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The framework of futility is revisited in this mind-bendingly dull science fiction movie, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. This is a third installment to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a movie that was groundbreaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that escapes this film and its forerunner Tron: Legacy from 2010. The new Tron film almost comes to life just once – when Evan Peters gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson playing his mum, in an traditional bit of real-world action. That's a piece of tough love you might want to administering to every producer engaged in this film, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith's character being made to look so lifeless.

Plot Overview of The New Tron Film

The scenario currently is that an evil AI corporation with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger Corp has become a rival to the VR company Encom, first established in the 1980s gaming period by genius trailblazer Kevin Flynn's character, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (originally set up by Encom executive Ed Dillinger, played by David Warner) is led by the founder’s odiously nerdish grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to design and create profitable things such as indestructible soldiers and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then export them into the real world using a kind of 3D printer.

The issue is that however fearsome, these things crumble into dust after twenty-nine minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the plot-driving “permanence algorithm” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even keeps it on her person on a extremely basic USB drive. So the dreadful Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares, the humanoid uber-warrior which can exit the virtual realm for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of androids, is starting to exhibit symptoms of not doing what he is commanded. Jodie Turner-Smith plays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena and poor Jeff Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in wise white robes, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

Moreover, Ares – the protagonist of the film's name – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, facial hair and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were perhaps created by typing the words “extremely annoying” into an artificial intelligence character generator. Nobody who remembers the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Mr Leto, and I was incidentally very entertained by his expansive (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 weak storyline which is supposed to allow him to display glimpses of “empathy” for Eve Kim's role and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus making her marginally more interesting. It is meant to be adorable when Ares says how he loves 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode band are superior to Mozart's compositions.

Franchise Elements and Overall Impact

And in keeping with the franchise identity of the series, there are motorbikes from the virtual underworld which whizz about the environment in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of antique arcade games (or even dance clubs); a single bike even emits a death ray which slices a police vehicle in half. But there is zero tension or danger or emotional engagement anywhere. This series currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.