Rewatched Tron Legacy (ramble on)

Deric

****WARNING REALLY LONG RAMBLING RANDOM THOUGHTS ARE BELOW****
****I AM BY NO MEANS A MOVIE CRITIC, IF YOU CHOOSE TO READ THIS YOU DO SO AT YOUR OWN RISK****

I just rewatched Tron Legacy and after seeing it again I must say for the most part they did an awesome job. I know a lot of people gave it a bad rap especially on the CG Clu character.

I think people overlook how good the CGI is in this movie. From the vehicles to the environment there are barely any times the usual polished or jerky appearance of CGI shows itself. I agree the Clu CGI has its bad moments (especially when he is yelling or when he is opening his eyes really wide during an expression) but there are times for what it is it is darn good. The scene with Clu in the End of Line Club is the best in my opinion. Could it have been better? Probably and they may have even been able to put makeup on Jeff Bridges to make him look younger versus motion capture. In the end it is still good and doesn't really pull you out of the movie too much when you see the bad (Young Kevin and Clu talking or when Young Kevin runs from Clu).

The movie's main focus is The Grid, and while that is really what Tron is mostly about, this movie made me want to know more about the real world story of the people involved. Maybe they will do this in the 3rd one if it is made. Speaking of the 3rd one I think they really set things up well especially with Tron turning back to the good side at the end and with what really happens to Flynn. The one part of the story I didn't care about though was the Quorra character. I really think they will have a hard time selling her as the next miracle. This is the one thing I am concerned about in the next one.

Another thing I really enjoyed during the rewatch was the secondary players. Some of these characters were done so well for the little time they have on screen. Castor and Gem I think really steal the show in The Grid and Dillinger's son and Alan's struggle with the board in the real world. I think there is a lot of potential with these background characters.

As I said I think the CGI is top notch and the visuals just fit in so well. The action is great especially with the Light-Jets. One thing I didn't care too much for or maybe didn't pay attention to the first time around was the music. Maybe it was the theater I was in but when viewing this at home, the music is such a part of what makes this update work. I've never been a fan of techno or house music but this soundtrack has me sold. I had no idea who Daft Punk was going in and not to sound too pig-headed on it but I think the soundtrack is their best work after sampling some of their stuff online. I found myself turning the volume up loud shortly into the rewatch.

If you haven't seen this in a while or were on the fence about seeing it I definitely recommend a re-watch especially since I seeit is on Netflix now if you have it.

-Deric

nickytea

My ears were burning. I'm always up for talking about the finer points of Legacy.

If you're interested in the real-world happenings pre-Legacy, the viral campaign leading up to the movie, called FLYNN LIVES, did a great job of rounding out the universe. Not sure how familiar you are with that, but there's still a lot of content you can enjoy.

SmilingOtter

I was certain that they were planning ahead for a third film when Cillian Murphy got such a small role as Dillinger's son.

spectre_general

I thought they were still going ahead with two more films centered around Murphy's character as villain?

I watched this just recently and was shocked by how much fun it was. I paid no attention to it at all when it came out, and expected nothing from it, but it's a great movie.

I hope they do another, but only if Daft Punk keeps scoring it.

MFP 2020

I loved the panoramic vistas and the stunning visuals and the music, but only liked the movie. My biggest question was why, even though they're still in the middle of Uncanny Valley with young Flynn and Clu, they went ahead with it. I could have forgiven the Polar Express-ness of Clu if they'd softened every other character's features similarly (and perhaps left the three majors "real"), but why wouldn't they have shot around it with young Flynn? They could have left him in the shadows and I would have totally bought it, because that's the way they used to do things before CGI came along. And yes, it's a 98% CGI movie, but why risk taking the audience out of it in the first 10 minutes?

Thatisall.

G17RDY

I loved Tron Legacy - from start to finish it was great.
I do agree about the CLU CGI, but considering they had to completely animate and stitch a young Flynn CGI head on a stunt double body, whilst syncing it to JB's voice-over, i think they pulled off one incredible job.

But wholeheartedly agree on the soundtrack, it adds so much to the movie, the opening theme music (The Grid, track 2 on the album) is incredible, and it's my ringtone (just after the point where Jeff Bridges stops talking) I listen to the album a lot, especially in the car!

