Weekend Movie Forecast: Tron: Legacy Vs. How Do You Know

Back in 1982 when the original Tron was released, people were still floored by their Atari 2600, were still going to arcades, and had Commodores as their personal computers. The film was one of the first to use CG and did it somewhat modestly, using props and old fashioned Hollywood trickery when possible. The score was done by A Clockwork Orange's Wendy Carlos and utilized "'80s futuristic" sounding instruments such as synths and moogs. The film did fairly well, and nearly 30 years later, they're bringing it back... back into a world where the young have PS3's and have never heard of an Amiga, into a world where most people have smart phones vastly superior to the computers of the '80s, into a world where the original's CG looks like DIY, and into a world where Wendy Carlos' synths sound like a harpsichord compared to the stellar, futuristic bombast of Daft Punk. Tron: Legacy picks up 20 years (how appropriate) after the original took place. It follows 27 year old Sam Flynn, haunted by the disappearance of his father Kevin Flynn, who receives a strange signal sent from old Flynn's Arcade and finds out it's none other then Jeff Bridges...er...his dad. So, of course he accepts the "call to adventure" (hooray hero's journey!) and proceeds to throw himself into this world that pops created and attempts to bail him out. Some people are absolutely stoked about this movie while others think it looks terrible. It's got as much going for it as going against it so we'll all just have to watch it and see for ourselves (or just download the soundtrack and hold out for True Grit).Reviews have been very mixed, with Joshua Rothkopf from Time Out New York saying: "Keep your blue-skinned warriors, your Mad Hatters and your Gollums. Thereâs been no better use of todayâs digital technology than to create a 35-year-old Jeff Bridgesâseveral of them!âreturned to â80s-era perfection. The profusion of Dudes isâpardon the apt punâgame-changing. By turns a fierce megalomaniac and a Lebowskian monk, Bridges supplies more soul than any sci-fi sequel deserves."Who are we kidding? Youâre going for the glowing surfaces; as a Christmas bauble, Disneyâs $200 million production doesnât disappoint. Neither do the French technobots in Daft Punk, who provide a pounding, emotional score. Then thereâs Michael Sheen, playing some kind of swishy, Bowie-esque nightclub king twirling his white cane; heâs an effect in himself, and a bit too bright." — Gothamist

Robert Horan

Published Dec 17, 2010

Modified Dec 17, 2010

Get a Free Rat-Tastic Tote!

Donate today and receive our new limited-edition bag.

Donate now

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Click on the film stills for more details and reviews of this week's new releases and repertory screenings, which include: Tron: Legacy, How Do You Know, Rabbit Hole, Casino Jack, Yogi Bear, Alien Girl, The Conformist, Satan Hates You, I Am Secretly an Important Man, and The Shining.