Fast forward 30 years and Walt Disney is set to release not only the original TRON as envisioned by Steven Lisberger, but also its sequel called TRON Legacy. Both have been given the Blu-ray HD treatment, plus Legacy comes in a very nice 3D option.
So how did they do? Come find out.
TRON LEGACY
Two years in the making, TRON Legacy follows Kevin Flynn’s son Sam, whose father has gone missing for 20 years. Bitter at the world and feeling more alone then ever, Sam spends his time trying to corrupt the company that his father had built (ENCOM).His life takes an odd turn when Kevin’s friend/coworker Alan gets a page from Kevin’s old arcade, which has been shutdown for 20 years. When Sam goes to investigate he discovers far more than he expected, and soon ends up solving the mystery of where his father has been all these years. Sucked into a digital world, Sam finds Kevin and one of Kevin’s deadliest creations, Clu. With the help of Quorra, a special program, the pair intend on fighting their way back home.
What I really liked about TRON Legacy is how much director Joseph Kosinski respected Lisberger’s vision. The movie has scattered reminders of what once was in the original film, and carries a nearly perfect bridge from TRON to Legacy. For example, at the beginning of the film when Sam is sabotaging the software launch of ENCOM you are briefly introduced to Edward Dillinger (played by English actor Cillian Murphy — Scarecrow from Batman Begins). Clearly paying homage to the first film, Dillinger’s presence is a refreshing reminder of the original film’s first villain, and more importantly a hint of what’s to come. He was perfectly placed and gives a great salute to Lisberger’s original a-hole. Kosinski and his writers did a fabulous job with setting up bits and pieces of old reminders of the original film throughout the new one.
So what about the visuals? The reason most people went to see TRON Legacy, besides wanting to relive their childhood (like myself), was the visuals. This film sports some of the most gorgeous visuals in any film to date. Head of Animation Steve Preeg, and Visual Effects Supervisor Eric Barba both agreed that nearly 80% of the visuals in TRON Legacy were CG’d. This included almost all the environments, people and even Jeff Bridges face (on Clu and in flashbacks — though idiot people out there actually cried/moaned about the quality, despite it not being done better). That’s a lot of CG, folks. For it to come out smooth and emit the original, mixed with a very stylishly refined look that you might find at a high-end night club in Los Angeles. If you needed a reason to watch TRON Legacy then visuals would be that reason. Simply put, this is a gorgeous looking film.
With that said, the story lacks a bit. While it’s difficult for me to write this, mainly because I’m a bit biased with the TRON series, if you’re going in looking for a deep story then you might be disappointed. The viral campaign that hit the net about a year or so ago really built up the storyline of Kevin Flynn missing (the Flynn Lives campaign, if you don’t know). That portion of the story is rock solid and gives a very clear, emotional connection between Sam and Kevin Flynn; it was by far my favorite part of the film. The iffiness comes from Clu and his desire to get out off the grid and into the real world. The bridge built for that story leaves way too many questions unanswered. You don’t truly get to know specifically his intentions, as they are implied more than explained. You barely get to know the how/why of some events in the film (such as the purging). I want to say more, but I don’t want to give it away. Just go into it expecting some flaws and you’ll walk away from it perfectly happy. If you go into it expecting some deep experience that you would find in a movie like The King’s Speech then you’re going to leave unsatisfied.
Just know that the story has a solid foundation for a third film and hopefully some things can get cleared up (especially the ending).
Overall, as a fan of the first film I can walk away feeling very satisfied. TRON Legacy was less about a solid, groundbreaking story and more about satisfying the fans of the original; mission accomplished. For a younger audience coming into the TRON series they’re going to be instantly hooked. This film reminded me very much of my first experience with the original (1982 double feature at a drive-in — my idiot parents left after 15 minutes, and I got hooked in that short amount of time).
Shifting gears, as for the HD quality of TRON Legacy it is, in a single word, perfect. I found no flaws in the picture (four viewings of it), no graininess, no artifacts, as it was truly a perfect HD experience. You could say the movie cheated a bit with all the CG involved and less sets, but still it’s a HD lover’s paradise when you see it on Blu-ray for the first time. It’s completely immersive with the amount of quality that the Blu-ray presents to the viewer. Again, I am biased, but I do separate myself from the love of the film to let you know what you’re getting in HD. You are getting one of the best-looking HD films on the market with TRON Legacy. For 3D lovers out there you’re getting even more of a treat with the release.
With that said, one of the best parts of the Blu-ray experience here is listening to Daft Punk’s soundtrack in 7.1 DTS-HD. Warn the neighbors and secure all animals in a safe place because when the bass hits from Daft Punk you will have walls shaking. Most people credit the enjoyment of the film to Daft Punk’s addictive sound mixed with visuals, and they’re right to do that. If you haven’t seen the film or heard the soundtrack then you’re in for a treat.
Now, what about the features? Here’s what you’re looking at with this portion of the release:
– The Next Day: Flynn Lives Revealed: This feature is more of a tie-in with a potential third film. It’s a viral video featuring the end of the ‘Flynn Lives’ movement and the revealing of an old character that some had forgotten about. It also features a Space Paranoid initial entry screen at the very end. If you get ‘ALL’ the initials right then you’re in for an additional treat. Despite what other reviewers have said, I firmly believe that this is a solid direction to the next film (if that was the intention). Great feature, though.
