My resistance to the charms of anything Tron related has never been strong. Even so, as a parent and normal person who needs to hold a full time job, I wasn’t sure when I would get around to seeing Tron: Legacy.
You see my boys weren’t excited about it (which raises paternity questions, but that’s for another post). I suppose that any movie without CGI furry animals dancing, spouting as many already out-dated buzz words (i.e.: dawg, the bomb) per minute possible and just plain overall sucking doesn’t illicit their attention. So, without being able to take them to see the movie, my time to view it was at a premium.
Thus, I was as surprised as anyone to find myself in a theater at 12:45 Saturday night, which would technically be Sunday morning (which I am easy like, by the way) to catch the long awaited sequel to Tron. So how did I like it? I thought you’d never ask.
If you are looking to go to a big action movie, this is not your pick. If you want deep, complex plot, again, not the movie you’re looking for. But, if you appreciate special effects, sci-fi and tech related story lines, this is the film for you. If you add in the fact that you are familiar with and enjoyed the original film, you should enjoy this movie.
Sure, Garrett Hedlund, who plays by Sam Flynn has a little too much Tom Cruise in Top Gun arrogance to him for my liking. Yes, they changed the lightcycles to look more like the Batcycle from The Dark Knight. But the lightcycle scene kicked ass, Jeff Bridges acts counter his younger self and there are tons of old ships and references to the old Tron, including a well masked homage to Bit who you may remember as the Yes/No floating ball that helped Kevin Flynn navigate through the Grid circa 1982 (winner is the first one to tell me where they saw it).
There were scenes in the film that made you nod in appreciation. Sometimes it was because the special effects looked awesome. Other times it was because you recognized something from the early eighties. Either way, the movie managed to keep you interested without being too cheesy.
At the heart of it, the story wasn’t so much about technology as it was a father-son relationship. This, too, was done without too much cheese, which was nice.
When it came down to it, my love for the original movie left me only hoping that this film would not fall flat on its face and make people think Tron was the stupidest thing since Paris Hilton. Not a lofty goal by any means, but at least it cleared the bar.
I enjoyed Tron: Legacy and if you aren’t expecting an Academy Award winner for anything other than special effects, you will too. Go out and see it, preferably in 3D and let me know if you agree. If you do, you can thank me for the tip. If you don’t, no refunds.
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