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The matrix of pointlessness is reloaded in this mind-bendingly dull sci-fi movie, closer to a screensaver than an actual film. This is a threequel to the original movie Tron from 1982, a movie that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its day in a way that escapes this one and its forerunner Tron Legacy from the previous decade. The new Tron film nearly awakens just one time – when Evan Peters' character gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson playing his mum, in an traditional bit of real-world action. This is a piece of tough love you might want to handing out to all the producers involved in this film, and it's unfortunate to see the estimable Greta Lee's role and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so lifeless.

Plot Overview of Tron: Ares

The situation currently is that an evil AI corporation with the unsubtly gangster-ish name of Dillinger Corp has become a competitor to the virtual reality firm Encom, first established in the 1980s gaming period by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (originally set up by Encom's executive Ed Dillinger's role, played by David Warner) is led by the founder’s annoyingly geeky grandson Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create profitable things such as invincible troops and tanks in the virtual reality grid and then export them into the real world using a kind of 3D printer.

The issue is that no matter how intimidating, these creations crumble into dust after twenty-nine minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the plot-driving “permanence code” which can maintain these entities for ever, and even keeps it on her person on a very low-tech USB drive. So the dreadful Julian deploys his enforcer on her: Ares the warrior, the humanoid uber-warrior which can leave the VR world for 29 minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is beginning to show signs of not doing what he's told. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays 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's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

And Ares himself – the hero of the film's name – is played by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, facial hair and faintly all-knowing smile, touches that were perhaps designed by typing the words “incredibly irritating” into an AI human creation programme. No one who recalls the 1990s television classic My So-Called Life will ever find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Mr Leto, and I was incidentally very entertained by his broad (and critically misunderstood) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's film House of Gucci. But Leto is consistently, unrelentingly awful here, although he isn't helped by a limp plot point which is intended to allow him to show flashes of “empathy” for Eve Kim's role and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena's character, thus making her marginally more interesting. It is supposed to be adorable when Ares says how he adores 1980s electronic music and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart's compositions.

Series Features and Final Impression

And in keeping with the franchise identity of the series, there are motorcycles from the virtual underworld which speed around the environment in linear paths, adhering to the angular layout of antique arcade games (or even dance clubs); one even shoots out a lethal beam which cuts a police vehicle in two. But there is no drama or danger or emotional engagement throughout. This franchise currently appears as relevant as an in-car CD player.