For me, the science fiction genre peaked in the 1950s with movies such as The Thing, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and Earth vs the Flying Saucers. These movies have had a place in UFO culture for so long, that by the 1980s, it seemed like every direction sci-fi could go had been done already. Then comes along Tron, a movie that is no doubt science fiction, but adds a new element into the story. Something that was relatively new back then and not featured in many films: video games. The first thing that could be considered a video game is up for debate and is still a topic of discussion today. Most people agree that the Magnavox Odyssey of the 1970s was the first game console meant for households, but if you really want to go back, there existed games played on old radar screens from the 1950s. The point is, video games are often seen as a new invention when this really isn't the case. Tron's story doesn't have much in the way of classic video game graphics that are very simplistic to look at, such as Atari games. The movie looks pretty realistic even today, but some things (such as the vehicles) are stylized on purpose to look simple to fit in with the game world. The movie focuses on a programmer named Flynn, who is attempting to do something he's not supposed to and hack a computer system called ENCOM. The leader of ENCOM is a guy named Ed Dillinger, who says the system is locking him out in order to protect private information. In his office at the top of a huge building, Dillinger talks with an entity that is meant to represent the computer as a sentient being: the master control program, or MCP. The MCP was invented and coded by a human, but it boasts about having over 2000 times as much intelligence since it was created and now wants total control over government and personal information. Another programmer named Alan and his girlfriend Lora head to an arcade to find Flynn after they find out Dillinger has apparently ripped off his idea for a new video game. The trio sneak into a room that has a computer left unattended, and Flynn attempts to question the MCP for info. Suddenly, a laser behind him fires and blinks Flynn out of existence. He reappears in a strange world which resembles the world of a video game. Everything looks like a wireframe and has bright, neon colors. While this place may look cool, its true purpose is more sinister. The MCP resides in this realm and pits people against each other in fights to the death. Flynn meets Ram and Tron (two other captured people) and the three are forced to take part in a game of light cycle. The object of the game is to drive a motorbike-esque vehicle and avoid crashing into the other bike's colored trails. The game is hectic, and the group eventually go outside the boundaries of the game's area, prompting Sark (the MCP's lieutenant) to intercept them. He sends tanks and large, flying vehicles called recognizers to track them down. A tank blasts two of the bikes and destroys them, forcing Ram and Flynn to find other methods to escape pursuit. Ram dies (or derezzes) shortly afterwards, but Flynn manages to steal an enemy solder's uniform in order to move around unnoticed. Eventually, the remaining players board a large, gondola-like vehicle called a solar sailer which moves along a beam of light. Sark, determined not to let the survivors get away, destroys it from his huge command ship flying overhead. Sark attempts to feed the MCP captured players in order to give it more power, but Tron fights and distracts him long enough to have Flynn jump into the light beam the MCP is in. This gives Tron an opening to attack the MCP and he manages to destroy it. The computer world is now free of the MCP's malevolent influence, and Ed Dillinger gets what he deserves once he finds out the MCP no longer functions. Not only this, but everybody now knows he stole Flynn's ideas. While I thought the idea for this movie was pretty original, the film itself has a number of serious (in my opinion) drawbacks that limit the amount of fun I got out of it. The most glaring negative of this movie is also arguably its greatest strength, which is the art style. The scenes that take place in the real world are fine, but that's only like 10% of the movie. The video game world looks like it's locked down on a grid, with vibrant colors everywhere. The colors are so bright in fact that I had to take a few breaks from watching the movie because the saturation was making my head hurt. The story itself is a mixed bag because on one hand, it involves video games, but conversely, it's pretty hard to follow what's going on because the plot is so confusing. This was actually a criticism people had about this movie from the day it came out. It's also pretty confusing how the main characters are known by different names in the game world. While these are, in my eyes, pretty big flaws, Tron is able to partially make up for this by having an impressive sense of scale. The whole movie is filled with huge environments that both the audience and the characters in the movie find amazing. The movie also features unique vehicles like the recognizers, tanks, solar sailer, and Sark's flagship. The bickering between the Sark and the MCP reminds me a lot of Darth Vader speaking with Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars. Most people think Vader is the epitome of a villain, but even he has a boss. Sark is shown to be ruthless, but the MCP makes sure he knows his place. To summarize, Tron is far from perfect in my view, but there's no denying that it was one of the first successful movies to incorporate video games as a central theme.
Review of Tron
