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The matrix of pointlessness is reloaded in this mind-bendingly dull science fiction film, closer to a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. It's a threequel to the original movie Tron from 1982, a film that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its day in a way that escapes this film and its predecessor Tron Legacy from the previous decade. The new Tron film nearly comes to life just one time – when Evan Peters' character gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character playing his mum, in an traditional bit of analogue reality. This is a bit of firm parenting you might feel like handing out to all the producers involved in this movie, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith's character being made to look so uninspired.

Story Summary of Tron: Ares

The situation now is that an evil AI corporation with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger has become a rival to the VR company Encom Inc, originally set up in the 1980s gaming period by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn's character, played by Jeff Bridges. This Dillinger (initially founded by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger's role, acted by David Warner) is led by the founder’s annoyingly geeky grandson Julian (Evan Peters), who has a ambitious scheme to design and create profitable things such as indestructible soldiers and armored vehicles in the VR world and then transfer them into the real world using a sort of 3D printer.

The problem is that no matter how intimidating, these creations disintegrate after 29 minutes. But Encom's present chief executive Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has uncovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence code” which can maintain these entities for ever, and even keeps it on her person on a extremely basic USB drive. So the dreadful Julian deploys his enforcer on her: Ares, the superhuman fighter which can leave the VR world for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the time-honoured way of robots, is beginning to show signs of disobeying what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith's performance plays Ares's deadpan second-in-command Athena's role and unfortunate Jeff Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in sage-like white garments, like a budget Jor-El on Krypton.

Character and Performance Analysis

And Ares himself – the protagonist of the film's name – is acted by Jared Leto with trendy lengthy locks, beard and subtly omniscient grin, details that were possibly created by typing the words “incredibly irritating” into an artificial intelligence character generator. No one who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life will always find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Jared Leto, and I was incidentally quite amused by his expansive (and widely misinterpreted) comic turn in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, unrelentingly awful in this film, although he isn't helped by a weak storyline which is supposed to allow him to display glimpses of “compassion” for Greta Lee's character and subcontract all the villainous actions to Athena's character, thus rendering her slightly more engaging. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares the character says how he adores 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode band are better than Mozart's compositions.

Franchise Elements and Final Impression

And in keeping with the brand-identity of the series, there are motorcycles from the VR netherworld which speed around the environment in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of antique arcade games (or indeed nightclubs); one even emits a lethal beam which cuts a police vehicle in two. But there is no drama or jeopardy or human interest anywhere. This franchise currently appears about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.