🔗 Share this article

The framework of futility is revisited in this tediously complex science fiction film, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. This is a third installment to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a film that was groundbreaking and courageously innovative for its time in a way that eludes this film and its predecessor Tron: Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares nearly awakens just one time – when Evan Peters gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character portraying his mum, in an old-fashioned bit of real-world action. This is a piece of tough love you might feel like administering to every producer involved in this movie, and it's unfortunate to see the estimable Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so uninspired.

Plot Overview of Tron: Ares

The scenario currently is that an evil AI corporation with the obviously criminal name of Dillinger has become a competitor to the VR company Encom Inc, originally set up in the 80s arcade-game era by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger, acted by David Warner) is headed by the founder’s odiously nerdish grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create lucrative items such as indestructible soldiers and armored vehicles in the virtual reality grid and then export them into the real world using a sort of three-dimensional printer.

The problem is that no matter how intimidating, these things crumble into dust after 29 minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim's character (Greta Lee) has discovered the plot-driving “permanence code” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even stores it on her person on a extremely basic flashdrive. So the dreadful Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares, the humanoid uber-warrior which can leave the VR world for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is beginning to show signs of disobeying what he is commanded. Jodie Turner-Smith plays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena and unfortunate Jeff Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in wise white robes, like a Poundshop Jor-El on Krypton.

Character and Performance Analysis

Moreover, Ares – the protagonist of the title – is acted by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, facial hair and subtly omniscient grin, details that were possibly designed by inputting the words “extremely annoying” into an artificial intelligence character generator. Nobody who recalls the 1990s television classic My So-Called Life series will ever find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Mr Leto, and I was incidentally quite amused by his broad (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, unrelentingly awful in this film, although his performance isn't aided by a limp plot point which is intended to allow him to display glimpses of “compassion” for Eve Kim's role and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus rendering her slightly more engaging. It is meant to be charming when Ares the character says how he loves 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode are better than Mozart.

Franchise Elements and Final Impression

Consistent with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorbikes from the VR netherworld which speed around the environment in long straight lines, conforming to the angular layout of classic video games (or indeed dance clubs); one even emits a lethal beam which slices a cop car in half. But there is no drama or jeopardy or human interest anywhere. This series now looks about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.