8:29 PM
David Weaver
TRON: Legacy
Blu-ray/DVD Release Date: April, 5 2011
This has been my third time seeing the film and I can now say without a doubt that it was one of the most dazzling visual and auditory treats I have had the pleasure of sitting through in the past few years. Whatever your problems are with the story or some of the questionable effects (Clu looks even worse in 1080p) you cannot deny the work that went into creating the world of TRON Legacy. I have also learned to forgive it for many of it's shortcomings just due to the other accomplishments it has made. While it still isn't exactly the sequel or update I was looking for (I half wish they would have went the reboot route) I have grown quite fond of it. Thank goodness it ended up being a financial success for Disney because now we won't have to wait another 20 years for the next installment.
Review Vital Stats:
Format: Blu-ray
Player: Playstation 3
Monitor: Samsung 40' LCD Series 5
Picture Quality: 1080p
Sound Quality: DTS HD - English
Excerpt from my original theatrical review:
I honestly don't have any idea what I was expecting from this film. I hadn't seen the original Tron in over a decade but was a huge fan of it when I was a kid despite not knowing what the hell was going on. I remembered being dazzled by the world of Tron and getting excited every time they lined up for that light-cycle scene (I have seen that scene more times than I have ever actually watched the film). But like most adults my age, the older I got the less I thought about it. There were plenty of films I would go back and revisit from that era but for some reason Tron was never on that list. I never had the urge to sit someone down and show it to them and I most certainly never felt the need to own it. So when this sequel was announced I had a mixed reaction to it. On one hand I was semi-intrigued by what could be done with that world I loved as a child but on the other I was worried that it might have been better to leave those memories, as fond as they were, be and to let Tron be what it was...a technical yet highly flawed achievement from another time.
Read the full review here.
And if you are planning to be on the road you can always download our nearly 2 hour long discussion on the film from its original theatrical release on our old podcast feed HERE.
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What's on the disc?
Well at least this isn't the mixed bag of re-used material we so often get. Each and every feature is unique with no overlapping whatsoever. And just about all of them all worth watching which only sweetens the deal. However there were two omissions that could have made this perfect. The first being any form of commentary for the film which I think could have been a blast hearing the filmmakers discussing the intricacies involved with the films production. The other and great offense is there isn't one feature on here (save for a music video) that deals with the soundtrack from Daft Punk...not one. The score they put together for this film is phenomenal and will likely go down as one of the greatest movie soundtracks of all time and they are never even mentioned in ANY of the features here. Perhaps the musicians didn't want to be a part of any features but the fact that no one else even brings them up makes their absence very suspicious to me.
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| A legacy nearly 20 years in the making. |
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The Next Day: Flynn Lives Revealed (10:00 min) HD - A mock documentary that covers the disappearance of Kevin Flynn and the movement that believed he was still alive. This was a pretty good fill-in-the-gaps feature for anyone curious about the moments after Flynn disappeared. Plus there was an pleasantly unexpected cameo that fans of the original TRON will get a kick out of.
Disney Second Screen HD - This is kind of a mixture of picture in picture behind the scenes and a trivia track. If you have the gear to use it then it is a welcome feature. I just wish they would offer a way to do it picture in picture for people that don't want to go through the trouble of setting up the app on their PC or iPad.
First Look at TRON: Uprising the Disney XD Animated Series (1:15 min) HD - This is more or less a quick commercial for the new series with some glimpses at the animation style during a lightcycle chase. It looks interesting but as a feature goes you will never watch it ever again.
Launching the Legacy (10:20 min) HD - A look at how the sequel came to be. Probably the best part was the presentation trailer they showed at the San Diego Comic Con to test the waters and see if a sequel would work. Suffice to say it definitely worked and that trailer is pretty dam cool.
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| I love that the actors were there during the production design stage. |
Visualizing TRON (11:46 min) HD - Considering that one of the major aspects of TRON: Legacy was its visuals I had suspected this would be a little more in depth than it was. Still it had some good info in there for anyone curious about the production design. I also found it pretty cool to see stars Garrett Hedlund and Olivia Wilde hanging out for the production stuff and taking an interest.
Installing the Cast (12:04 min) HD - Interviews with the cast. Things covered are how neat it was for Jeff Bridges and Bruce Boxleitner being reunited once again and we get some very brief on set moments (my favorite being Hedlund telling Sheen that he wasn't paying attention to any word he said during his big speech, funny stuff).
Disc Roars (3:00 min) HD - This was pretty neat. Apparently the crowd roars during the disc battle scene were recorded at the San Diego Comic Con. This is footage of the director rallying up the crowd and recording their cheers.
Music Video - "Derezzed" written, produced and performed by Daft Punk (2:58 min) HD - You like Daft Punk? Well so do I and although the people that put this disc together completely neglected their contribution to the film with their amazing soundtrack we at least get this really cool (but short) music video of theirs. I loved that they used the effects from the old TRON film.
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| Don't you just adore her? |
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Final Verdict:
TRON Legacy is a film unlike any other, the original included. Not only is it a sequel to a couple decade old film that was a disaster at the box office back when it originally released but it has created a world beyond any one's (well, maybe not the filmmakers anyways) imagination. If you can forgive the shortcomings in the storytelling department you will be mesmerized from beginning to end. As for the Blu-ray, this is a demo disc for sure. The video is unsurprisingly astounding but oh boy, the music...I have said it before and I will say it again, this film sometimes feels more like a 2 hour Daft Punk music video than an actual film and the DTS-HD soundtrack will blow you (and your neighbors) right off the grid. The special features also came through despite a couple of omissions that SHOULD have been included here but weren't. All in all this is a fantastic disc all around that nobody should be without.
Movie - B+
Video - A
Audio - A+
Extras - B+
BUY IT IMMEDIATELY
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1 comments:
Yes I can't wait to pick this up over the weekend!!!!
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