Tron - The 1982 sci-fi animated and live-action film

November 22, 2020

Tron is a 1982 science fiction action-adventure film written and directed by Steven Lisberger from a story by Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird. The film stars Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner, Cindy Morgan and Barnard Hughes. Bridges plays Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer and video game developer who is transported to the world of computer software (cyberspace) where he interacts with programs in an attempt to escape. Tron, along with The Last Starfighter, has the distinction of being one of the first films to use large computer generated imagery (CGI). An arcade game tie-in was released shortly after the film and was awarded "Coin-op Game of the Year" by Electronic Games magazine.

The inspiration for Tron dates back to 1976, when Lisberger became interested in video games after seeing Pong. He and producer Donald Kushner set up an animation studio to develop Tron with the intention of making it an animated film. To promote the studio itself, Lisberger and his team created a 30-second animation featuring the title character's first appearance. Ultimately, Lisberger decided to include live-action elements with animation, both backlit and computer-aided, for the actual feature film. Various film studios had turned down storyboards for the film before Walt Disney Productions agreed to finance and distribute Tron. There, backlit animation was finally combined with computer animation and live action.

Tron was released in theaters on July 9, 1982. The film was a moderate success at the box office and received positive reviews from critics who praised the groundbreaking visuals and acting. However, the plot was criticized at the time for being inconsistent. Tron received nominations for Best Costume Design and Best Sound at the 55th Academy Awards Tron was not nominated in the Best Visual Effects category. Tron spawned several video games and, becoming a cult film, a multimedia franchise that includes comic books and an animated television series. A sequel entitled Tron: Legacy directed by Joseph Kosinski was released in theaters on December 17, 2010, with Bridges and Boxleitner reprising their roles and Lisberger as producer, followed by the animated series Tron: Uprising set between the two films.

History

Kevin Flynn is a leading computer engineer, software programmer, formerly employed by the computer company ENCOM, who now runs a video game arcade and attempts to hack into ENCOM's mainframe system. However, ENCOM's Master Control Program (MCP) halts its progress. Inside ENCOM, programmer Alan Bradley and his girlfriend, engineer Lora Baines, discover that the MCP has blocked their access to the projects. When Alan confronts Senior Executive Vice President Ed Dillinger, Dillinger says security measures are a big effort to stop outside hacking attempts. However, when Dillinger privately interrogates the MCP through his computer desk, he realizes that the MCP has expanded into powerful virtual intelligence and has become power-hungry, illegally appropriating personal, corporate and government programs to augment his own. capacity. The MCP blackmails Dillinger with information about his plagiarism of Flynn's games if he doesn't abide by his directives.

Lora deduces that Flynn is the hacker, and she and Alan go to his arcade to warn him. Flynn reveals that he tried to pinpoint evidence of Dillinger's plagiarism, which launched Dillinger's rise in the company. Together, the three form a plan to join the ENCOM and unlock Alan's “Tron” program, a self-managed security measure designed to protect the system and thwart the functions of the MCP. Once inside the ENCOM, the three split up and Flynn comes into direct conflict with the MCP, communicating with his terminal. Before Flynn can get the information he needs to reveal Dillinger's actions, the MCP uses an experimental laser to digitize and load Flynn into the ENCOM mainframe cyberspace, where programs are living entities that appear in the guise of "Users". humans (programmers) who created them.

Flynn learns that the MCP and his second-in-command, Sark, govern and force programs to renounce their faith in Users. The MCP forces programs that resist to play deadly games and starts putting Flynn in a duel. Flynn meets other captured shows, Ram and Tron, between games. Together, the three escape into the mainframe during a light cycle match (an arcade game that Flynn has written the program for and is adept at), but Flynn and Ram are separated from Tron by an MCP pursuit team. While attempting to help Ram, who was injured in the chase, Flynn discovers that he can manipulate parts of the mainframe by gaining access to his knowledge of the programmer. Ram recognizes Flynn as a User and encourages him to find Tron and free the system before "derezzare" (die). Using his new ability, Flynn rebuilds a vehicle and disguises himself as a Sark soldier.

