'Tron: Ares' Mode Turns Teslas Into Glowing Light Cycles — Despite Bad Box Office (thewrap.com) 51
An anonymous reader shared this report from The Wrap
Tesla this weekend introduced a new "Tron: Ares" mode, giving drivers an opportunity to turn their on-screen vehicles into the glowing Light Cycles that have been a big part of the Disney franchise since 1982.
The optional update started rolling out on Friday, as Tron: Ares debuted in theaters. Tesla announced the update on X: "The grid has expanded to your Tesla — Tron: Ares update rolling out now." The feature is activated in Tesla's Toybox "infotainment" system, and turns the driver's vehicle avatar into a red Light Cycle. For drivers who have the "ambient lighting" feature, the mode will also expand the theme throughout the cabin.
There was also a sleek black Tesla Optimus robot at the premier of Tron: Ares.
Ironically, the Hollywood Reporter writes that by box office figures, "Tron is in big trouble," selling fewer tickets than expected (despite the movie's $180 million pre-marketing budget). While Tron's audience reviews gave it an 86% score on Rotten Tomatoes, its score with critics is just 57%.
The Los Angeles Times says the movie "has glowing style, but its storytelling doesn't compute." (Or, as the New York Times puts it, "Who needs logic when you have neon?")
The optional update started rolling out on Friday, as Tron: Ares debuted in theaters. Tesla announced the update on X: "The grid has expanded to your Tesla — Tron: Ares update rolling out now." The feature is activated in Tesla's Toybox "infotainment" system, and turns the driver's vehicle avatar into a red Light Cycle. For drivers who have the "ambient lighting" feature, the mode will also expand the theme throughout the cabin.
There was also a sleek black Tesla Optimus robot at the premier of Tron: Ares.
Ironically, the Hollywood Reporter writes that by box office figures, "Tron is in big trouble," selling fewer tickets than expected (despite the movie's $180 million pre-marketing budget). While Tron's audience reviews gave it an 86% score on Rotten Tomatoes, its score with critics is just 57%.
The Los Angeles Times says the movie "has glowing style, but its storytelling doesn't compute." (Or, as the New York Times puts it, "Who needs logic when you have neon?")
Re:Be like Tron. (Score:4, Funny)
Tron isn't in Tron 3... clearly the fight was lost.
Re: Be like Tron. (Score:2)
No Tron in Tron (Score:5, Interesting)
Further, where are all the other characters set up in Tron Legacy? Why should we care anything about this whole new crew of characters that seem to have no real connection to the previous stories? Legacy actually set up the possibility of an interesting sequel. Why aren't we getting that?
As for Leto, the guy can't act. Please, please, please stop putting him in movies.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
>"Further, where are all the other characters set up in Tron Legacy? Why should we care anything about this whole new crew of characters that seem to have no real connection to the previous stories? Legacy actually set up the possibility of an interesting sequel. Why aren't we getting that?"
^^ This
I haven't seen the movie, and probably won't, until years from now when it pops up on something. I did love Tron (when it came out) and also Tron Legacy was great, despite the "spooky" AI face mods. Maybe the
Re: (Score:2)
I saw the movies and I liked it. I thought this was one of the better Jared Leto characters he has played. On that note. He basically produced the movie an without him, it probably would not have been greenlit. Also since he produced it and got it all together, he didn't want the movie to be about the previous characters, he wanted to be the main character. The sequel hints on finding them. Sure there were some plot holes, but overall not bad. There was a great homage to 80's and 80'video games and computer
Re: (Score:2)
$ man tron
No manual entry for tron
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now to fight for disenys pocket book! (Score:2)
now to fight for Disenys pocket book!
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now to fight for Disenys pocket book!
And that might be the crux of the problem. Bad enough to shill for Tesla given Musk, worse with the recent situation with ABC bowing to pressure on Jimmy Kimmel. Remember, that suspension was literally only three weeks ago. Those who canceled subscriptions are unlikely to go see it, it would come as no surprise if even those who weren't prepared to cancel subscriptions would simply shrug off purposely going to it, and given the extremely long time between movies it's not like they're particularly fresh i
Turn Teslas into light cycles (Score:3)
can they instantly turn 90 degrees?
That would be cool in traffic
Honest, in a sense. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
grok? old enough to remember when grok was just a chess program.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
I'm old enough to remember when Humans borrowed the term from its original Martian.
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I'm not sure I completely understand you.
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Time to start visiting the Church of All Worlds!
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Some of the answers seem stranger when you don't have a proper antecedent. In a way, it would seem strange if everyone here understood the veiled reference. Even this allusion might land with a bit of confusion.
(Yeah, it was a bit forced, but I tried.)
Re: (Score:2)
Or they could just Google it. And learn some other interesting stuff along the way. But too many people get their panties(diapers?) in a bunch at such a suggestion.
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I'm old enough to remember when Tron was the most installed operating systems in the world ('80s). If a device or vehicle at the time had an embedded operating system it was probably Tron-based. Pretty much forgotten now.
Car industry introduces microtransactions - SKINS! (Score:2)
The first of many car industry 'improvements' of the car as a subscription platform, instead of a car.
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
The first of many car industry 'improvements' of the car as a subscription platform, instead of a car.
I'm not sure if /. covered it and I just missed it, but apparently Tesla pushed out an updated version of their self-driving software and it doesn't support their older hardware platform. "Older" being like sometime in 2023 and earlier, IIRC.
