Establishing Narrative in the Opening to a Film: Tron Legacy

The blue neon lines and vectors at the start of the introduction indicate that the movie is going to have something of a futuristic theme; they have a distinctly "digital" and "computerised" look about them, which fits the tone of the scene and foreshadows some of the subjects that the movie will cover. The non-diegetic music that plays over the top of it is a mix of orchestral and synthesised sounds, which further introduces the theme of the relationship between humans and technology. The orchestral elements represent the real world, and the synthesised elements represent the digital world - and the fact that they overlap so much is indicative of the subject matters of the film itself. In addition to that, the blue lines are an allusion to the Light-Cycles from the first film.

The main character's speech over the top of the music is also extremely relevant; it introduces the story and basically summarises the events of the first Tron movie without having to go into too much detail, as well as setting a distinctly epic vibe for the rest of the movie to follow. The transition of the scene from a more digital landscape to a realistic-looking house is indicative of the main character's two competing lives; one in the computer world, and one with his son in the real world. His clothing, biking leather, is another allusion to the Light-Cycle sequence in the first film, and also implies that he doesn't stay in one place for any length of time. His son appears to be in complete wonder at his father's stories, on the edge of his seat constantly and asking questions about them. This suggests that the main character and his son have a good relationship, though the father is often away either at work or in the digital world, and not spending as much time with his son as he otherwise would be. The line "We're always on the same team“ further strengthens the audience's view of the strong bond between them – though the fact that he's going off during the night makes him seem somewhat distant and a little secretive.

It establishes the plot and tone of the film extremely effectively, as well as introducing the personalities of the characters and their backstories – as well as summarising the events of the first film.


- Jack

(NOTE: POST NEEDS SCREENSHOTS)