Tron asks for help from Yori, a nice program, and in an I / O tower receives the information he needs to destroy the MCP from Alan. Flynn joins them and the three board a hijacked solar ship to reach the core of the MCP. However, Sark's command ship destroys the ship, capturing Flynn and Yori and presumably killing Tron. Sark leaves the command ship and orders its demise, but Flynn keeps it intact by manipulating the mainframe again, while Sark reaches the core of the MCP on a shuttle carrying the captured programs. As the MCP attempts to absorb the captive programs, Tron, who is revealed to have survived, confronts Sark and severely injures him, prompting the MCP to give him all of his functions. Realizing that his ability to manipulate the mainframe could give Tron an opening, Flynn leaps into the range of the MCP, distracting him. Seeing the MCP shield break, Tron attacks through the gap and destroys the MCP and Sark, ending MCP control over the mainframe and allowing captured programs to communicate with users again.

Flynn reappears in the real world, rematerialized at his terminal. Tron's victory in the mainframe unlocked all locks on computer access, and a nearby printer produces evidence that Dillinger plagiarized Flynn's creations. The next morning, Dillinger enters his office to find the MCP disabled and evidence of his theft advertised. Flynn is later promoted to CEO of ENCOM and is happily welcomed by Alan and Lora as their new boss.

Characters

Kevin Flynn

Kevin Flynn is a former employee of the fictional software company ENCOM and the protagonist of the first film. He is portrayed by Jeff Bridges.

At the beginning of the first film, he owns "Flynn's," an arcade where he impresses his customers with his skills with the games he (unknown to them) designed at ENCOM, but remains determined to find evidence that the vice president of ENCOM Ed Dillinger plagiarized Flynn's work to advance his position within the company. For much of the film, Flynn travels the digital world, accompanying the eponymous character Tron; but later he discovers that as a User he commands the physical laws of the digital world that enhance him beyond the capabilities of a normal program. Eventually, he allows Tron to destroy the Master Control Program shown to oppress the digital world, and upon returning to the material world he gains the necessary evidence to expose Dillinger and becomes ENCOM '

Clu

Clu (short for C modified L ikeness U Pu) is a hacking program created by Flynn, with his likeness, to expose Dillinger's plagiarism.

In the film, he is seen operating a tank in the search to discover the stolen data, but is captured by the Master Control Program and absorbed into it. The information obtained by Clu is later used against Flynn as he tries to escape the game grid with a light cycle.

Alan Bradley

Alan Bradley is a computer programming working partner of Kevin Flynn at ENCOM. He is portrayed by Bruce Boxleitner.

At the beginning of the first film, he creates the Tron program which monitors communications between the MCP and the real world, but finds its progress limited. As a result, he assists Flynn in exposing Dillinger. In the film, Tron addresses Alan with the username "Alan-One".

Tron

Tron is a security program created by Alan, in his guise, to monitor communications between the MCP and the real world. He is the main digital protagonist of the first film.

In the film, he is captured by the MCP and forced to play on the Game Grid, but freed by Flynn and instructed by Alan to shut down the MCP. Its code number is “JA-307020”.

Lora Baines

Lora Baines is a research engineer at ENCOM, Kevin Flynn's ex-girlfriend and Alan Bradley's then-current girlfriend. She is portrayed by Cindy Morgan.

She works as one of Walter Gibbs' assistants in designing the laser that teleports Kevin Flynn into the digital world and creates the Yori program that assists in the derezzing procedure.

yori

yori is an input / output program created by Baines, in his likeness, to deal with the creation of digital simulations (such as the Solar Sailer) and assist in the de-rezzing procedure of the digitizing laser.

Tron and Flynn's romantic interest, Yori reunites with Tron after he rescues her from the clutches of the MCP and helps Tron and Flynn reach its core, where their combined efforts destroy the MCP and its factional programs.

Walter Gibbs

Walter Gibbs is the founder of ENCOM, where he continues to work as a scientist together with Lora Baines, working on the teleportation laser. After expressing concern about the company's heavy mainframe computer restriction in a meeting with Ed Dillinger, Dillinger responds by threatening to get fired. He is portrayed by Barnard Hughes.

Dumont

Dumont is a "guardian" program created by Dr. Gibbs, in his likeness, to protect the I / O tower of the ENCOM mainframe. He also has a similar proximity to Yori that Gibbs had with his user, Lora Baines.

Ed Dillinger

Ed Dillinger is the senior executive vice president of ENCOM and the main antagonist of the first film. He is portrayed by David Warner.

