Tron – Legacy Review: Rule of Cool

While Tron: Legacy doesn’t completely fall for the trap of style over substance, the visuals and audio still remain more impressive than its actual story.

There, he finds that his father’s been trapped inside by the program Clu (Jeff Bridges), and must fight to stop him with the help of a companion program named Quorra (Olivia Wilde, of Don’t Worry Darling).

Despite being a sequel, I don’t think you need to watch the original Tron to understand Tron: Legacy. The parts of the first film that are important to the sequel are explained through exposition or flashbacks, and a good chunk of this movie feels much more like a standalone. Granted, some reveals probably feel a little more gratifying if you know both films, but Tron: Legacy won’t require you to do homework, and I appreciate that.

However, Tron: Legacy’s story isn’t complicated enough to warrant homework in the first place. This is fundamentally a rescue story about a son reuniting with his father after decades and fighting to escape a virtual reality. That is the emotional core of the film, and to its credit, I genuinely felt for the characters when the movie actually focused on scenes between Kevin and Sam. There’s a good mix of genuine heart and awkwardness that makes this relationship believable, and it kept a baseline level of investment in this movie.

Yet you may have noticed I said “when the movie actually focused” on the father-son relationship, because the film’s biggest shortcoming is how it underutilizes so many characters. Sam feels more like an audience surrogate than anything else, as throughout the movie, more and more of the actual plot related decisions seem to be made by Kevin instead. Quorra is even worse off than the two, despite being arguably even more interesting in concept. She is an ISO, a naturally occurring program in the Grid, and thus shows an almost childlike innocence outside of battle. There is one scene where Quorra wants Sam to tell her about sunrises, as the sun doesn’t exist inside the Grid. Outside of that scene, however, she barely gets any time to interact or introspect, and is instead primarily used as action fodder.

Then there is Clu, whom I feel is second to Quorra in being the most underused character in the film. Clu is a program that worked with Kevin to create a perfect system within the Grid. His idea of perfection eventually misaligned with Kevin’s, causing him to revolt. However, Clu is only really that way because of his programming. In a way, Clu had no real agency in his turn to evil, and it’s implied he’s even resentful of Kevin because of this. All that sounds like the makings of a layered villain. Yet similar to Quorra, there’s only one scene where that aspect is even touched upon. Most of the time, Clu just plays the part of a megalomaniacal overlord.

I wish I could say the rich worldbuilding made up for the underwritten characters, but even that aspect feels neutered because of the film’s awkward pacing. The exposition scenes are not only numerous but also fairly lengthy, which doesn’t show how this virtual society actually functions, what sort of inhabitants are there, or just how different from reality this place is. At the end of the day, the Grid just comes off more as an excuse to show off neon light cyberpunk action. Said action is aesthetically striking, with its neon highlights giving the film a very unique look. But in terms of stuntwork, many of them feel a tad too awkward, like everyone pulling their punches, which leads to some janky movements in hand to hand sequences. I appreciate the film for using wide angles and long shots, but those need to be backed up by proper stuntwork, otherwise you sacrifice the speed or intensity of the action.

The one thing I can unconditionally praise this film for, though, is the soundtrack, composed by Daft Punk, which elevates every scene it is in. Even something as simple as slow motion running has a degree of epicness when synth beats are pounding in the background. This, along with the aforementioned neon aesthetic, make viewing the movie into a very memorable experience despite its many flaws, and I would give anything to see this on the big screen again. 

That rule of cool is what carries a large portion of Tron: Legacy. That isn’t to say this is a terrible film, but it is an incredibly frustrating one. In almost all of its elements – the story, characters, and action – I see potential to go so much deeper, explore a whole lot more. Instead, the film stops maddeningly short of expanding upon those elements. I wouldn’t go as far as to say it’s “wide as an ocean, deep as a puddle.” It’s at least as deep as a lake. You can still swim comfortably in it and have a reasonably satisfying time. However, the disappointment of not being able to go deeper will linger when the film keeps reminding you of how much more was possible.

Tron: Legacy is now available to watch on digital and on demand.

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