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The matrix of pointlessness is reloaded in this tediously complex science fiction film, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. It's a third installment to the classic Tron film from 1982, a film that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that eludes this one and its predecessor Tron Legacy from the previous decade. The new Tron film nearly awakens just once – when Evan Peters gets a smack in the face from Gillian Anderson's character playing his mother, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. This is a bit of firm parenting you might want to handing out to every producer involved in this movie, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so lifeless.

Story Summary of The New Tron Film

The scenario now is that an malicious artificial intelligence company with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger Corp has become a competitor to the virtual reality firm Encom Inc, originally set up in the 80s arcade-game era by genius trailblazer Kevin Flynn's character, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (initially founded by Encom executive Ed Dillinger, acted by David Warner) is led by the founder’s annoyingly geeky grandson's character Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create lucrative items such as invincible troops and tanks in the VR world and then transfer them into the real world using a kind of three-dimensional printer.

The issue is that no matter how intimidating, these creations disintegrate after 29 minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence code” which can keep these things alive permanently, and even stores it on her person on a very low-tech flashdrive. So the dreadful Julian Dillinger deploys his enforcer on her: Ares, the humanoid uber-warrior which can exit the virtual realm for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is starting to exhibit symptoms of disobeying what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena's role and poor Bridges has a wooden legacy appearance in sage-like white garments, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

And Ares himself – the protagonist of the title – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, beard and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were possibly designed by inputting the words “incredibly irritating” into an artificial intelligence character generator. Nobody who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be completely harsh about Mr Leto, and I was also very entertained by his broad (and critically misunderstood) comic turn in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Leto is consistently, unrelentingly awful here, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “empathy” for Eve Kim's role and subcontract all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus making her marginally more interesting. It is meant to be adorable when Ares says how he loves 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode are superior to 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, adhering to the rectilinear design of classic video games (or indeed dance clubs); one even emits a lethal beam which slices a cop car in half. But there is zero tension or jeopardy or human interest throughout. This franchise now looks about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.