Before the days of Netflix Watch Now, one of my favorite things to do was to go to a video rental store with my parents. I would be transfixed by all of the movies, some familiar and some strange, all of which seemed like they would be amazing to watch.
There would be a few cases which would catch my eye, and every time I went to the rental stores I would beg my parents again and again to rent it for me.
One of those cases was TRON.
(Somewhat spoilers after the jump)
I don’t know what it was about TRON which had me so transfixed. It was most likely the fun characters, the video games, the bright visuals, or the geeky concept. I loved watching the light cycle scene, the antics of the bit, and the sheer heroism of the TRON program. It had everything needed for an awesome movie for a kid (or a kid at heart), and it’s been one of my favorite flicks of all time.
However, I knew that it wasn’t even one of the movies that was filmed in my early childhood. The movie was quite old. Even the young me realized that there was just the one, and I had better enjoy it while I could.
It never occured to me that there would ever be a sequel. That’s why I was completely floored when I saw the Comic-Con trailer with the young Jeff Bridges in a light-cycle chase that very well might have made James Cameron jealous.
TRON Legacy would be happening. I couldn’t believe it.
I had no idea what it would be about. Ever since I found out, I would check in on it again and again, trying to glean whatever fact I could. The more and more I heard about it (such as Daft Punk composing the film’s score) the more and more I counted down to December.
That countdown ended two nights ago.
The movie had everything that I wanted in it. It had several visual homages to the classic movies like the light cycles and identity discs, while bringing in new like a and a WW2-style dogfight. The soundtrack complemented the groundbreaking visuals very well. The story was intriguing, and provided an equal footing to the original movie.
There was only one thing that the movie did wrong. For a movie that has TRON in the title, there wasn’t a whole lotta TRON in it. While he technically was in the whole movie, we never really got a good look at his face. It’s a quibble, and I know that the same tech to make the young Jeff Bridges was very expensive.
But c’mon. It’s called TRON Legacy. TRON. TRRRRRRRRROOOONNNNyouget the point.
Oh well.
I have to say, the movie was not disappointing in any BIG way besides that. It was fun sharing the movie with my parents, the same people who introduced me to TRON in the first place. It was just as fun as joking with my dad afterwards and saying “They’re light cycles in the sky, man!”
That’s what makes movies like TRON Legacy great. Movies can create a shared experience that’s far more amazing than the films themselves. Before anything else, that was by far the best part of TRON Legacy. I can’t wait to see it again.
-Tyk-Tok
P.S. I purchased the score to the movie, and it makes AWESOME video game playing music. Especially the song “The Game Has Changed”, which makes sniper duels in Team Fortress 2 all the more epic.
P.P.S. Just throwing that out there.