Dear Disney, please don't screw up TR2N
Tron was one of those revolutionary films that was really pushing what movie makers could do back in the early 1980′s. The bluescreen process that Star Wars used had been invented decades before, but was really put to the test by Lucasfilm. Even though computer graphics (CGI) had been used in vector form in the movies before (again, with Star Wars), it was never used to fully render a frame of film and move the plot of a story along on the big screen. Tron was also one of the few films I owned on 35mm back in the days before DVD.
Apart from the CGI, Tron also pushed the envelope of what a Disney film was. The Black Hole was Disney’s first PG-rated film and depite what people think of the film, I personally believe it had a wonderful atmosphere about it. Even though one line of dialog needed to be fixed (“we’re looking for habiatable life”), I think the movie really worked.
Tron also had a subtle subtext of religion. “If I don’t have a user than who wrote me?”, asks captured program RAM. It was never really expounded upon because it wasn’t necessary, but it gave the programs a much needed feeling of being human and not some robotized character running around with a monotone robotic voice saying “You..must…not…take…data”.
Last, but not least, Tron’s music was impressive as well. Written by Wendy Carlos, it wasn’t the first electronic score (I believe that goes to Forbidden Planet), but it was very unique in how it was written and performed.
It’s been 26 years since Tron was released and ComiCon showed a surprise teaser for the sequel, Tr2n. What worries me is that moviemaking has lost a lot of its humanity, especially in effect-driven films. Movies like Star Wars, Aliens, and Predator worked because although there were effects in the films, there was good story as well. I personally blame Top Gun, and moreso Armageddon for th fall of modern cinema. There are too many fast MTV-style cuts nowadays. Effects-driven stories have their actors phone in their performances. Watching Batman Begins last week really made me feel that there are people out there that still understand what makes a good film.
And that brings us back to Disney. If you look at Disney’s track record of late, the stories are good, but revolve around a central theme: some poor character is somehow lost and needs to find their way home. Toy Story, Cars, Finding Nemo, Wall-E. I pray that Tr2n doesn’t turn into some poor program getting bit-shifted outside his CPU and needs to find his way back to his home address (pun intended). I would hope that the creative team at Disney isn’t looking to make an eye-candy film, but one that pushed the envelope of movie making like the original movie did in 1982. No, I don’t mean with respect to CGI, I mean the experience of the film as a whole, just like the first film was. Push the film to challenge the audience about what lives inside a computer, don’t just run arond with lightcycles for the hell of it.
End of line
If you want to see the concept trailer, it shows up from time to time on youtube; just do a search for “tr2n”. Filmstalker has also been keeping tabs on it.
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Comments
kinda true, except I do prefer the vision from Lasseter to the one from Lucas (maybe bc i’m working into 3D long features, but not even sure) 
i’m one of the lucky guys with a tron machine in the house. it’s the game i always wanted. now i see the teaser for tr2n. first of all…put SOMETHING up about it on your website disney. secondly…RELEASE that teaser so the rest of us can see it through something other than a cameraphone. finally…take this movie seriously if you make it. It could be another pivotal movie making moment, or it could be matrix 2. your choice. all i ask is that you change the locks so lucas can’t get in.
Yes, I really hope they do it right, I loved TRON. Also, “If I don’t have a user then who wrote me?” was said by the banking program and not RAM.
well.. gotta say I agree with you. But directed by John Lasseter. must be some kinda good concept behind it. but crossing our fingers yeah. Tron was really a masterpiece of it’s time.. don’t blew tr2n up