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The framework of pointlessness is revisited in this tediously complex sci-fi film, closer to a screensaver than an real cinematic experience. This is a third installment to the classic Tron film from the early 80s, a film that was mould-breaking and boldly pioneering for its time in a way that eludes this film and its predecessor Tron Legacy from 2010. Tron: Ares nearly awakens just one time – when Evan Peters gets a slap in the face from Gillian Anderson's character portraying his mother, in an old-fashioned bit of analogue reality. That's a bit of firm parenting you might feel like administering to all the producers involved in this film, and it's sad to see the estimable Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith being made to look so uninspired.

Plot Overview of Tron: Ares

The situation currently is that an malicious artificial intelligence company with the obviously criminal name of Dillinger has become a competitor to the VR company Encom, originally set up in the 80s arcade-game era by brilliant innovator Kevin Flynn's character, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This corporation (initially founded by Encom executive Ed Dillinger's role, acted by David Warner) is headed by the founder's odiously nerdish grandson's character Julian (Evan Peters), who has a grand plan to design and create lucrative items such as indestructible soldiers and armored vehicles in the virtual reality grid and then transfer them into actual reality using a kind of 3D printer.

The issue is that no matter how intimidating, these things disintegrate after twenty-nine minutes. But Encom's current CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has discovered the MacGuffin-y “permanence algorithm” which can maintain these entities for ever, and even stores it on her person on a extremely basic USB drive. So the ghastly Julian deploys his enforcer on her: Ares the warrior, the humanoid uber-warrior which can leave the VR world for twenty-nine minutes at a time but which, in the traditional way of robots, is starting to exhibit symptoms of disobeying what he is commanded. Jodie Turner-Smith portrays Ares's stoic deputy Athena's role and unfortunate Jeff Bridges has a leaden legacy cameo in wise white robes, like a Poundshop Jor-El on Krypton's setting.

Acting and Roles Breakdown

And Ares himself – the hero of the film's name – is acted by Jared Leto with hipsterish long hair, beard and faintly all-knowing smile, details that were possibly designed by typing the words “incredibly irritating” into an AI human creation programme. Nobody who recalls the 90s TV classic My So-Called Life series will ever find it in their hearts to be totally rude about Mr Leto, and I was also very entertained by his expansive (and widely misinterpreted) humorous performance in Ridley Scott's movie House of Gucci. But Jared Leto is consistently, persistently terrible in this film, although his performance isn't aided by a weak storyline which is supposed to allow him to show flashes of “empathy” for Eve Kim's role and delegate all the badass wickedness to Athena, thus rendering her marginally more interesting. It is meant to be adorable when Ares says how he loves 80s synth pop and that Depeche Mode are superior to Mozart's compositions.

Series Features and Overall Impact

Consistent with the brand-identity of the franchise, there are motorbikes from the virtual underworld which speed around the place in long straight lines, conforming to the rectilinear design of classic video games (or even dance clubs); a single bike even shoots out a lethal beam which cuts a police vehicle in two. But there is no drama or jeopardy or emotional engagement anywhere. This series now looks about as urgently contemporary as an in-car CD player.