The other great thing besides the story, universe, set up and CGI - Is the props and wardrobe - It's a collectors dream!

Looking forward to any follow-up movies, just hope we are not disappointed!

dualedge

Totally agree on just hiding the young Flynn in the shadows. For that matter, I think they could have just shown Clu as the same age as Flynn and just figured out some explanation for why he is aged.

After all, in the original Tron, there were old digital characters like Dumont who showed up as the same age as his real world counterpart Dr. Gibbs. So it seems to me that Clu SHOULD have looked like the older Flynn just as the older character Dumont mirrored Dr. Gibbs.

Clu's "polar express" mannequin-look is really my only complaint. Otherwise it's an okay movie. It's not fantastic but it's an okay popcorn flick. Personally I like to watch it just for the visual aesthetics which are simply beautiful IMHO.

dropshipbob

I've been wondering why ENCOM would hire the son of one of their greatest embarassments, most companies in the real world would shy away from ANYTHING that might bring them bad press, right?

nickytea

?

What are you talking about, "hire?"

oujala

How did Murphy's character start working for Encom if he didn't get hired? Am I missing something?

I wondered about the hiring, too. That stuck out more than the cg. I loved the movie and it hit harder on the second viewing.

JPolacchi

I cannot state in enough words of the english language how disapointed I was with Tron legacy.It was BLOODY HORRIBLE from start to finish.

nickytea

Yet you're still trying. (Though, not very hard.)

I thought it was brilliant from frame one through the end credits. (See how unsatisfying it is when someone doesn't explain why they think something?)

Jades Dark Heart

I agree I thought it was brilliant as well. I watch it whenever my wife is out of the house and have the volume turned up to shake my house.

who45

i loved it - visual and audio treat, crank the volume up, turn the brain off and enjoy

just annoying my blue ray disc freezes at the same point every time

firesprite

My husband and I both love Tron Legacy. It's one of those movies that if I see it on one of the movie channels while surfing channels, I'll stop and watch it, no matter where it is in the movie.

* Love the characters (I know Qorra isn't a lot of people's favorite, but I like her a lot)
* Loved seeing Bruce on the big screen again
* Love, love LOVE the score by Daft Punk
* I liked the story in that it built off the prior movie's storyline and didn't spoonfeed me explanations of what's going on. They gave just enough to get people up to speed without making people who've seen and enjoyed the first movie feel like we're being forced to sit through tons of unnecessary exposition


I could go on and on about the movie, but I'll restrain myself.

DoubleD

What she said.

Laspector

I'm sorry, as much as I really, really, really, really wanted to like this movie--to me--it was just a disappointment... Yeah, it looked great and the music was good, but the story just sucked!!..Yeah yeah, I know, the first one's story wasn't so great either, but that's not the one we are talking about here.

I mean why was this movie even called TRON? For the .00002 seconds he is in the movie? It feels like they made the movie with this henchman of CLU and ,after the fact, they said "oh wait, we forgot to put TRON in the movie. Well, how about we just call the henchman TRON?..Then an added scene or two of explaination and Voila--TRON is now in the movie!"......Just stupid.

I love the first TRON, but I have never claimed it was a cinematic masterpiece...It was good for what it was (first cgi stuff) and you either loved it or hated it. Tron legacy would have been a good movie if it just was NOT TRON.. Just some other planet or dimension or something.

Plus, they absolutely ruined the coolest thing to ever hit the screen: Lightcycles. The most awesome thing about them was those 90 degree turns on the game grid. When I first saw that back in 82 (or whenever it came out) my jaw hit the floor!! And they took that away.....Fail...

dualedge

I'm guessing that's probably the laser switching to read the second layer of the disc which is why it happens at the same exact point every time. I see it on some movies too every once in a while.

Mola Rob

Tron wasn't in the movie. It was just a cameo by Kroenen from Hellboy. They just gave him two discs instead of swords.

spectre_general

Now I love Tron Legacy but I kind of agree here. I liked sequences like the Lightcycles and the jets toward the end, but one of the things that tipped you off that this was a computer and not the real world is that it wasn't beholden to physics.

