Tron Night

I was eight years old when the Tron was released and I’ve been a fan ever since. It has always had a dubious reputation, soliciting reactions ranging from “ground breaking and ahead of its time” to “cheesy box-office failure.” As such, the fact that Tron Legacy not only exists, but is one of the most anticipated films of the year makes reminds me of Flynn’s statement from the original: “This isn’t happening, it only thinks it’s happening.” After taking part in Tron Night, I’m happy to say that not only is the footage impressive in terms of spectacle, but there’s actual artistic merit as well. As it stands so far, Tron Legacy consists as a series of right choices in terms of performance and use of 3-D.

Few can argue that Jeff Bridges is a great actor. That Bridges embraces the original Tron and chooses to be a part of the sequel so many years later proves that the Oscar winner still harbors a sense of daring in the roles he plays. Flynn has a strong presence in Legacy even when he’s not on screen and this is a testament to Bridges and the reputation he has with the audience. It’s nice to see Bruce Boxleitner reprise his role as Alan Bradley, although there hasn’t been any indication that the character of Tron will make an appearance. Both Garrett Hedlund and Olivia Wilde do a good job of holding their own against the spectacle. I was most surprised by Hedlund because I’ve never seen him in anything else.

Just as impressive is director Joseph Kosinski’s use of 3-D and composition. What strikes me most is Kosinki’s restraint when it comes to 3-D. In the footage that was shown, there is nothing that comes out at the audience from the screen. Instead, the screen is very much the fourth wall and is respected as such. Equally as impressive is Kosinki’s use of shallow focus in regard to 3-D. Instead of framing every shot with the background in full focus, Kosinski utilizes shallow focus to make the performances and action more intimate and give more emotional gravity to the images on screen. This is a very  mature and cinematic approach for a newcomer.

One of the technological restraints of the original Tron was the fact that the light emanating from the suits could not interact with the environment around the actors because of the post-production process needed to illuminate the suits. This is not the case with Legacy. The light from the suits, as well as lens flares, reflect off of the translucent walls of the game grid creating a real sense of depth when combined with the 3-D. Also, the actors look appropriately “round,” instead of like flat cardboard cutouts that look closer in proximity to the audience than the backgrounds.

Viewing disconnected scenes doesn’t give the context needed to know if the film works as a whole. However, the pedigree is there. Disney has the money to do this right and with access to the Pixar “brain trust,” there’s no reason why the story should not work. Overall, the jury is still out until December 17th, but considering what we’ve seen so far, this could be an enduring Legacy.

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