Dillinger was a worker at ENCOM before plagiarizing Kevin Flynn's original job, after which he became the company's senior executive. It contributes to the birth of the Master Control Program which controls the ENCOM mainframe and creates the Sark program which acts as the second in command of the MCP. Dillinger clears the MCP to tighten security checks after learning of Flynn's search for evidence of his job theft, but when he begins to question the MCP's intention to challenge his plans to catch other programs , the MCP threatens to expose Dillinger's misdeeds. He is defeated and indeed dishonored when the MCP is destroyed, but he is also relieved that the MCP is gone.

His son Ed Dillinger, Jr. appears at the beginning of Tron: Legacy in a minor role, played by an uncredited Cillian Murphy.

S

Commander Sark is a command program created by Dillinger, with his likeness, to serve as the chief lieutenant of the MCP and secondary digital antagonist of the first film.

He oversaw the training of new programs kidnapped and brought to Game Grid by the MCP and was known to get into games from time to time. It is destroyed by Tron towards the end of the film. In the novel, its code number is “ES-1117821”.

Main control program

Il Master Control Program ( MCP ), voiced by David Warner and also starring Barnard Hughes, is the main digital antagonist of the first film.

It is an artificial intelligence created by ENCOM founder Walter Gibbs and improved by Ed Dillinger who ran Encom's mainframe computer. During the MCP's rule, many programs are enslaved and forced to play against its henchmen. To gain information and power, the MCP threatens to expose Dillinger's theft of Flynn's creations. Dillinger uses the MCP to administer the company's computer network (effectively an AI Superuser); but, powered by Dillinger, it starts stealing data from other systems and comes to want control of outside companies and even governments. The MCP is eventually destroyed by Flynn and Tron.

Before its destruction, the MCP ends most of its conversations with Dillinger with the computer programming phrase "End of line". In the sequel, Tron: Legacy , the digital world contains a nightclub called the "End of Line Club".

Roy Kleinberg

Roy Kleinberg is one of ENCOM's earliest computer programmers and contributor to Alan Bradley. He is portrayed by Dan Shor.

He only makes a brief cameo at the beginning of the first film, where he creates the Ram program that connects ENCOM and an unnamed insurance company and starts working in a cubicle next to Alan's. When Alan went to Ed Dillinger about being locked out of the system, Kleinberg asks if he could have some of his popcorn which, Alan allows. Kleinberg is credited in the film as "Popcorn Co-Worker".

Kleinberg also appears in the short film “The Next Day,” which was included in the Blu-ray edition of Tron Legacy, and it is also in the film where his name is officially mentioned. He is the leader of the “Flynn Lives” movement, along with Alan Bradley.

Frame

Frame is an actuarial program created by Kleinberg, in his guise, to "work for a large insurance company" before being captured by the MCP and forced to play on the Game Grid.

While involved in the games, Ram goes beyond his original programming to become a skilled player and expresses a good deal of confidence in his abilities between races; but he was proud of his work as an actuarial program, which he seemed to associate with humanitarian purposes. He is wounded by a tank after escaping the game grid with Flynn and Tron, and dies of these wounds in Flynn's company.

Crom

Crom is a shy and plump compound interest program, created by Mr. Henderson, a savings and loan bank programmer, who was captured by the MCP and forced to play on the game grid. He is portrayed by Peter Jurasik.

Crom and Flynn are forced to do battle in the ring game. Flynn takes over but refuses to kill a helpless Crom, twice defying Sark's orders to do so. Sark then dares the piece of the playing field from which Crom is hanging, which causes the ill-fated program to fall to his death.

Production

The inspiration for Tron came in 1976 when Steven Lisberger, then a drawing animator with his studio, looked at a sample reel from a computer company called MAGI and saw Pong for the first time. He was immediately fascinated by video games and wanted to make a film that incorporated them. According to Lisberger, “I realized that there were these techniques that would be very suitable for bringing video games and computer images to the screen. And that was the moment when the whole concept flashed into my mind ”. The film's concept of entering a parallel game world was also inspired by the classic tale Alice in Wonderland.

