Miscellaneous Movie Musings the Sequel

[innerSpaceman]

I haven't seen Tron yet, but what I'm liking about it so far is it appears to be one of those Love It/Or/Hate It movies. Even if end up on the Hate It side, I find those films inherently fascinating.

I'm glad I chose The Black Swan tonight, but I'll see Tron soon, after all.



Oh ... plus, after having 4 gift's "stolen" from me in last night's annual Xmas Party gift exchange with a group of friends widely known for their film fandom, I ended up with a nifty Tron disc.






Which is great when you switch the power on ...

[Ghoulish Delight]

Edgar Wright can do no rong.

[Ghoulish Delight]

So my brother-in-law pointed out that, since we were staying at my parents' place last night, that meant we could put Theo down to sleep and...see a movie!

Tron!

Meh!

As a side note, this was my first experience with the active type 3D glasses. Holy hell are those uncomfortable. Heavy, and they slide off my nose. Suck the the Nth degree. Despite the instructions at the beginning, I kept mine off during all of the 2D parts. On the plus side, we went to Arclight Sherman Oaks, so despite the heavy rain and last minute planning, the movie going experience was hassle-free.

Now, for the movie. Y-A-W-N. Sure, it was pretty. And sure the daft punk stuff was fun. But that's IT. The pretty was not nearly enough to cover for the completely uninteresting storyline. It's not even about it being stupid, or full of holes. It was just BORING.

Not that the original had the most amazing plot to ever grace the screen, but the context it took place in was, to me, far more engaging. It explored the analogy of computer-as-living-world in depth and with (allowing for creative license) a high degree of attention to detail. This movie had none of that. So beyond that fancy visuals there was nothing more than surface stuff. And some odd goofiness that just felt out of place.

I'm glad I saw it in the theater so at least I enjoyed it as well as I possibly could. There were certainly some experiential components in there that were worth seeing. But not enough to really feel satisfied.

[alphabassettgrrl]

Tron: Husband kept thinking it was directed by George Lucas; too much like Star Wars. I liked the visuals, that's for sure. And yes, the glasses were annoying, but I did like the 3D ness.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Star Wars, Matrix, Blade Runner, etc. etc. It borrowed from many sci-fi movies (which in turn had borrowed from many other movies themselves).

That in and of itself wouldn't be a problem if it brought something else to the table to add, but I don't really think it did.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Oh, and young Jeff Bridges was creeepy.

For Clue, that was fine since it's supposed to be a computery version of him anyway. But the "real" young Flynn...yuck.

[innerSpaceman]

Yep, what I found most unforgivable about Tron 2 was how BORING it was, almost as soon as it stopped being a remake of Tron 1. Though, like its predecessor, the only things to really recommend being the visuals and the score - I actually agree with GD that the original Tron is the far more engaging film. Which is a sad commentary indeed on the sequel.

And while the graphic visual delights were plussed by the very pretty (if ultimately boring) Garrett Hedlund, I was surprised to be disappointed with the vaunted Daft Punk score. Their orchestral stuff was, imo, too plentiful and too standard. The more Tron-ish electronica was better, and I wish there had been more of it.


Also, Jeff Bridges x 2 in Tron = < 1/2 of the singularly awesome performance by Bridges in True Grit. That movie rocks, and is the far better film to see if you must choose between the two. And I join with Alex in also recommending 127 Hours and Black Swan for your year-end viewing. Also Tangled, if you haven't seen it yet.

[Not Afraid]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

I actually agree with GD that the original Tron is the far more engaging film. Which is a sad commentary indeed on the sequel.

Sad indeed! I like the first Tron film, but it is by no means a great movie. I always wondered why they decided to do a sequel. Of course, I wonder why there's a Yogi Bear movie out at the moment.

[innerSpaceman]

The more sickening question being Why is Yogi Bear having the second best box office of the holiday weekend, beating all but Tron? Sad what passes for popular.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

And while the graphic visual delights were plussed by the very pretty (if ultimately boring) Garrett Hedlund, I was surprised to be disappointed with the vaunted Daft Punk score. Their orchestral stuff was, imo, too plentiful and too standard. The more Tron-ish electronica was better, and I wish there had been more of it.

Totally agreed. I mean, the score was at least 20% Inception horns, wtf was that about? The dance party was great, but even then, they cut away just as Castor cued what seemed like was going to be the best beat dropped in the whole scene! With the way everyone was talking about the score I was pretty much expecting a 2 hour Daft Punk music video and it fell FAR short of that.

Also, Jeff Bridges x 2 in Tron = < 1/2 of the singularly awesome performance by Bridges in True Grit. That movie rocks, and is the far better film to see if you must choose between the two.

Would have definitely been our second choice, but with theater-going opportunities a rare commodity for us it was decided that, of the two, Tron would lose the most by not seeing it in the theater. If I was going to see that movie at all, it HAD to be in the theater, True Grit I'll still be willing (and itching) to see at home.