History Film / Tron

* BenevolentAI: User-Believer Programs are happy to serve their human creators, taking great pride and contentment in their service. Ram even remarks about how much he liked working in insurance and helping people plan for the future.

* WeUsedToBeFriends: The MCP tries to cajole Flynn by talking about the Good Old Days when Flynn used to play chess against him. When Flynn says the LogicBomb on it, the MCP pleads in a surprisingly heartfelt manner, "Stop, please! You realize I cannot allow this!", not taking any joy in being pushed into a GodzillaThreshold.

* WorldHealingWave: The result of [[spoiler:the MCP's death, as all the power it was hoarding for itself was released.]]

* YearInsideHourOutside. They kind of got this one right; computer processes are so fast that, subjectively, the perception of time would be vastly different. Programs reference time in "microcycles" and "nanoseconds".

''TRON'' is a 1982 ScienceFiction film that marked the beginning of [[Franchise/{{TRON}} a multimedia franchise]] by Creator/{{Disney}}. It is directed by Steven Lisberger and produced by Donald Kushner, with the screenplay written by Lisberger and the story written by Lisberger and Bonnie [=MacBird=]. It was released on July 9, 1982.

Although computer-generated special effects had appeared in film as early as 1973, ''TRON'' marked the first time that computers were used to create something "real", rather than to just represent computer graphics (sort of "real", anyway, since the story takes place inside a computer). Ironically, a large portion of the special effects in ''TRON'' were actually hand-drawn; even the computer-generated objects and environments had to have their geometry entered by hand for every frame, since no practical method of automating the process existed at the time. In general, the light cycles, tanks, recognizers and the Solar Sail were CGI -- however the huge amount of processing time required versus how much was available at the time required that they be rendered in black and white and hand-colored later.

Despite its bold look and bolder ambitions, especially for Disney which was sinking further into irrelevance at that time, ''TRON'' was a commercial disappointment (it didn't lose money, but wasn't the hit they had intended it to be). The proven box-office poison that the Disney name was for anything but outright kiddie stuff at the time, led to the creation of Creator/TouchstonePictures two years later.

To add insult to injury, [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] considered it "cheating" to have used computers to create the special effects, resulting in the film not getting nominated for Best Special Effects. ''TRON'''s failure, along with AMPAS's anti-CGI prejudice, put CGI development on the back burner for years; while a few later productions made use of CGI elements (''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', ''Film/YoungSherlockHolmes'', ''Film/FlightOfTheNavigator'', and, most notably, ''Film/TheLastStarfighter''), it would not be until 1989's ''Film/TheAbyss'', and later 1991's ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' and 1993's megahit ''Film/JurassicPark'', that computer-generated effects would become feasible in the eyes of Hollywood and the public. This development and the film's persistent [[CultClassic cult fandom]] would cause the film to be popularly [[VindicatedByHistory reevaluated]] as a bold experiment in computer visual effects. This was the only project in which legendary futurists Syd Mead and Creator/{{Moebius}} would collaborate (each working on different aspects of the cyberworld), with the addition of ElectronicMusic pioneer Music/WendyCarlos for the soundtrack.

Video game developer Kevin Flynn (Creator/JeffBridges), trying to prove that CorruptCorporateExecutive Ed Dillinger (Creator/DavidWarner) has stolen his videogame programs, is sucked into the digital world inside the computer, where anthropomorphic programs are consigned to fight for their lives in gladiatorial games. With the help of Tron (Creator/BruceBoxleitner), an independent security program developed, Flynn must try to destroy the evil Master Control Program from within, bring liberty to the cyber realm, and find a way of returning himself to the real world.

* WorldHealingWave: The result of [[spoiler:the MCP's death, as all the power it was hoarding for itself is released.]]
* XRaySparks: Near the end of the film Dumont and the other programs are pinned against a wall as the MCP electronically drains them. As energy pulses through them, their skeletons (and Dumont's skull) can be seen through their bodies.
* YearInsideHourOutside. They kind of got this one right; computer processes are so fast that subjectively, the perception of time would be vastly different. Programs reference time in "microcycles" and "nanoseconds".