Lisberger had already created an early version of the character "Tron" for a 30-second animation that was used to promote both Lisberger Studios and a number of various rock radio stations. This backlit animation depicted Tron as a character glowing yellow; the same nuance that Lisberger had originally intended for all the heroic characters developed for the feature film Tron. This was later changed to blue for the finished film (see pre-production below). The Tron prototype was bearded and resembled the Cylon Centurions from the 1978 TV series Battlestar Galactica. In addition, Tron was armed with two "explosive discs", as Lisberger described them in the 2-disc DVD edition.

Lisberger explains: “In the 70s everyone was doing backlit animations, you know. It was that club look. And we thought, what if we had this character that was a neon line, and that was our warrior Tron - Tron for electronics. And what happened was that I saw Pong and said, well, that's the arena for him. And at the same time I was interested in the early stages of computer-generated animation, which I discovered at MIT in Boston, and when I got there I met a group of programmers who were interested in all of this. And they really inspired me, as much as they believed in this new realm. "

He was frustrated with the nature of computers and video games and wanted to create a film that would open this world to everyone. Lisberger and his business partner Donald Kushner moved to the West Coast in 1977 and set up an animation studio to develop Tron. They borrowed against the anticipated profits of their 90-minute animated television special Animalympics to develop storyboards for Tron with the idea of making an animated film. But after Variety briefly mentioned the project during its initial phase, it caught the attention of computer scientist Alan Kay. She contacted Lisberger and convinced him to use him as a consultant for the film, then convinced him to use real CGI instead of simple manual animation.

Bonnie MacBird wrote the first drafts of Tron with an extensive contribution from Lisberger, basing Alan's original personality on Alan Kay. She gave her and Lisberger the same Xerox PARC tour that famously inspired the Apple Macintosh, and their many conversations (and a lesson she took with Donald Knuth at Stanford) inspired her to include many computer science references. As a result of the collaboration, Kay and MacBird became close and later married. [12] He also created Tron as a character (rather than a visual demo) and Flynn. MacBird originally envisioned Flynn more comically, suggesting then XNUMX-year-old Robin Williams for the role. In addition to many story changes after the script went to Disney, including giving it "a more serious tone with almost religious overtones", and removing most of the scientific elements, none of his dialogue remains in the final film, and there is it was a "pretty bitter credit dispute."

The film was ultimately conceived as an animated film in parentheses with live-action sequences. The rest involved a combination of computer-generated imagery and backlit animation. Lisberger planned to finance the film independently by turning to various computer companies, but had little success. However, one company, Information International Inc., was receptive. He met with Richard Taylor, a representative, and they started talking about using live-action photography with backlit animation in such a way that it could be integrated with computer graphics. At this point, there was a script and the film was entirely storyboarded, with some computer animation tests completed. He had spent around $ 300.000 on Tron's development and also secured $ 4-5 million in private funding before he hit a dead end. Lisberger and Kushner took their storyboards and computer-generated film samples to Warner Bros., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and Columbia Pictures, who declined.

In 1980, they decided to take the idea to Walt Disney Productions, which at the time was interested in producing bolder productions. Tom Wilhite, Disney's vice president of creative development, watched Lisberger's test footage and convinced Ron Miller to give the film a chance. However, Disney executives were hesitant to give $ 10-12 million to a producer and director for the first time using techniques that, in most cases, had never been attempted. The studio agreed to fund a test reel that involved a flying saucer sample launching a rough prototype of the discs used in the film. It was an opportunity to mix live footage with backlit animations and computer-generated images. It impressed the Disney executives and they decided to support the film. MacBird and Lisberger's script was later rewritten and re-storyboarded with studio input. At the time, Disney rarely hired strangers to make films for them, and Kushner found that he and his group received a cold reception because “they faced the nerve center - the animation department. They saw us as the germ from the outside. . We tried to enlist several Disney animators, but none came. Disney is a closed group ”. As a result, they hired Wang Film Productions for animation.

Technical data and credits

Direct by Steven Lisberger
Film script by Steven Lisberger
History by Steven Lisberger, Bonnie MacBird
Product by Donald Kushner
Protagonist Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner, Cindy Morgan, Barnard Hughes
Cinematografia Bruce Logan
Modified by Jeff Gourson
Music by Wendy Carlos
Walt Disney production, Lisberger-Kushner
Distributed by Distribution Buena Vista
Exit date: July 9 1982
Duration 96 minutes
Country United States
Budget 17 million US dollars
Box office 50 million dollars