This entry won't just be a review of Tron: Legacy. No! This review will be more! By more I just mean that I'll probably throw in some comparison to the original Tron because there were definitely some things that need to be touched on regarding both movies. For me, and I'm not ashamed to admit it, most of the hype for Tron: Legacy came from the soundtrack and while I owned Daft Punk's score before the movie even came out, I knew the experience wouldn't be complete until I saw the movie. However, I think it's fitting to start this review with the music as it was perhaps the greatest score I have heard all year. Daft Punk proved themselves to be versatile and emotional composers without losing their electronic edge. Throughout the film Overture and The Game Has Changed provided a dramatic and sprawling theme that presented the grandness, mystery, and danger of the grid. Concurrently, individual themes like Adagio for Tron and Son of Flynn provided great emotional connection to specific characters, events, and ideas. To say the least, the soundtrack fit the movie incredibly well and was infinitely better than the original Tron soundtrack. Visually, I have incredible respect for Tron. The effects and style that it used were revolutionary for the time and are still impressive to me today. I had high expectations for Legacy in this category and was not disappointed. The movie made great use of special and visual effects. The look of the movie was spectacular all the way through (hats off to Claudio Miranda and cinematography). The CG locations (I loved the Sea of Simulation), weapons, and vehicles complimented the action of this movie superbly. I was particularly impressed by the integration of 3D in the film, I noticed specific cues for 3D (like stepping through walls) and it did add something to the feel of the movie. The story of Legacy was just as simple as Tron but with a few more ideas and concepts to make it that much bigger and more dramatic. Even so, the movie did feel like it needed just a little bit more of a plot. I was a bit disappointed by Tron's missed potential (I always felt that the idea was something of a precursor to The Matrix) and that the movie abandoned deeper ideas for the graphics that made it what it is. In this respect, Legacy capitalized a little bit more. With the idea of 'imperfections', the Creator, and most of all with the idea of the ISO's, Tron: Legacy hinted at something deeper and more intellectually rewarding. While it was really just a hint, I did appreciate that the glimmer was there. As far as acting goes, the film was fairly solid. I particularly enjoyed Jeff Bridges as C.L.U. as well as Michael Sheen as Castor/Zeus. Finally, I wanted to point out the subtle brilliance of certain moments in the film. The 'like father like son' idea was prominent in a number of ways, from flipping the coin to breaking into Encom (I loved that!) to proclamations of "I am not a program.". *SPOILER ALERT* I also got goosebumps towards the end with Rinzler/Tron's line "I fight for the users." *SPOILER END* Things like this that threw stuff back to the 1982 Tron were great! All in all Tron: Legacy was a pretty good motion picture. The film could have used a bit more substance but what it lacked in material it more than made up in visual and musical excellence. Tron: Legacy receives a 7.5/10.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Tron: Legacy
This entry won't just be a review of Tron: Legacy. No! This review will be more! By more I just mean that I'll probably throw in some comparison to the original Tron because there were definitely some things that need to be touched on regarding both movies. For me, and I'm not ashamed to admit it, most of the hype for Tron: Legacy came from the soundtrack and while I owned Daft Punk's score before the movie even came out, I knew the experience wouldn't be complete until I saw the movie. However, I think it's fitting to start this review with the music as it was perhaps the greatest score I have heard all year. Daft Punk proved themselves to be versatile and emotional composers without losing their electronic edge. Throughout the film Overture and The Game Has Changed provided a dramatic and sprawling theme that presented the grandness, mystery, and danger of the grid. Concurrently, individual themes like Adagio for Tron and Son of Flynn provided great emotional connection to specific characters, events, and ideas. To say the least, the soundtrack fit the movie incredibly well and was infinitely better than the original Tron soundtrack. Visually, I have incredible respect for Tron. The effects and style that it used were revolutionary for the time and are still impressive to me today. I had high expectations for Legacy in this category and was not disappointed. The movie made great use of special and visual effects. The look of the movie was spectacular all the way through (hats off to Claudio Miranda and cinematography). The CG locations (I loved the Sea of Simulation), weapons, and vehicles complimented the action of this movie superbly. I was particularly impressed by the integration of 3D in the film, I noticed specific cues for 3D (like stepping through walls) and it did add something to the feel of the movie. The story of Legacy was just as simple as Tron but with a few more ideas and concepts to make it that much bigger and more dramatic. Even so, the movie did feel like it needed just a little bit more of a plot. I was a bit disappointed by Tron's missed potential (I always felt that the idea was something of a precursor to The Matrix) and that the movie abandoned deeper ideas for the graphics that made it what it is. In this respect, Legacy capitalized a little bit more. With the idea of 'imperfections', the Creator, and most of all with the idea of the ISO's, Tron: Legacy hinted at something deeper and more intellectually rewarding. While it was really just a hint, I did appreciate that the glimmer was there. As far as acting goes, the film was fairly solid. I particularly enjoyed Jeff Bridges as C.L.U. as well as Michael Sheen as Castor/Zeus. Finally, I wanted to point out the subtle brilliance of certain moments in the film. The 'like father like son' idea was prominent in a number of ways, from flipping the coin to breaking into Encom (I loved that!) to proclamations of "I am not a program.". *SPOILER ALERT* I also got goosebumps towards the end with Rinzler/Tron's line "I fight for the users." *SPOILER END* Things like this that threw stuff back to the 1982 Tron were great! All in all Tron: Legacy was a pretty good motion picture. The film could have used a bit more substance but what it lacked in material it more than made up in visual and musical excellence. Tron: Legacy receives a 7.5/10.
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