Tron Legacy : An exciting vision of A World Where Hackers Still Fucking Rock

I dig my friend Garrett’s review and think it fair.
(though maybe a bit too negative in tone?). (maybe I’m just feeling too positive)

some random thoughts/responses to his points:

(SPOILERS below)

– They did mention Dillinger, by showing us his legacy/son (Cilian Murphy). foreshadowwwww. I found this acceptable/exciting.

– They do mention that Sam’s mother died, but don’t clarify if she was CindyMorgan’s character. Possible, since she Bridges and Boxlietner were a love triangle in the first movie. Nor do they mention anything about who Alan Bradley is or isn’t with now. gaping, but. Not much to do there? she was just a girl working on the laser program. Her character was only some glue in the first movie. Better to not talk about her than to spend time explaining her dead end.

– Tron again was core to the plot to a level that matched the first movie, by being on the periphery. Tron has become CLU’s key enforcer, and is the main guy doing all the action. When Sam thanks Alan Bradley at the end, it really crystallized for me that “he’s the guy who we all need in our corner.” That supporting character that saves us, just by being his dorky perfect boycott self. Not sure if they meant to model him off Rutger Hauer from The Dark Knight, or if everyone cool is just old in similar ways these days.

While the dialogue is usually either silly or too brief/ambiguous, I thought the movie’s story presented many interesting angles on the themes of “fighting for and controlling”. From Sam’s bullshit dicking around with his company to CLU’s army of perfect, to Flynn’s switzerland zen. To Quorra deciding it worth risking her unique fine ass for things.

I suspect she’s a better pretty face than an actress (just based on glimpses of her performance in Cowboys & Aliens trailer. not fair?). I expect she’ll age like sean young after blade runner. Never quite so perfectly cast ever again.

– I thought it very exciting that this WAS NOT out world Sam is living in. His world has more shiny skyscrapers in san francisco(?) and encom replaces microsoft, with it’s wide spread operating system. and I’m left believing this is a world where hacker pranks play. and a world where molecular lasers can make people based on programs.

It’s exciting to be reminded me of that 80s hacker dream. and exciting they’re willing to say “this is the universe of the Tron franchise. Hackers fucking rock here.”

Let’s not forget that this is the same world where a hacker casually runs an arcade by day and maintains the high scores on all the video games, while hacking back into his former employer by night. (ie., fly sr. was kind of rock star in the first movie).

I think it’s more exciting to accept the movie’s reality as a cooler alternate universe where hackers can rock it.

– Also, i think you’re undervaluing the movie’s core fiction idea: which is the inexplicable creation of a new form of life. Maybe an AI by any other name?
but no, I think that’s selling it short.
The ISOs aren’t meant to be like A.I.s we often see grown in sic fi computer labs – Rather they are meant to be a unique life form simulation that emerged from Flynn’s super system, by means unknown. Not a trick to pass the turing test, but a genuine new form of life. Something our computer’s A.I. would see as a threat or a bug.

This is an exciting idea!
man.
dude.
(no really. I think people aren’t accepting what they shot for there, and thus don’t accept the movie).

– I dug the ending. Because flynn joined with CLU in what may be death (if they don’t want to pay jeff bridges to return) or what may spawn a new form of “digital character” in their merging for the sequel. Which would likely take place in the mainframes at ENCOM, as it relates to dillinger’s son rising back to power with his operating system, version 13.

Also, I dug that Tron seemed to be left outside the whole “grid” creation (as it swallowed itself up into Flynn/CLU/BOOM), floating in the seas of simulation.

Leaving him around to be the only character who still exists from the original movie. “Tron Reborn” coming 2016, I’m calling it.

(even if that never happens. I think it’s fair to credit this movie with some tasy seeds).

….

P.S. My initial facebook thoughts (just kinda recording initial impressions here):

Maybe not the society changing movie it “needs” to be, after all the hype. But a more than worthy sequel to the original. Flawed in many of the same ways as the original? (kinda slows down right when you want it to be building up). Also casually visually stunning. Also ambiguous with some heavy themes. … but instead of feeling like a cop out, these minimal lines leave the film feeling like something you can revisit and think on further. later. so, win.)

It maybe feels overproduced? like they focus tested it a million times to make sure there were no flaws? but it’s left without that “crazy spark” we want from visionary directors? (like, I wish we’d seen some crazy weird shit in the casablanca bar that Zuse was running. weird mutant programs, like the strange red and many-armed-thing spotted in the first movie. just standing around in the background).

well, fuck all that. For a first time directory it’s a huge success. incredibly awesome achievement (unlocked)!

……….
p.p.s. They so nailed the music! I’ve long longed to use that Journey song, Separate Ways, in one of my movies. Not sure I can now… It makes that scene for me. It sums up my memories of a certain part of the 80s, in a silly way, while also being about Sam and his Dad in a serious way. Ditto the darkness in the follow up song (Sweet Dreams). Both stand out as these gems which are forever stuck in the 80s. soo.
bravo.

and the Daft Punk duo’s cameo later in the movie: offers probably the coolest characterization of the whole movie?
I mean, just that specific shot where they know all hell is about to break loose, so they give the same “we know just the music for this” nod they’d given earlier. and sure enough, they nail the music. again. pitch perfect movie-moment there! HUGE WIN! for them.
I feel the genius of this moment cannot be overstated.
🙂

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