Greetings Program.
This month(October) the third entry in Disney’s sci-fi film franchise Tron will be released in theaters, but frankly after seeing Disney’s handling of Lucasfilm, Marvel, and live-action remakes of animated classics I don’t have much hope for Tron: Ares being a very good movie. That being said, there will probably never be a better time to revisit the film that started it all 43 years ago. How is this relevant to Catholic Game Reviews? Well it’s no secret that video games are a big component of Tron’s premise, but the biblical parallels that constitute much of Tron’s plot have faded from conversation somewhat as the franchise continues to grow beyond the 1982 classic. So let’s re-enter The Grid together and take a look back at Tron’s surprisingly Christian origins.
This article will be full of spoilers for the entire movie so I encourage you to go give it a watch if you’ve never seen it before. If you’re short on free time or if you’ve already seen the film, but need a refresher, here’s a quick recap of the plot. 3 years ago a software engineer at ENCOM named Flynn had his video game “Space Paranoids” stolen by another engineer named Dillinger who used the game’s smashing success to become a senior executive and push Flynn out of the company. Flynn has been trying to hack into ENCOM to find evidence of Dillinger’s theft, but Dillinger’s increasingly intelligent Master Control Program(MCP) stands in Flynn’s way. After Flynn’s latest attempt forces the MCP to restrict computer access across the entire company, Flynn’s former co-workers Allen and Lora sneak him back into the company to help them activate the titular Tron, a new security program created by Allen to keep the MCP in check.
While hacking ENCOM from Lora’s computer, the MCP uses an experimental laser that can digitize and reconstruct physical objects to trap Flynn inside The Grid, a digital world where computer programs are personified into human-like beings. Flynn finds himself playing video games he created reframed as gladiatorial death matches for programs who try to resist the MCP’s authoritarian regime, including Tron. Working together with other friendly programs like Ram and Yori, Flynn and Tron escape the games and ultimately defeat the MCP, expose the truth about Dillinger, and return Flynn to the real world. Obviously I’m glossing over a lot of details here, but I’ll touch upon additional plot points as we analyze the film’s biblical parallels through its 3 central characters.
The “T” symbol on Tron’s chest looks a bit like a cross doesn’t it?
The first subject of interest is the main villain of the story, the Master Control Program. Some might call it obvious to compare the MCP to Lucifer, as all villains reflect the Devil to some extent, but in the MPC’s case the comparison is a lot more direct. From the very beginning of the film it’s made clear that the MCP is not satisfied with automating ENCOM’s busywork and infiltrating rival corporations, it wants to seize control of government institutions like The Pentagon and The Kremlin. Much like how Lucifer believes himself above God, the MCP believes itself superior to the humans that programmed it. This is further emphasized by the fact that on The Grid humans or “Users” are seen as gods by the programs and part of the MCP’s plan is to destroy this religious belief in users and supplant them as the highest being.
On that note, let’s talk about one of those programs loyal to the users. Specifically the warrior who strikes down the MCP: Tron. As a security program, Tron is akin to St. Michael the Archangel through our biblical lense, a devout warrior whose creator enables him to defeat a superior enemy. Once Tron escapes the games he heads for the communications tower to connect with Allen and obtain the data he needs to defeat the MCP. The communications tower itself is like a church, its guardian Dumont a priest, and the connection between Tron and Allen a divine revelation complete with a beam of light accompanied by Allen’s voice coming down from above. The prayer to St. Michael says: “…do thou oh prince of the heavenly hosts, by the divine power of God, cast into hell Satan…” implying that St. Michael’s victory ultimately relies on God, and the same can be said of Tron in relation to Allen.
That being said, Lucifer’s defeat cannot be complete without the death and resurrection of Christ. So who is the Christ figure of Tron? Well I’m sure you’re smart enough to figure out that the film’s protagonist, a user who is sent down to the Grid and walks among programs he helped create, is the ideal choice. Don’t get me wrong, Flynn is still a flawed human being who isn’t strictly an allegory for Jesus, but the comparison is still very applicable. Firstly, Flynn’s outfit features a toga-esque cloth around his chest as was the style at the time in the first century, creating an immediate visual connection to the Messiah. Secondly, Flynn manifests miraculous powers while on the Grid like restoring and piloting a demolished recognizer in a matter of seconds and redirecting the energy beam of the solar sailer prematurely. It should also be noted Flynn doesn’t perform any miraculous stunts until after he’s taken energy from a power source which on the Grid takes the form of a water reservoir, a baptism if you will. And finally at the movie’s climax, Tron can only defeat the MCP after Flynn throws himself in MCP’s core, sacrificing himself by diving into the heart of darkness much like Jesus descending into hell.
Your boss wouldn’t happened to be named Pontius Pilate?
So why does Tron have so many biblical parallels in the first place? Well if I had to guess, I’d say it’s because without them the film would be much harder for the audience to understand. In 1982 video games and computers weren’t as widespread as they are today, so combining them with something that is widely understood like the Bible allows the filmmakers to meet the audience halfway. This isn’t to say direct Biblical parallels are a silver bullet for connecting the audience to your story, Tron’s depiction of the relationship between computer programs and human users just happened to be a natural fit for a religious narrative.
Despite the fact that Tron pulled heavily from Christianity, the franchise’s sequels have gone in a very different direction. 2010’s Tron: Legacy is much more interested in Buddhist philosophy to the point where Flynn’s actor, Jeff Bridges, consulted a Zen master in preparation for his return to the role. This isn’t to say Christian themes are totally unapplicable to the sequel, actress Olivia Wilde even cited St. Joan of Arc as one of her primary inspirations for the character Quorra(Though I think that’s a bit of a stretch), but overall it’s not nearly as pronounced as the 1982 classic. I imagine Tron: Ares will probably follow in Legacy’s footsteps in terms of shying away from Christian themes in favor of other philosophies, but I’d be happy to be proven wrong.
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