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The framework of futility is revisited in this mind-bendingly dull sci-fi movie, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. It's a threequel to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a movie that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its day in a way that escapes this film and its forerunner Tron: Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares almost comes to life just one time – when Evan Peters' character gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson portraying his mum, in an old-fashioned bit of real-world action. This is a piece of tough love you might feel like handing out to all the producers engaged in this film, and it's unfortunate to see the respected Greta Lee 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 malicious artificial intelligence company with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger has become a rival to the virtual reality firm Encom, first established in the 80s arcade-game era by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn, played by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger, acted by David Warner) is led by the founder’s annoyingly geeky grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create lucrative items such as invincible troops and armored vehicles in the VR world and then export them into the real world using a sort of 3D printer.

The problem is that however fearsome, these things disintegrate after twenty-nine minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim's character (Greta Lee) has uncovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence algorithm” which can keep these things alive for ever, and even keeps it on her person on a extremely basic USB drive. So the ghastly Julian sets his attack dog on her: Ares the warrior, the superhuman fighter which can leave the VR world for twenty-nine minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is beginning to show signs of not doing what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays Ares's stoic deputy Athena's role and unfortunate Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in wise white robes, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton.

Character and Performance Breakdown

And Ares himself – the hero of the title – is played by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, beard and faintly all-knowing smile, touches that were possibly designed by typing the words “incredibly irritating” into an AI human creation programme. No one who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will always find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Jared Leto, and I was incidentally quite amused by his broad (and critically misunderstood) comic turn in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, persistently terrible in this film, although he isn't helped by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “compassion” for Greta Lee's character and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus making her slightly more engaging. It is meant to be adorable when Ares the character says how he loves 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode band are better than Mozart.

Series Features and Overall Impact

And in keeping with the franchise identity of the franchise, there are motorcycles from the virtual underworld which whizz about the environment in linear paths, conforming to the rectilinear design of antique arcade games (or even dance clubs); one even emits a death ray which cuts a cop car in two. But there is no drama or jeopardy or emotional engagement throughout. This series currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.