Legacy dumped that idea, perhaps to reflect the advance in computer technology, but it lost something.

And the whole scene where the jets go up too high, stall the engines and plummet back down? I allowed it cause it was a fine scene, but it's not like there's an atmosphere to thin out in there, right?

Yeah, and there's no reason programs can't age, or even be "upgraded" to be played by other actors.

While I love Tron Legacy just head and tails above Tron, it stays derivative of the original without being as crazy imaginative. I'd love them to expand on this stuff in the sequels. AlsotorescueTronwhoclearlyisn'tdeadjustsaying.

nonner242

I didnt think Id like it at all opening night. I walked away thinking "that was not Tron"
Days passed more started to feel abit better in my head after rethinking about parts.
Then after a rewatch on DVD I felt like alot worked...and worked well.
Now I feel comfortable say.."Yes, this is a Tron movie"!
Cant wait for more...
Love the soundtrack too.

CB2001

The way I picked up, especially with the board room scene and "The Next Day" video, is that Dillenger Jr. had to work his way up to where he is. I figured the name Dillenger sort of came with a stigma that Jr. had to work hard to shake from. Alan says in "The Next Day" that "Junior earned his place" when Ram asked him about who of the board was out and brought up Dillenger Jr.

Honestly, there are some scenes where the digital Jeff Bridges doesn't work. For the opening scene, I think that if they had just saved showing the digital head until the final moment when he turns around and says "We're always on the same side" (which to me is actually the best shot of the CG in the whole scene), it would have had a better impact too (making that the first time we see the CG, but it being the last time Sam sees Flynn). The rest of the time, I think most of the CG scenes work because in some cases, they are covered with distortion (all the flashback scenes and the TV news broadcast after Flynn disappears are good example) and depending on the lighting (the scene where Sam comes face to face with CLU for the first time is a good example while the EOLC scene isn't). But that's just 1% of the time, the other 98% of the time worked out well (the other 1% is when CLU is wearing a helmet).

Now, I know many people may not like Quorra, but I do. I think Olivia Wilde did a great job in showing the innocence and nativity of the character (whereas before she was primarily known for her head strong and overtly sexual Thirteen character from House, which is actually opposite of Quorra. And for Wilde to take on the role of Quorra actually shows that she's not just a pretty face and meant only for "the hot and sexy chick" role, but shows that she could potentially be a more diverse actress than she initially appeared to be, if given the chance and the right role).

As for why the film has the name TRON if he was only in it for about .00002 comment, let me tell you something: What else COULD you call it? People see the world of the story as "The TRON universe." TRON 2.0 was set in that universe, yet doesn't feature the original TRON anywhere (though Bruce Boxleitner was in the game as Alan and there are references to TRON himself in the in-game e-mails). Why? Because that is how the world of the story is designed and people associate that world with TRON. That's why people call the Star Trek Universe the Star Trek Universe (and not the Enterprise Crew universe), why the Star Wars Universe the Star Wars universe (and not the Skywalker and Company universe). The name TRON is a brand that is associated with that world and those characters in that particular story. Besides, TRON was in the film. He was in the film more than that, but as Rinzler. It's only after we discover the truth about Rinzler do we realize he's been there the whole time.

who45

didnt think od that one, but its the only disc in my collection of over 800 discs that does it. right after he fixes cora and is awaiting her to re awaken and at the end of that scene its freeze time - the dvd player then has to be turned off at the mains as everything locks up and no function works be it open the tray, turn off, forward , menu etc etc.

Laspector

It's not that I thought it was a bad movie per se. I've actually watched it about 5 times now. I just thought it wasn't a good TRON movie. It just felt too disconnected to the first one. Just not in the same universe, yeah I know computers upgrade and all, but still it just seemed to have no relation to the first one. It felt more like a Matrix movie than a TRON movie.

They could have just changed the title and the charactors names and just made it a totally new movie unto itself. Then I think it would have worked better.

And the idea of the ISOs was, to me, just pointless. It didn't really add anything to the movie.

Again, it's not a bad movie, it's just a bad TRON movie IMHO.

Larry Young

The computer I'm using right now seems to be from a different universe than my first one, and Apple II.