– Disney Second Screen: Tron Legacy: Yay! I found another use for my iPad. That makes three (videos, games and Tron Legacy). This will work well, though only the most hardcore fans will probably appreciate it. Try it on the Bambi release, if you picked that one up.
– First Look at TRON: Uprising, The Disney XD Animated Series: This looks like a solid transition from Legacy. The series is a filler between the original TRON and Legacy, which will only draw in more viewers. The animation is a cross between Akira and X-Men: The Animated Series.
– Launching the Legacy: An interesting view from everyone involved with the story creation.
– Disc Roars: I had no idea comic-con was so fun. You never know when you’re going to be in a movie (or at least your voice).
– Music Video: This has been on the web already, but it’s still fun to listen to.
– Visualizing TRON: While only in SD (boo) this ‘making of’ featurette reveals a lot about the technology behind Legacy. I found it positively fascinating how they created Jeff Bridges face. Fans who have bitched and moaned about that particular part of the movie should appreciate what the crew went through to put that together. You get a great amount of insight on the visualization process and the execution of it all.
– Installing the cast: A series of interviews with the cast. Good stuff, but not as fun as the visualizing featurette.
With all this said, you get a good amount of features with an already great looking film.
TRON: The Original Classic
The original TRON revolves around Kevin Flynn and his fateful plight to get proof that head ENCOM executive Ed Dillinger (David Warner) had stolen his ideas for several video games, and gotten rich/promoted for them. Kevin finds himself, thanks in part from ENCOM employees Alan and Lora, inside of ENCOM hacking into a computer system called the MCP (Master Control Program — which is self-aware). Knowing that Kevin can find the files, the MCP zaps him into its gaming grid in hopes he’ll get stuck, change his mind or simply die playing the games set forth by the MCP’s right-hand man, Sark. Through his digital adventure, Kevin meets up with a program called TRON (designed by Alan) and a program named Yori (designed by Lora), and they all fight their way towards stopping the MCP.
The worst part about this film is that it was completely misunderstood when it was released. Had it waited a couple of years before it was released (1984 when home computers started cropping up pretty regularly) then more people might have appreciated it. The film uses a lot of terms in 1982 that hadn’t existed. The idea of ‘hacking’ into a computer wasn’t a phrase used back then (it literally didn’t exist). The idea that one centralized computing system could break into multiple computers around the world and still programs/information was unheard of then (server based thievery in a sense); ‘now’ that is a reality everyone deals with. Again, the film was way ahead of its time.
With that said, the visuals back then were also ahead of its time. While they may look goofy to most people now, the CG effects were the first ever to be featured in a motion picture. Their simplicity was based on their limitations of that time period. You get a lot of blocky, flawed graphics that wowed people back then, but do little to look gorgeous now. Just to forewarn any newcomers to the old movie, you’re probably not going to be extremely impressed. If you watch the special features first you might be less inclined to be critical, but if you go into it headfirst then you’re going to be slightly shocked (especially if you watched Legacy first). Much like the terminology used in the film, you have to appreciate it for the time period it was created in.
Now, to be very honest the story was a little shaky. Lisberger and crew made a shallow overall story that was based more on visuals than depth. Much like Legacy, there are religious connotations in the film (users = God, Programs = humans), but it’s not terribly deep. There’s more depth to that concept in Legacy than in the original TRON film. Ultimately, the movie revolved around one guy getting screwed for his idea, while another benefits. It’s one murder away from a revenge story. It was nothing earth shattering or groundbreaking, but it did enough to make the movie move along to the end. It’s definitely not great, but it does the job.
So how the heck did it do in the Blu-ray/HD transfer? Well, it didn’t do as well as TRON Legacy. The original classic does look sharp (no grain, no artifacts, no nothing!), especially when you’re out of the grid, but as soon as the old, clunky CG starts it shows some artifacts on the actors. You get a lot of grain on actors when they’re in this environment. You can blame that on poor lighting during shooting and the costumes, which make the actors faces look either really white or a dark shade of gray. Regardless, it looks much better than DVD, but not as clean and clear as Legacy. You can say that I’m being critical over a movie that was made over 30 years ago (production started in 1979, I believe), but I’ve seen other movies older than this that look far better than this. With that said, again it’s the problem of the CG and the lighting; it didn’t do much justice when transferred to HD. It’s much better than DVD, but don’t expect perfection.
As for the sound, it’s gorgeous! Mastered in 5.1 DTS-HD, you will get some very high-quality, make-your-speakers-happy audio. It’s really too bad that Daft Punk couldn’t redo the soundtrack to the original, as that would have kicked some ass.
Finally, you get some good features on this, though they do included DVD features from the original release. You get a nice featurette on the ‘TRON Phenomenon’ and you get a very cool featurette on Lisberger revisiting the Disney archives and looking at pictures of the production with his son. It’s really quite cool. After that you get a load of features that you’ve seen before, but still are very interesting. Seeing how they did the original film and what process they went through will, again, make you appreciate the process.