MOVIE REVIEW: Disney’s ‘Tron,’ ‘Tron: Legacy’ 4K Re-Issues Fall Far Short Of Expectations

By: Philip Sayblack

More than 40 years ago, Walt Disney Studios took a chance on a little movie titled Tron and since then, that movie has essentially created a whole cottage industry.  From cult status to major mainstream franchise, Tron has since gone on to spawn a sequel, a short-lived animated series and a whole following of audiences the world over.  Now today as those audiences and a whole new generation of audiences await the release of that movie’s second sequel, Tron: Ares (which is scheduled to make its theatrical debut Oct. 10), the movie that started it all and its sequel, Tron: Legacy have gotten new life in brand-new 4K steelbook re-issues.  As anticipated as these two re-issues have been among the franchise’s most devoted audiences, they are in reality largely disappointing.  That is because other than the story in the original 1982 movie, there is only one other positive to these presentations, that being their general production, and even that is a minimal positive.  This will be discussed later.  The bonus content featured in each movie greatly detracts from the appeal of either set, too.  This will be discussed a little later.  When it and the sets’ packaging are considered collectively, the result is two movie re-issues that are just as disappointing as those from the studios owned by Walt Disney Studios.
Walt Disney Studios’ brand-new 4K UHD steelbook re-issues of Tron and Tron: Legacy are sadly nothing for audiences to get excited about.  That includes the most devoted of the franchise’s fans.  The reason being is that the re-issues give audiences next to nothing to praise despite the years-long anticipation of the re-issues.  If any one thing can be noted of either movie, it is the story behind the original 1982 movie.  The story in question is a political commentary about autocratic rule and stopping it.  That commentary is set against the backdrop of a hacker who gets pulled into a cyber world that matches said commentary what with its clear militaristic look and feel.  Along the way, our main protagonist, Flynn, works with the computer program, Tron, to defeat the big bad cyber dictator, Sark and return freedom to the cyber world.  It is an allegorical tale that is just as pertinent today as it was more than four decades ago when this movie first premiered in theaters nationwide.
As if that is not enough, the movie’s look at that time was just as important to its presentation.  That is because no other movie at the time was using computer graphics at all.  For this movie’s heads to go that direction was a huge risk.  This is discussed at more length in the movie’s bonus content, which has been carried over to the new re-issue.  Speaking of which, the bonus content featured in the new 4K re-issue of Tron: Legacy has also been carried over, offering audiences nothing new there, either.  This will all be discussed later.
Getting back to the subject at hand, Tron remains in important part of Walt Disney Studios’ history and that of modern cinema.  Its dual-pronged story, which is one part science fiction epic and one part political allegory that is still as relevant to day as then and its first of its kind special effects make that clear.  By comparison, the story featured in Tron: Legacy is the exact opposite.  Much in the vein of Blues Brothers 2000, it is a virtual rehashing of its predecessor.  In this case, Kevin Flynn’s son, Sam, goes in search of his father, who has been missing since Sam was a boy.  Not to give away too much for audiences who have yet to see the movie, it turns out that Kevin essentially got trapped in the grid.  This is where the problems begin.  Throughout it all, this movie becomes more about its visuals than its story.  That is because the story is so basic. It finds one of Kevin’s original Clu programs having turned evil dictator (sound familiar?) and leading a massive army to try and come into the human world in order to take over.  Yes, this has been done before.  To that end, the story here is essentially a retelling of the first movie, with the protagonist intentionally going into the grid this time instead of accidentally, as in the first movie.  All the while, the light cycle sequences are there but this time are accented by new vehicles that take center stage but little other reason to watch.
The matter of Clu turning bad becomes even more of a concerning plot device.  That is because those who have watched the original Tron will recall, again, that Kevin Flynn created a number of Clu programs, so which Clu program is this?  What happened with all of the other Clu programs that he wrote between the ending of Tron and this movie?  Where are they?  Are they all part of this Clu’s army?  For that matter, how did the movie’s titular character turn bad along with Clu?  This is never explained, either.  Keeping all of this in mind, Tron: Legacy offers becomes just another special effects extravaganza than anything memorable.
Moving on from here, there are plenty of concerns, not the least of which being that the bonus content featured in the movie’s most recent Blu-ray releases – both of which released in 2011 – were carried over to these 4K steelbook re-issues.  There is no new bonus content included in either movie’s new presentation.  The special effects extra, “The Speed of Light” is the anchor for those extras as it focuses on each of the noted vehicles and special effects sequences that are the real center of attention in this movie.  On a related note, the “Digital Imagery” extras and the “Making of” featurette included in Tron’s new 4K re-issue are the most notable of that movie’s extras.  Keeping that in mind, audiences who already own the movies’ previously released Blu-rays would be well-served to stick with those copies.  The same applies to audiences who do not own one or the other.  All involved will be saving roughly the roughly $40 price tag on each; $40 that could and should go to something else.
While the issues raised by the bonus content is hugely problematic for each re-issue, there is at least one more positive to note, that being the sound and video quality.  Each movie’s sound and video quality has been improved in its presentation.  Now, on the surface this may seem like a good thing.  However, even in this case it is not necessarily a winning item.  That is because even Blu-ray discs upscaled through a 4K player and played back on a 4K television look and sound quite impressive in their own right.  They honestly look and sound almost theater quality, especially when a sound bar or nice sound system is part of a viewer’s home entertainment system.  Even without the extra audio equipment the viewing experience for the Blu-ray presentation on the 4K television is still reason enough for audiences to hold off on these 4Ks.  To that end, neither set really gives audiences any motivation to own them.  They become, like so many other 4K steelbook re-issues released by Disney and the studios owned by the company, forgettable.
Walt Disney Studios’ brand new 4K steelbook re-issues of Tron and Tron: Legacy are presentations that audiences have anticipated for years.  However, in examining both movies’ new re-issues, audiences will agree that they do not live up to expectations.  The story in the sequel still does not hold up to that featured in the original movie.  The bonus content featured in each re-issue is the same presented in the previously released Blu-ray presentations, each of which was released in 2011.  The movies’ production is positive but only to a point when one considers the sound and video quality in Blu-ray presentations upscaled on 4K players and televisions.  Keeping all of this in mind, these re-issues do not live up to expectations and end up being as forgettable as other 4K re-issues released this year by Walt Disney Studios and the studios that it owns.
Tron and Tron legacy are available now on their own 4K steelbook presentations.  More information on these and other titles from Walt Disney Studios is available at:
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