• Steve Pond calls TIME Magazine’s (somewhat dubious) selection of Mark Zuckerberg as Person of the Year “the niftiest bit of Oscar promotion anybody has gotten this year.” [The Odds]
• Sophia Savage spotlights the standout performances of 2010. [Thompson on Hollywood]
• Newly acquired Miramax strikes a sequel deal with The Weinstein Company. [Deadline]
Disney has probably been wise to discontinue the original “TRON” on DVD in advance of the release of “TRON Legacy,” lest people be reminded of how truly bad it was. Beyond being conceptually ahead of its time, it never seemed to be more than a pop culture blip in cinema history, if we’re being perfectly honest.
Bottom line: the film had unrefined if progressive narrative ideas and got points for pushing boundaries if nothing else. Naturally, then, it developed a cult following that heaped appreciation for what wasn’t really on the screen, but rather what existed in the conceptual ether of the thing. This puts “TRON Legacy” in decent enough position to capitalize on throwback mania.
Here’s the thing. The new film has plenty of issues, but I doubt I’ve had a better time in a movie theater all year. Expectations couldn’t have been lower, which played to the film’s advantage I imagine, but I was strapped in and game from the opening text.
Last night on the Disney lot the studio held its annual holiday showcase, previewing material from major films set to hit theaters this fall. Outside the theater there was a massive illuminated “Secretariat” display across from a live horse prancing around in circles, which itself was just steps away from a “TRON Legacy” light cycle. If you’re gonna roll out the hype, spare no expense.
First up there was a rather arbitrary teaser for the only completed film featured, “Secretariat” (which I’ve seen but can’t write about until Monday). Done and done.
Then came the “TRON Legacy” showcase, introduced by director Joseph Kosinski. We were treated to 23 minutes of the film (including much of the segment shown at Comic-Con in July). Most of the effects were in place though the sound had not yet been punched up by Skywalker.
“It proves to me some things, good things, take a really long time to happen,” “TRON” creator Steve Lisberger said to a packed Hall H, looking strikingly like Bad Blake next to a clean-shaven Jeff Bridges.
And that was the vibe you got from the euphoric crowd this afternoon as Disney revealed eight minutes of footage from the new film “TRON Legacy.” A new trailer was also shown, which was simultaneously “unlocked” by internet users online.
Actors Bruce Boxleitner, Jeff Bridges, Michael Sheen (in his first Comic-Con appearance), Olivia Wilde and Garrett Hedlund joined Kosinski, Bailey and Lisberger on stage with moderator Patton Oswalt for a discussion on technology utilized by the project, re-visiting the material 27 years later and the underlying themes of the film.
“We need modern myths,” Bridges said. “And one of the themes in our movie is the dark side of technology. We’re developing it so fast we haven’t developed any ethics.”