Who's ready for some more biodigital jazz, man? Throughout its 40-plus year existence, the "Tron" franchise has always been a little too far ahead of the curve for its own good. Steven Lisberger's original 1982 "Tron" film was notoriously overlooked by the Academy in spite of its groundbreaking computer-generated visual effects, and even Stan Lee didn't really get what Lisberger was going for. When Joseph Kosinski's "Tron: Legacy" arrived 28 years after that, it similarly pioneered digital de-aging and the legacy sequel formula at a time when neither of those things were in vogue. Nevertheless, the forward-looking sci-fi property has gained a loyal following over the decades, which explains why we're currently awaiting a third movie in the form of "Tron: Ares."

Whereas the original "Tron 3," the canceled "Tron: Ascension," would have been more of a direct continuation of "Legacy," this new film shifts its focus to the eponymous...