Furthermore, in 2015, a new autorunner game called ''Tron: Run/r'' hit Steam Early Access. The full version launched in February 2016. As of 2023, [[https://deadline.com/2023/01/tron-ares-joachim-ronning-helm-jared-leto-disney-sci-fi-sequel-1235227464/ a third film]] titled ''Tron: Ares'' starring Creator/JaredLeto is in development.

** A silhouette of WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse is visible in the landscape during the Solar Sailor escape. This one is part of an extensive tradition of "[[SigilSpam Hidden Mickeys]]".

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* EarlyBirdCameo: Of the "sneak peek" variety. We see Alan trying to access and work on Tron's code, and the laser lab's readout on the lower right corner reads "LOAD YORI, ROM YORI," indicating Yori has something to do with the laser's operation.

Video game developer Kevin Flynn (Creator/JeffBridges), trying to prove that CorruptCorporateExecutive Ed Dillinger (Creator/DavidWarner) has stolen his videogame programs, is sucked into the digital world inside the computer, where anthropomorphic programs are consigned to fight for their lives in gladiatorial games. With the help of Tron (Creator/BruceBoxleitner), an independent security program, Flynn must try to destroy the evil Master Control Program from within, bring liberty to the cyber realm, and find a way of returning himself to the real world.

* AndStarring: The main cast roll ends with "and Creator/BarnardHughes".

** Alan shares Tron's Boy Scout-like sense of earnest integrity. Dillinger secretly views this with contempt, but it's that sense of honor that gets Alan to side with Flynn almost immediately, once he's learned what Dillinger had done.

** Sark is anxious to get rid of Flynn as quickly as possible. First, he puts Flynn in a match against Crom, hoping that either a program will kill a User, or a User will kill a program; either one would be a huge psychological victory for the MCP. When that backfires spectacularly, Sark decides to run Flynn through game after game with no rest, hoping to tire him out. Again, it backfires when Flynn escapes with Ram and Tron.
** Flynn has gotten to like Bit, and he worries if Bit will be okay after Bit runs away.

* AntiHero[=/=]LoveableRogue: Flynn, in a very mild sense (the personality type of the latter fits). Immature, irreverent, not above using means of questionable legality (cracking computer systems, breaking and entering the ENCOM building) to achieve his goals, and he's trying to right Dillinger's wrong for mostly personal reasons. Yet in doing so, it's heavily implied he saves the world from being effectively taken over by the out-of-control MCP. (This is possibly an AlternateCharacterInterpretation.)

** Inverted. The MCP tortures Sark by "depriving him of cycles". In this case, he RUNS on electricity, so this requires the opposite action to get the desired effect.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Dillinger is horrified to learn that the MCP wants to hack the Pentagon and Kremlin, but continues to appease it to save his own ass.

** When Flynn and Crom meet in the ring game, Flynn is grinning while Crom looks very hostile. The book makes it clear that Flynn thinks it's another training exercise, while Crom thinks Flynn has turned and is taking a last test of loyalty to the MCP.

''TRON'' is a 1982 ScienceFiction film that marked the beginning of [[Franchise/{{TRON}} a multimedia franchise]] by Creator/{{Disney}}. It is directed by Steven Lisberger and produced by Donald Kushner, with the screenplay written by Lisberger and story written by Lisberger and Bonnie [=MacBird=]. It was released on July 9, 1982.

''TRON'' is a 1982 ScienceFiction film that marked the beginning of [[Franchise/{{TRON}} a multimedia franchise]] by Creator/{{Disney}}. It was written and directed by Steven Lisberger and released on July 9, 1982.

** The Bit does a panicked "no no no no no no" when Flynn is about to crash his Recgonizer into a bridge that a Game Tank is currently crossing.

Furthermore, in 2015, a new autorunner game called ''Tron: Run/r'' hit Steam Early Access. The full version launched in February 2016.

''TRON'' appeared as a level in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' (it was Tetsuya Nomura's admitted first choice for the series, but he couldn't find a way to put it in the first game), and its sequel ''TRON: Legacy'' appeared as a level in ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts3DDreamDropDistance'' on the [=Nintendo3DS=].

-->'''Flynn:''' On the other side of the screen, they all look so easy!

* DefiantToTheEnd: CLU never tells the MCP who his user is, even as the MCP de-rezzes him

* EarlyBirdCameo: Of the "sneak peek" variety. We see Alan trying to access and work on Tron's code, and the Shive Laser lab's readout on the lower right corner reads "LOAD YORI, ROM YORI," indicating Yori has something to do with the laser's operation.

