The movie, “Tron: Ares,” is an immersive experience.

The sense is that of not only playing a video game but of being in a video game.

“Tron: Ares” displays red-hot neon flares, flashes and walls that zig-zag around the movie screen, cut across cityscapes and envelop its characters.

Augmented by a pounding industrial-strength rock soundtrack by Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, “Tron: Ares” turns the movie theater into a disco nightclub.

“Tron: Ares” is an assault on the senses. The film-makers went all out on the movie’s visuals, special effects and soundtrack.

I was “Tron”-atiized.

Too bad the film-makers didn’t spend an equal amount of time on character development in the screenplay.

Joachim Rønning (Yah-kim Rahn-ning) (director: “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,” 2017; “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil”, 2019) directs “Tron: Ares” from a screenplay by Jesse Wigutow and a story by David DiGilio and Wigutow based on characters created by Steven Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird.

The movie is third in the “Tron” series. It’s a sequel to “Tron: Legacy” (2010) and “Tron” (1982).

The plot in the latest film is about a computer program named Ares that is sent from the digital world to the real world.

Jared Leto (Oscar, supporting actor, “Dallas Buyers Club,” 2014) plays Garth Davis, aka Ares, a Master Control Program with a face as blank as a turned-off computer screen. In fairness, Leto’s robotic look is appropriate to his role as a computer program.

Greta Lee (Primetime Emmy Awards, nominee, supporting actress, “The Morning Show,” 2024) plays Eve Kim, a programmer who is CEO of ENCOM, a company founded by Kevin Flynn.

Evan Peters (Primetime Emmy Awards, winner, supporting actor, “Mare of Easttown,” 2021) plays Julian Dillinger, a programmer and CEO of rival tech company, Dillinger Systems.

Gillian Anderson (five-time Primetime Emmy Awards nominee; winner, supporting actress, “The Crown,” 2021; winner, actress, “The X-Files, 1997) plays Elisabeth Dillinger, daughter of company founder Ed Dillinger, who was an ENCOM executive.

Jeff Bridges (five-time Oscar nominee; winner, actor, “Crazy Heart,” 2010) reprises his role from the first two “Tron” films as Kevin Flynn, a game developer who became trapped in his own world of The Grid.

Jodie Turner-Smith (“Queen & Slim,” 2019) plays Athena, who is on a special forces team of programs.

Hasan Minhaj plays Ahay Singh, chief technical officer of ENCOM.

The storyline pertains to the two rival tech companies, ENCOM and Dillinger Systems, competing to turn digital constructs into reality.

Eve travels to an Alaskan station to retrieve the “permanence code” that breaks a 29-minute limit for the constructs. Eve digitally transfers an orange tree into the real world where it continues to exist.

“Tron: Ares” has several thrilling chase scenes, including one involving Light Cycles, which are futuristic motorcycles.

“Tron: Ares” doesn’t flesh out its characters nor their relationships. They remain cyber ciphers in a digital world and never quite become convincing characters in the real world.

“Tron: Ares” can be enjoyed by children, youths and fans of video games.

“Tron: Ares,” MPA rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned: Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13) for violence, action; Genre: Science-Fiction, Action, Adventure; Run time: 1 hour, 59 minutes. Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Credit Readers Anonymous: A mid-credits scene in “Tron: Ares” depicts the transformation of Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters) into a digital entity. In the opening and closing credits, the Disney castle is bathed in “Tron” red lighting. ”Tron: Ares” was filmed January to May 2024 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Mexico City, Mexico and Culver City, Calif.

At The Movies: “Tron: Ares” was seen in the Dolby Cinema at AMC, AMC Center Valley 16.

Theatrical Movies Domestic Weekend Box Office, Oct. 17-19: “Black Phone 2,” starring Ethan Hawke in the Horror film sequel, opened at No. 1 with $26.5 million in 3,411 theaters, as “Tron: Ares” dropped one place from No. 1 to No. 2 with $11.1 million in 4,000 theaters, $54.5 million, two weeks, and “Good Fortune,” starring Keanu Reeves, Aziz Ansari, Seth Rogen, Keke Palmer and Sandra Oh in the Fantasy Comedy, opened at No. 3 with $6.2 million in 2,990 theaters.

4. “One Battle After Another” dropped one place with $4 million in 2,532 theaters, $61.9 million, four weeks. 5. “Roofman” dropped three places, $3.7 million in 3,370 theaters, $15.5 million, two weeks. 6. “Truth & Treason,” based on the true story of a German teen resistance fighter during World War II in the Drama, $2.7 million in 2,106 theaters, opening. 7. “Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie” dropped three places, $1.6 million in 2,535 theaters, $29.9 million, four weeks. 8. “The Conjuring: Last Rites” dropped three places, $1.5 million in 1,981 theaters, $175.4 million, seven weeks. 9. “After the Hunt,” starring Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield and Chloë Sevigny in the Crime Thriller, moved up 11 places, $1.5 million in 1,238 theaters, $1.7 million, two weeks. 10. “Soul on Fire” dropped four places, $1.3 million in 1,720 theaters, $5.5 million, two weeks.

Movie box office information from Box Office Mojo as of Oct. 19 is subject to change.

Unreel, Oct. 24:

“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere,” MPA Rated PG-13: Scott Cooper (director, “The Pale Blue Eye,” 2022; “Antlers,” 2021; “Hostiles,” 2017; “Black Mass,” 2015; “Out of The Furnace,” 2013;: “Crazy Heart,” 2009) directs Jeremy Allen White, Jeremy Strong, Paul Walter Hauser, Grace Gummer, Marc Maron and Jayne Houdyshell in the Music Drama Biography.

The movie chronicles Bruce Springsteen’s recording of his 1982 acoustic album, “Nebraska,” while he was also recording his hit, “Born in the USA,” with the E Street Band.

The movie is based on the book by Warren Zanes.

Jeremy Allen White (three-time Primetime Emmy Awards nominee and two-time Primetime Emmy Awards winner, actor, “The Bear”; TV’s “Shameless,” 2011-21) portrays Bruce Springsteen.

“Regretting You,” MPA PG-13: Josh Boone directs Allison Williams, Mckenna Grace, Dave Franco and Scott Eastwood in the Romance Drama. A young mother copes with the death of her husband as she raises her teenage daughter. The movie is an adaptation of the novel by Colleen Hoover, who wrote “It Ends With Us.”

“Blue Moon,” MPA R: Richard Linklater directs Ethan Hawke (Lorenz Hart), Margaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale, Andrew Scott and Simon Delaney in the Music, Comedy, Drama, Biography. Lorenz Hart confronts the dissolution of his collaboration with Richard Rodgers at Sardi’s restaurant in New York City on opening night of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s hit musical, “Oklahoma!.”

“Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc,” MPA R: Tatsuya Yoshihara directs the voice talents of Kikunosuke Toya (Denji), Reina Ueda (Reze), Tomori Kusunoki, Shôgo Sakata, Ai Fairouz and Natsuki Hanae in the Japanese Anime Fantasy film. Denji encounters a new romantic interest, Reze, who works at a coffee café.

Movie opening dates from Internet Movie Database as of Oct. 19 are subject to change.

Three Popcorn Boxes out of Five Popcorn Boxes