share Posted March 30, 2011 As much as Tron: Legacy wasn't flat-out amazing, I'm absolutely down for a sequel. There's no reason they can't still make a great, fun movie with that universe. And bringing back Dillinger Sr.? Excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dc20willsave Posted March 30, 2011 Report Share Posted March 30, 2011 As much as Tron: Legacy wasn't flat-out amazing, I'm absolutely down for a sequel. There's no reason they can't still make a great, fun movie with that universe. And bringing back Dillinger Sr.? Excellent. I was more squeeing because Dillinger isn't talking to his father. He's talking to the MCP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightWing Posted March 30, 2011 Report Share Posted March 30, 2011 Yeah, that was an odd thing... he calls him "dad", but the username reads "MCTRL" and it speaks in the MCP's voice. So... did Ed Dillinger Sr. digitize himself, thereby becoming a new MCP? It reminds me of the TRON 2.0 game, where the story went that Laura Bradley had been partially digitized (and killed) in a lab accident, but Alan Bradley was able to take some of her digitized DNA and craft it into a new "mother" program called Ma3a. Maybe something like that happened to Dillinger Sr., and he is now a program? Food for geek thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legender Posted March 30, 2011 Report Share Posted March 30, 2011 Lots of Tron DVDs and Blu-Rays to choose from. Seems like there is a boatload of extras here. I just need a blu-ray, DVD and the original, but owing to space considerations I will probably opt for the VOD option next week. That is where I am headed...Netflix, VOD, Roku box, etc. The real way of the future! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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