Thursday, December 16, 2010

Tron Legacy


Tron is about absent Father's and lost sons, creators and createes, paradises lost, The Big Lebowski and perty perty lights. I don't know what happened, but it looked good. Final Grade: B-

The original Tron was a flop that went on to garner an almost cult following. I was not a part of that particular cult, so I can't definitively say whether the delayed onset of attention was warranted. What we do know is that Disney has been reluctant to release a DVD version, deterring any curious potential fanboy from discovering the truth for themselves. An indication of their confidence in the original film perhaps? Some things are better remembered than re-experienced I suppose. I fear the same may be said of this iteration.

Question: Why is Jeff Bridges playing The Dude again? He abides sure, but it doesn't mesh well with the tone of the movie. That being: deadly serious. 3 things redeem this megalith from being a complete and utter bore:
  1. The soundtrack by Daft Punk. Ever since Batman Begins, there has been a lot of distinct donging in scores. There's The Dark Knight, Shutter Island, Inception, all of them with the intense dong *dramatic pause* dong *dramatic pause* dong etc. motif, portending to something terrible. It gives the illusion of actual weight to the events unfolding, even when one of the characters, yet again, hijacks the narrative with another flashback info dump. I wish I could have something similar play every time I step into a room.
  2. The lights fantastic. Really, I think this is the only reason the first movie was popular. A well executed aesthetic can cover a multitude of cinematic faux pas (Avatar anyone? Arnold schwarzenegger's Hollywood career?).
  3. Speaking of which... "What is beauty?" the philosopher asks. We now have an answer: Olivia Wilde.

The only real reason to watch

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