I'm not entirely sure the use of the word "Classic" on the cover is entirely justified here, since
Tron's popularity must surely be classed more as a cult thing than something of the mainstream. Judged by "traditional" factors for critique, it doesn't exactly shine; the tone extremely camp and a little too self-consciously wierd, the script is full of problems and the pace is all over the place, but it still conjours up a tangible nostalgia that is as much indicative of the magic of cinema as real quality is. In conjunction with the Blu-ray release of
Tron Legacy, the original "classic" is now also
available to buy on blu-ray. Although everyone should by now know the plot, there may be those of you out there who haven't yet seen the original Tron, having only just discovered the sequel, so here goes anyway. Ex-ENCOM employee Kevin Flynn (
Jeff Bridges) is seeking vengeance after rival engineer Ed Dillinger (
David Warner) passed Flynn's video-game work off as his own, and subsequently enjoyed success and promotions as a result. To get his revenge Flynn breaks into ENCOM aided by friends Alan Bradley (
Bruce Boxleitner) and Lora Baines (
Cindy Morgan), but unfortunately manages to piss off ENCOM's Master Control Program (also Warner), that attempts to defend the concerns of its creator by transporting Flynn in to the ENCOM computer mainframe, which turns out to be a complete virtual world, populated by humanoid Programs, who keep everything running smoothly. The Programs are all subject to the tyrannical leadership of MCP's stooge Sark (Warner again), who takes it upon himself to capture Flynn, who is helped to escape by Tron (Boxleitner) a security Program created by Bradley and Yori (Morgan), a Program a User-friendly Program. Tron is essentially a sci-fi caper, as Flynn attempts to defeat the evil MCP and find his way home, encountering resistance from MCP's Programs, competing in arena games, and finally coming face to face with his tormentors Sark and the MCP.
This is a film fuelled entirely by imagination, and facilitated by a joyfully unlimited capacity for the imaginative, and at the time innovative creativity. It achieved things in terms of stylistics and aesthetic that had never been achieved before, and indeed laid the foundations for modern sci-fi blockbusters with their stream-lined and glossy visuals that look a million miles away from the hand-drawn iconic aesthetic of Tron. The plot, and the existential concerns therein can occasionally get a little convoluted, but they do serve a purpose: helping to build up an almost intangible mythos that has lead to Tron becoming one of the most nostalgically-loved sci-fi films of all time. Again, the acting isn't exactly great, but has managed to transcend its limitations to become almost as iconic as the film's visuals. Bridges is great and Godly as Flynn, and he has more than enough charisma to carry the weight of being a near-deity, while simultaneously appearing accessible and empathetic; Bruce Boxleitner is equally good as Bradley and Tron, but it is David Warner who scores the highest points thanks to his triple-pronged performances as Dillinger (deliciously sleazy), Sark (instantly, and convincingly menacing) and the MCP (almost on a par with Douglas Rain's voice work as HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey). These performances anchor the otherwise predominately fantastical film in accessible reality, meaning that as well as being wowed and immersed by the stunning looking world of the Grid, we can also, crucially engage with the characters.
Tron will forever be loved for its Alice In Wonderland for Video-gamers sensibilities, and held in the kind of esteem that can only ever be equalled by a film that carries its own considerable weight of nostalgia, and as far as I'm concerned it is a better film experience than its various flaws and limitations might otherwise suggest. It's really the transfer I'm most interested in here, so I'm speeding along to that section...
Quality
Nothing looks like Tron- not even the sequel- and it is precisely that fact that has made it an iconic film, but it simply cannot compete with Tron Legacy- but then not many blu-ray transfers can- but you have to bear in mind that Tron is a grand old dame when it comes to HD transfers, and more than most, it is anchored to its production time because the techniques used to animate the Grid sequences are so
of that time. Not only that, the aesthetic of Tron was hampered by a relatively tiny budget, which dictated the "innovative" special effects techniques, and the original source just isn't all that great, which you'd have to suspect would spell utter disaster for the prospect of an HD transfer. But if judged solely against the DVD transfer, this new blu-ray transfer of Tron is very impressive: sure it retains a lot of the imperfections of the original, but it is a marked overall improvement, and who the hell wants to see a film like this with such character stripped of it all and glossed over using some sneaky refinement techniques. What Disney have done is offer a faithful transfer, one that boosts the basics without stripping away every imperfection needlessly- the black levels are still occasionally impenetrable, but for most of the film they look a lot better and more inky.
The sound mix is a similar story- it is unspectacular by modern standards, as a lot of the components show their age, but in comparison to former DVD releases, it is a world apart. Dialogue is perfectly crisp and clear, and there are few distractions to the overall sound-mix. All-in-all this is easily the best Tron has ever, and indeed probably will ever look and sound.
Extras
A good collection, including a lot of material that Tron fans will already recognise as having been re-purposed from the DVD, but there are also two high-definition featurettes added specially for the blu-ray which adds a little more to the package. Audio Commentary: Director Steven Lisberger, producer Donald Kushner, associate producer and visual effects supervisor Harrison Ellenshaw, and visual effects supervisor Richard Taylor. The Tron Phenomenon (HD, 10 mins) Photo Tronology (HD, 12 mins) The Making of Tron (88 mins) Development (8 mins): A collection of featurettes including- "The Early Development of Tron", "Early Lisberger Studios Animation", a "Computers are People Too" TV short from 1982, "Early Video Tests" and a "Development Gallery" of concept art, sketches and storyboards. Digital Imagery (12 mins): A second collection of featurettes- "Backlight Animation", "Digital Imagery in Tron", "Beyond Tron", "Role of Triple I" and a Triple I computer animation demo. Music (8 mins) Publicity (13 mins) Deleted Scenes (6 mins): "Tron and Yori's Love Scene," "Tron and Yori's Love Scene #2" and an "Alternate Opening Prologue" , including an introduction by Lisberger. Design (4 mins) Storyboarding (9 mins) Galleries (HD) Tron is released on
Blu-ray from tomorrow.