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| My Personal Copy of Tron (1982). Allow me to tell you the tale of how I acquired it. |
It was 2008, I was 15 years old, and
my local video store, “Easy Video,” was closing down, and selling off their
video tapes and DVDs to make some final cash. Like any good little Fan-Boy, I’d
popped in to see what underrated, ill-liked gems, the masses had overlooked. It
was then that it caught my eye! “Tron” (1982)! Packaged in its special edition
re-release box from 2001, and protected by a clear plastic box normally used to
house tapes ripe for renting, the copy of the movie was virtually untouched! Not
a fingerprint to be found on the surface of the prism.
I’d heard of this often overlooked
1980’s film classic, but I had never, since I moved to this town in 2000, no
matter how many times I perused the aisles of Easy Video while the store had
seen regular business, ever noticed this film before. And it was as if fate
told me, “This is your time young Daniel, this is the moment you were meant to
see Tron, for yourself!” This box I held in my hands, in this condition,
sitting in a store with a dwindling number of VHS tapes awaiting inevitable
sale, could it have been anything else? But what was going to be the cost? 5?
6? 7? $8.00? No! $2.50! Yes! The fools! They didn’t know what they had, did
they?
Without hesitation, I wasted no
time! I handed them my crumpled five dollar bill! I took my change! I speed
walked home! I went straight into the basement where we had our main TV room! I
popped in that jewel! And I sat, and watched! Studying every frame, line
spoken, and special effect! CGI so simple, yet so exhilarating! A story so
dated by its dialogue, and yet so ahead of its time! It captured the 80’s
culture of the arcade scene, it felt edgy, and oh my god! It made me realize,
there was a time where Jeff Bridges was young on top of being cool! (I’m going
to go on record and say, Jeff Bridges will be cool forever man!)
I learned about Kevin Flynn, Alan
Bradley, Ed Dillinger! For the first time I met characters like, The Master
Control Program, Sark, Clu, Ram, and Tron! I experienced the dangers of the
digital world, the speed of Light Cycles, and the sorrow of de-resolution! And
I saw the triumph of Kevin Flynn and Tron against Sark and the Master Control
Program! Not since Star Wars had I seen a universe of science fiction and
fantasy more deserving of my attention and time! Needless to say I was mesmerized.
And to top it all off, for one of the first films in history to heavily utilize
CGI, scenes come off far more sharp and well executed than one might expect!
That night, after watching the film,
I thought to myself, “That was so good, was a sequel ever produced?” I took to
the internet to find that, no, a sequel to Tron had never been made. However, a
proof of concept trailer had been released that past weekend for its sequel,
Tron: Legacy! The movie was updated for the audiences of today, its look was
close enough to the original film, and the updated designs to the costumes
brought a smile to my face!
But the horror! It was due for
release in 2010! Could I, a mere child of 15, possibly wait two whole years for
the official sequel to one of the best films I’d ever experienced? Well I did,
and the movie didn’t disappoint! Now! History (in my mind) has been made with
the announcement of the third film in the Tron series via the reveal of its
title… “Tron: Ascension.” Chances are, at the time of this post, I will have
to, once again, wait two years for the next installment of one of my favorite
film franchises. But history has proven it will most likely be worth the wait.
(I love Tron!)
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