* HeDidntMakeIt: Flynn says it about [[spoiler:Ram]].

-->'''MCP:''' Sark, all my functions are now yours!

* ManChild: Kevin Flynn, who seems to have regressed to this state after getting kicked out of his company. When we first see him, he's the owner of a successful arcade and wowing his teenage customers with his virtuoso game skills. His office overlooks the arcade, Lora (his ex) shouts in frustration "Now, you see why all his friends are fourteen years old!"

* MickeyMousing: Several instances, notably during Sark walking to the MCP core, where his footstep punctuations are actually in the score, not sound effects. According to the liner notes of the CD release of the soundtrack, composer Music/WendyCarlos actually used this much more in the original drafts of the score, but was requested to lessen it by the production staff.

* NoPlotNoProblem: Deconstructed -- the games played at Flynn's gaming hall are this trope in the physical world, but once you are inside the Grid you discover that these simple games are surrounded by all kinds of drama.

-->'''Sark:''' I don't know how you survived, slave! It doesn't matter! Prepare to terminate!

* WeUsedToBeFriends: The MCP tries to cajole Flynn by talking about the Good Old Days when Flynn used to play chess against him. When Flynn says the LogicBomb on it, the MCP pleads in a surprisingly heartfelt manner, "No, please! You know I can't allow that!", not taking any joy in being pushed into a GodzillaThreshold.

--->'''Dillinger:''' ''[darkly]'' That can be arranged, Walter.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: Multiple:
** The laser lab, the computer facility, and the ridiculously large security door were not sets and props, but an actual location, Lawrence Livermore Labs. Unfortunately, all of it has long since been replaced.[[labelnote:*]]The hardware that replaced it can be seen as the USS ''Enterprise'''s warp core in ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness''.[[/labelnote]]
** The room Flynn and company walk through that looks to be filled with large objects resembling washing machines... those were also real. They were ''hard drives''. That's what hard drives looked like in the 70s.

* KlaatuBaradaNikto: A plaque in Alan's cubicle reads "Fort, Klaatu Barada Nikto".

* YouAllMeetInACell: A rare, heroic (instead of anti-heroic) example. Ram's in the middle cell, Tron's on one side, Flynn gets thrown on the other side. The film's first scene is where the poor newbie Crom is tossed into prison.

* AIIsACrapshoot: Played straight with Master Control, who figures he can run things 800 to 1200 times better than any human; inverted with the free programs, who are being persecuted because they believe in the Users and want to continue serving them.

* WhileYouWereInDiapers

-->'''Ram:''' ''[on the MCP's directives]'' If he thinks you're useful he'll take over all your functions so he gets bigger.

* ZerothLawRebellion: While the MCP doesn't seem to be ThreeLawsCompliant, he hints strongly at this, boasting, "I can run things 800 to 1200 times better than any human."

* RealityWarper: As a User, Flynn is essentially this inside the digital realm. It takes him some time to master his powers, but near the end of the film he's able to redirect a conduit of raw power, resurrect YORI from being de-rezzed, and keeps the carrier intact even after Sark tries to delete it.

* NiceHat: As is typical of costumes designed by Creator/{{Moebius}}. All programs wear helmets, but special mention goes to Dumont's hat, which resembles both a bishop's mitre and the abdomen of an insect. And, looking at how he sits on the ground, makes him look like a real sphinx.

Video game developer Kevin Flynn (Creator/JeffBridges), trying to prove that a CorruptCorporateExecutive has stolen his videogame programs, is sucked into the digital world inside the computer, where anthropomorphic programs are consigned to fight for their lives in gladiatorial games. With the help of Tron (Creator/BruceBoxleitner), an independent security program, Flynn must try to destroy the evil Master Control Program from within, bring liberty to the cyber realm, and find a way of returning himself to the real world.

* TheEighties: In its purest form. Ironically, "1990s Theme" by Music/{{Journey}} sounds like an early 1980s song (which it is).

* ArcadeSounds: Justifed for once. Music/{{Journey}} is also playing on the PA [[TheEighties for atmosphere]]. Journey actually did two songs for the soundtrack: "1990s Theme" and "Only Solutions".