TRON (1982)

Director:

Steven Lisberger

Writers:

Steven Lisberger (story) and
Bonnie MacBird (story)

Release Date:

9 July 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

The Electronic Gladiator

Plot:

A hacker is literally abducted into the world of a computer and forced to participate in gladiatorial games where his only chance of escape is with the help of a heroic security program.

Plot Keywords:

Computer | Video Game | Computer Programmer | Alter Ego | Cyberspace

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Jeff Bridges	...	Kevin Flynn / Clu
Bruce Boxleitner	...	Alan Bradley / Tron
David Warner	...	Ed Dillinger / Sark / Master Control Program
Cindy Morgan	...	Lora / Yori
Barnard Hughes	...	Dr. Walter Gibbs / Dumont
Dan Shor	...	Ram / Popcorn Co-Worker
Peter Jurasik	...	Crom
Tony Stephano	...	Peter / Sark's Lieutenant
Craig Chudy	...	Warrior #1
Vince Deadrick Jr.	...	Warrior #2 (as Vince Deadrick)
Sam Schatz	...	Expert Disc Warrior
Jackson Bostwick	...	Head Guard
David S. Cass Sr.	...	Factory Guard (as Dave Cass)
Gerald Berns	...	Guard #1
Bob Neill	...	Guard #2

Also Known As:

Tron (UK)
Tron: The Electronic Gladiator (Australia)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA | Taiwan

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Netherlands:MG6 (20th anniversary collector's edition) | Iceland:L | Peru:PT | South Korea:15 | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Canada:G (Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory - 7000 East Avenue, Livermore, California, USA

Company:

Lisberger/Kushner

Trivia:

After Flynn escapes from the light cycles arena, it is possible to hear a "Pac-Man" video game and see a graphic on the map behind Sark in the next scene showing Sark on his command carrier "bridge".

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Alan leaves his cubicle to see Dillinger (after he finds the Tron program unavailable), the line between the built set and the matte painting of the cubicles moves distinctly (clearly visible on the DVD).

Quotes:

[first lines]
Boy in Video Game Arcade: All right, give me room. Here we go.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Chuck: Chuck Versus the Sandworm (#1.6)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

1990s Theme

Someone had to try it

"Tron" is not for everyone.

This first sentence should make you think that "Tron" is a cult movie. Well, maybe it is. My parents abhor it. My sister detests it. But my friends, who were born in the early 70s (very early, actually) and me see it as an amazing piece of work.

Is it stunning? Yes, even though more than half of the film is colorized b&w. Is it computer animated? Yes, although I am betting your home PC might be able to render the images you will see there without any problem. Maybe not in real time, but almost. Is it special? You bet. Even though CGI had been tried before, Tron took it to the next logical step: creating whole CGI rendered scenes (e.g. tanks, cycles, Recognizers).

The film is confusing at times, and 18 years later you can safely say the script wasn't actually the best. On the light of the Internet, though, it all makes a lot more sense, and it plainly demonstrates that the writers really loved computers. In fact, they were so ahead of their times that I am betting too many people who saw it the first time didn't understand it. That was its failure: only computer geeks could get the whole picture (no pun intended).

Still, I guess Toy Story I and II are the direct development of Tron. And that cannot be bad in any way.