Movie Review: Tron Legacy

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Effects, fun sequel to the original

Cons: Uneven plot pacing

The Bottom Line: 

Legacy of Tron

With cool modern effects

And decent story

Return to the Grid

It can't be easy to pull off a sequel after 30 years.  Honestly, I'm surprised anyone really tries to do that, especially in the day and age of the reboot/remake.  But that's essentially what the people behind Tron: Legacy have done.  Oh, there's the talk about the "continuation," but let's be honest here.  This is pretty much a sequel.  And it is a very fun sequel.

The story picks up in 1989, where Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) is telling his son about his adventures in the grid.  Kevin has found something that he is calling a miracle.  Something he's very excited about.  But then one night he vanishes without a trace.

Fast forward to the present day and the now adult Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) is not quite ready to take over the reigns of his dad's company, yet he doesn't want to let it go completely either.  Then Kevin's old friend Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner) shows up at Sam's place with news that he might have had word from Kevin.  Intrigued, Sam follows the lead and finds himself sucked into the grid.

The grid is being run by Clu (also Jeff Bridges), a program that Kevin created.  In the search for perfection, Clu has destroyed much of what Kevin had hoped to create, trapping Kevin in the grid in the meantime.  As father and son are once again united, they set out on a race to defeat Clu and escape the grid.  Can they do it?

If you haven't seen the original movie, or haven't seen it recently, don't worry.  Thanks to the prologue set in 1989, the essentials are explained.  Okay, so I just wanted the original a couple of months ago, but even if I hadn't, I think I would have followed this movie just fine.

This movie has not forgotten what made the first one fun.  We've got lightcycle battles and disc duels at the beginning, plus another battle I'm not going to spoil at the end.  The items used have been upgraded (as have the effects), but the fun and suspense of these segments is still very much there.

I really did enjoy the film, but I have to say the story could have been better.  There are times it seemed to drag a little, usually in attempts to develop the characters.  I can't fault the characters, however.  They were very real to me.  Both story and character are in line with the original, so this movie definitely kept that spirit alive.

The acting was flawless as well.  Jeff Bridges as Kevin and Clu is great, and he handles some scenes where he plays against himself very well.  Garrett Hedlund was unfamiliar to me, but I thought he was great as Sam, making this guy believable and likable, even from the beginning when his actions were a bit immature.  The female lead is Olivia Wilde, and she holds her own against the men just fine.  As a Bruce Boxleitner fan, I wish he had been in more of the film, but it made more sense story wise for him to be used as he was.

The computer generated effects in the original were groundbreaking - for 1982.  Now, they are just laughable.  That almost makes me wonder what I will be saying about the graphics in this movie in 30 years, but here goes.  They are great!  Most of the movie takes place in the computer generated grid, and I bought everything I saw.  The vehicles and weapons are incredibly cool.  I wouldn't mind a visit to this world.

I saw this movie in IMAX 3D, and those effects were great as well.  The parts in the real world are in 2D, but once the story enters the grid, things take on that new dimension.  While some shots are designed to really impress you, most of the time it's much more subtle and still an added bonus.

Before the story really gets going, there are several great references to the 80's.  I got quite a kick out of them, and they added to the fun of the movie for me.

Based on the opening weekend, Tron: Legacy looks like it will be a hit.  Even if it isn't, this is going to please the fans of the original and introduce a whole new generation to that cult classic.