Tron: Ares (2025)

One of the few strong movie sequels ever made. Even though it builds off of the previous movies, it holds its own with a strong story and character development. I couldn't recommend this movie more.

When I first heard about the casting and that they were not going to bring back in the two main characters from the last film I was a little disappointed. Not that the actors they were bring in were bad, actually some are amongst my favorites out there, but that I wanted more of the previous story. I was pleasantly surprised with how well this film turned out. Jared Leto as Ares was a great pick and he was able to bring so much to the human development that the character has to go through in such a short time. Also Evan Peters once again pulls off a great villain character. He has been type casted, but at the same time it works for him. In the film he was able to show the complex relationship that the character had with his mother and how the character reacted when the sh*t hit the fan. This movie also had strong female characters. Greta Lee I think is an actress to keep your eye on. She not only conveyed brains, but also the emotions of dealing with having to pick up the pieces after you lose a loved one. I just wish that they would have let her get one good punch in on Jodie's character when Athena was trying to capture her. Jodie Turner-Smith brought a great physicality to her role and in the end, SPOILER, I wish that they could have saved her as well since she was starting to wake up as well like Ares did, but it was just taking longer. Who knew that simple water could have an effect.

The special effects were great, but kind of weird at the same time. I know when I go into movies I have to try and turn off my logical mind, but sometimes it's so hard. What got me in this movie was the trails that the vehicles could leave behind them. Sometimes they were solid like, some times they were energy like, and sometimes a combo. For when they were solid it didn't make sense where that material would come from. SPOILER, when Athena manages to trap Eve, Eve bangs on it without getting hurt yet police cars and planes that came in contact got cut like it was a lightsaber. Besides this unexplained weirdness/discontinuity in the movie the overall effects were good. I even found myself laughing at how they built in the support structures like a real 3D printer has. Yes, I notice those kinds of details and I'm glad that the creators did as well. 

Tron has very key lighting to it. Read bad, blue/white good. There are also a lot of lighting effects that people with certain issues may have trouble with, but to me that is to be expected in the Tron films based off of the previous movies as well. 

The movie does provide some hope for the next movie bring together both new and old cast members, so the future of the Tron universe may continue, but I hope it doesn't take as long to get the next one.

Picture 2 From: https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/tron-ares/

Picture 3 From: https://variety.com/2025/film/reviews/tron-ares-review-1236542140/

Picture 4 From: https://apnews.com/article/tron-ares-movie-review-60836f1bc4c1b9bef79e2fb48981d79a

__________

The early screening event I went to was at the Regal UA Theater on Colorado Blvd. They had the popcorn buckets for the movie for sale.

There was the above video game one and the below more standard bucket that also came with a special cup. To me these were ok, but didn't stand out enough for me to want to buy them. I only have so much room and I only get buckets/cups that really stand out to me.

They had two different backgrounds where people could get their photos taken. I actually recorded a quick intro to my video review in front of one before the film started.

There were two things that stood out to me at this screening. The first was that before the film started a guy gave a speech about keeping all phones up and that they would be using night vision technology to look for people bringing out their phones. I get that there is always a concern about pirating, but I have never experienced this overt display to discourage it before. Personally I think that Disney is extra worried about losing money right now since the boycott is successfully hitting their bottom line. I do support the boycott and I am not buying any Disney goods. I do make an exception only for movies because there are a lot of lower level employees whose lively hood depends on a movie's profits who don't have a say in what the corporation does. Toys and other goods for the most part just help to line the pockets of the powerful.

The other thing at this screening that stood out was interactions between a couple and their child. This is also who I bring up the lighting effects of the movie. They told the child that if she had sensory issues with the film to just close her eyes. Even with closed eyes, I still can see changes in lights/lighting and I assume that most people have this issue since they sell sleep masks. Eye lids can only do so much. If you have issues with lighting effects in movies I would recommend skipping movies that have a high chance of triggering issues. I felt bad for the kid that her patents were willing to ignore her well being just so they could see the movie, but hope others care a bit more for their friends and families.

#tron #disney #tronares