Now, if my $40k+ vehicle was obsolete in a mere three years, I'd be absolutely furious. It's probably stuff like this that contributes to the statistic of EV owners who claim they're going to switch back to ICE. [cnbc.com] It'd be pretty damn insulting if instead of getting the
Cosmetics over Improvements (Score:2)
The use of cosmetics such as skins, UI chrome, paint, pinstripes, dashboard instrument animations, and more instead of actual improvements is a sign of a failing product.
The hardware, computer chips, copper wiring, design and manufacturing effort needed for them inflates prices above what they should be.
For a long-lived product, automobiles, they get near feature complete and adding a new feature is done just for product makers to have something new to talk about in selling the product, product development
People don't get it. (Score:1)
People don't get it: Tron is like Burning Man or Meow Wolf - it's clearly not intended to be experienced sober.
Re:People don't get it. (Score:4, Insightful)
The plot was never the point for Tron movies (Score:4, Insightful)
All the Tron movies had a very thin plot. The plot wasn't the point. It was more of an excuse for fancy special effects. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, because the effects *are* pretty cool.
It's kind of like how the plot of musicals is usually just enough to justify a bunch of singing and dancing, yet lots of people love musicals.
Re:The plot was never the point for Tron movies (Score:5, Interesting)
The most compelling thing about Tron for me was that it's a secret world contained within the computer, to be explored. A place where the rules are different, a landscape that only one man has ever seen.
It's what makes a lot of old video games compelling too. They don't look realistic, but inside them are these whole worlds, unlike our own but still feeling real and tangible.
The sequels mostly ignored that in favour of some fancy CGI, which these days doesn't count for much.
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Good points, I'd mod you up if I could.
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The original Tron was fantastic... if you were an '80s computer geek. If your experience with computers starts in the '90s or later, it's hard to relate.
Tron Legacy went all metaphysical. Metaphysics is where science fiction goes to die, and die it did. Tron Ares is a fitting sequel to Tron Legacy, which is to say: hot garbage with nifty special effects.
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I was an 80's computer geek, and I still thought the original story was lame. But it was still fun.
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There are two groups of people angry about Tron Ares I find.
First are movie critics, but that's been the case for a lot of blockbuster movies. It's just a movie that gives you a couple of hours of escapism where you leave your world and get into the movie. Turn off your brain, veg out a bit and enjoy the ride.
The second group are Tron fans who are really into the lore and are basically angry that the movie that was supposed to follow Legacy was cancelled (because Tomorroworld failed badly). Ares is not real
Critics vs. regular people (Score:2)
Critics are always looking for deeper meaning, subplots, unexpected plot twists, and philosophical integrity. Regular people usually just want to see a fun movie. The two goals are very different, so it's not surprising that regular people rated this movie much more highly than critics.
Re: (Score:2)
There must not be many regular people left then, judging by the success rate of Disney movies in the past 10-15 years.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Sometimes, perception doesn't match reality.
2014-2019 were *great* years for Disney, in terms of market share, and good years in terms of ticket sales.
The pandemic put a big hit on the numbers. but other than those banner years, their market share now is higher than it's been since the 1990s.
https://www.the-numbers.com/ma... [the-numbers.com]
Re: (Score:2)
Critics are always looking for deeper meaning, subplots, unexpected plot twists, and philosophical integrity. Regular people usually just want to see a fun movie.
Good movies have both.
The two goals are very different
Hard disagree. There's absolutely nothing preventing a fun movie from having decent writing (i.e., "treat your audience with some basic respect") aside from cheap studios and hack producers. Michael Bay and JJ Abrams should have been warnings, not instruction manuals.
Sometimes critics focus on silly or tangential things in movies that average people don't care as much about, but critics are also much less willing to let incoherent plots and repeated non-sequiturs pass just because CG
Product placement (Score:2)
I wonder which company paid for product placement. Did Tesla pay Disney for the name "Tron Ares Mode"? Or did Disney pay Tesla to help advertise their struggling movie?
Re: Product placement (Score:2)
Jared Leto just makes us pay and pay and pay with his⦠acting.
The agreement was made before the movie bombed (Score:2)
Is not like Tesla can renege on the contract with a studio as small as disney, you know?
That would lead to very bad press.
Deceptive headline (Score:4, Insightful)
It seems most people posting her are Tron fans talking about the movie.
I haven't seen anyone comment on the headline. No, Tron Ares Mode does not turn Teslas into glowing light-cycles. It changes the avatar for the vehicle displayed on the infotainment screen. At least TFS got that right.
Re: Deceptive headline (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
No upbraiding. I'm not trying to vilify or exalt Disney, Tesla, or Elon, nor do I expect anyone else to do so.
I'm just saying the article headline is deceptive, perhaps amusingly so. And I'm a bit surprised that the discussion appears to be mostly about the movie, with little about the Tesla display-mode.
But I am wondering whose idea this was: Disney's (for the product placement) or Tesla's (for appropriation of coolness)? I'm guessing the latter.
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And I'm a bit surprised that the discussion appears to be mostly about the movie, with little about the Tesla display-mode.
What is there really to say about it? It makes a few visual changes on the infotainment screen, which you're really not supposed to be staring at while you're driving anyway. So, maybe it's a neat thing if you've got a Tesla and young children who also happen to be fans of Tron?
But I am wondering whose idea this was: Disney's (for the product placement) or Tesla's (for appropriation of coolness)?
The EV tax credit did just recently go away, so I think this is probably more Tesla trying to stay relevant than the other way around of Disney attempting to market their film to something like 0.7% - 0.8% of vehicle owners (Tesla
Jared Leto strikes again (Score:2)