Here is my impression:
Taking a movie that is a pillar of computer nerd culture, revitalizing it and presenting a sequel with broad market appeal a generation later is a hard thing to do. The story itself was relatively weak, but easy to follow. But you're not going to see
Tron for the story. Thats like saying you wanted to see
The Expendables for the acting. No, you go to see
Tron for the special effects, and they were there in spades!
The graphics in this film were nothing short of spectacular. Between paying homage to the original and pushing the boundaries of what is currently capable,
Tron: Legacy was all over it. You just couldn't help but be in awe of the world that they managed to create. The fact that every frame of this movie was digitally enhanced is impressive. And yes, that has been done before, but where movies like the
Star Wars prequels failed miserably,
Tron succeeded.
All that being said, I think that
Tron can also be seen as a bit of a social commentary. Here we are in 2010 and this movie all about a computer world is a major box office release that has garnered a lot of attention. Twenty-eight years ago when the original was released it was praised for its technological achievements, but generally forgotten except for by a very small group of people categorized as nerds. But now everyone is a computer nerd. Who doesn't have a computer in their pocket? Who doesn't get on the computer at home multiple times a day? Who doesn't constantly get online to communicate with other people over vast distances? That is why Disney decided to make a sequel to
Tron, because we now live in a world full of nerds, even if most people won't admit it.
I'll close with this fantastic comic from Scott Ramsoomair's
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