Tron: Legacy

MPAA Rated – PG
It’s 2:05 Long
A Blu-ray Review by:
The Dude on the Right

Tron: Legacy
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde
MPAA Rated: PG
Released By: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date: April 5, 2011
Kiddie Movie: It’s a tad violent, so not too young.
Date Movie: Especially if she’s a little geeky.
Gratuitous Sex: Skimpy outfits, mostly.
Gratuitous Violence: It’s Disney and PG, so nothing horrible.
Action: Lots of chasing and running.
Laughs: Some snickers.
Memorable Scene: The Game Grid is cool.
Memorable Quote: Nothing stands out.
Directed By: Joseph Kosinski
Cool things about the Blu-ray? The “making of” stuff is nicely detailed so you don’t get the feeling it was just thrown together, but for shear interactive Tron-ness grab your iPad or laptop and use the Second Screen feature.

I barely remember the original “Tron.” Sure, I played the game on my Intellivision, but in my movie world, if my life depended on remembering any of the story, well, it’s a good thing that “Tron: Legacy” has a 5-Disc, 2-Movie combo pack that includes not just “Tron: Legacy” on Blu-ray, but the original “Tron” on Blu-ray as well, a Digital copy of “Tron: Legacy” for portability, a basic DVD of the new one and, if that weren’t enough, if you’ve popped for that new Blu-ray 3D TV and have been looking for an entertaining movie to watch on it, well, this set has one of those as well!  Yup, there is no excuse for you to not be assimilated into all things “Tron,” but so that this review isn’t too long, let’s pick up where the first movie left off…

In “Tron: Legacy” we find that it’s been a number of years since Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) disappeared from his son, Sam’s (Garrett Hedlund), life.  Sam has always been a rebellious son, even though technically in charge of ENCOM, his father’s company.  As it goes, after ruining a software release for ENCOM and posting bail, his father’s old confidante tracks down Sam and lets him know that he received a page, from Dad.  So Sam is on a quest to the old arcade, finds a trap door, gets sucked into the computer game Dad was sucked into, and when he realizes things aren’t well on the Grid (that’s the computer world), he also realizes he can save his Dad.

So, with the help of Quorra, a resident of The Grid, Sam is able to survive a bit, and eventually Sam, Kevin, and Quorra realize that Clu, who is now the “Ruler” of The Grid, is trying to build an army to enter our real world, take it over, and make it better.

Sure, it sounds a little confusing on paper, but even for me, who couldn’t remember a lick of most of the original, “Tron: Legacy” did a nice job of moving along and bringing you into the story.  There are some scenes that, if you aren’t watching it in 3D, will say “Come on, already!”, but in terms of entertainment in your living room, I liked “Tron: Legacy” and think you won’t even have to be a geek to like it.

Visually the movie is pretty stunning and part of me would love to run out and buy a 3D TV but damn, I still hate those glasses, even though I’m guessing it looks even better in 3D!  Acting-wise things are what they are, but you get some fun action and just some popcorn fun.  It’s 3 ½ stars out of 5 for “Tron: Legacy.”

Now in terms of the Blu-ray package and the various extras, gosh, where to start?  Well, in terms of normal stuff you get some pretty good looks at how things are made and that, even though technology has made the movie look a hell of lot better than the original, the challenges are still many to bring a movie about a fictional “game” universe to the big screen.  Some stuff is throw-away, I suppose, unless you are a Daft Punk fan and really want to watch the video of “Derezzed,” but in terms of shear movie interaction, Disney has included their “Second Screen” extra, which allows you to use your iPad or laptop to follow along with movie, synching the extra coolness, views, and tidbits for you on your device while you watch the movie.  It’s pretty cool, and a lot more fun than things just popping up on the TV screen.

So, in the end, I’ve got to say that in terms of movie-packaging, Disney did a great job with “Tron: Legacy,” especially if you opt for the 5-disc package.

That’s it for this one!  I’m The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!