Tron vs. Inception, or Morgan vs. Shea

Haha well I know this does not really have to do with video games very much, but for the past 2 weeks now Morgan and I have silently and fairly butted heads on which movie is the better movie of the year: Tron or Inception. Yes, there may be more movies that in your personal opinion were significantly better than these two but Inception I felt easily was the top of the line movie and Morgan felt the same about Tron. We really want to do a Movie Of The Year podcast but we don't really know if that is in the cards or if it would even be appropriate considering the fact that we are a Gaming podcast (albeit Tron does deal with video gaming to a degree and Inception came out coincidentally at the same time as Limbo, the Xbox Live Arcade Game, was released). So I wanted to go in to a huge rant and rave (without the ecstacy) about why I think Inception surpassed not only Tron, but every other movie to come out this year to nap Movie of the Year in my personal library of awards.

Dom Cobb is a skilled thief, the absolute best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state, when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb's rare ability has made him a coveted player in this treacherous new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossible-inception. Instead of the perfect heist, Cobb and his team of specialists have to pull off the reverse: their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one. If they succeed, it could be the perfect crime. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move. An enemy that only Cobb could have seen coming. This bio was taken straight from IMDB. I put it here in case anyone who reads this has not seen this movie.

First point I would like to make is that this movie idea was cut from a whole new cloth, so to speak. In a world where movies or tv shows we see these days are usually ideas re-done or ideas "skeletonized" and then repacked with new "vital organs", this movie was a whole new skeleton with maybe the skull being re-used. I have always been fascinated with the prospect and idea of dreams; the meaning behind them or what they symbolize in one's everyday life. But this takes the idea of dreams to a whole new level. It attempts to use the concept of dreaming which is not entirely explainable and exploit that to make a whole new concept.

In the movie, every main or FOIL character is vital to the storyline. None of the characters feel tacked on or feel like they were put in the movie to "boost ratings". Obviously the character most people are going to connect with would be Cobb. He is trying to get back to his two young kids who want nothing but to see their father again. Periodically throughout the movie, you see informational flashbacks of his kids which makes your heart slowly melt more and more as you realize how bad these kids need their father.

Both movies do a fantastic job of making you feel involved with the world, almost as if you were in it: Tron placing you in a virtual, futuristic world and Inception placing you into all these diverse and naturally splendid worlds. As awesome as it would be to live in a virtual world, it fascinated me more to be able to live in a world where you could create. Many times after seeing a movie such as Avatar (I know, I know scoff at me), I feel like I wish I could live in that world because it would be such a new experience and so gratifying. However with Inception I never felt that way. Now some would say that is not a good thing. For me it was and here is why. I felt like through the 2 hours and 30 minutes I spent watching this movie, I went through the world and the whole idea. I feel like I lived it by watching this movie and the movie itself took me through the entirety of this grand adventure and did not leave me unsatisfied, whereas when I watch other movies, I temporarily long to be in that world for just a little bit longer. Situationally, both feelings can be good. I think that the director and the writer both realized that this world was meant to only be lived in this movie and that is it. They did not try to play out the longevity via imagination and they did not cut this movie short. Sometimes I feel movies try to play too heavily on possible imagination or do not allow us some room for our creative minds. But this movie knew exactly where to go. (I would like to note that I feel that the movies that try to play heavily on our minds should leave it to the books and the video games, where more creativity can be put in to those things).

A few random final notes I would like to make is that arguably both are fantastically gorgeous films. I will not doubt the fact that Tron does look more appealing visually but the frustrating thing for me was in order to see it in theaters, I had to waste money on 3D. Yes I know that it is an extra 3 dollars but that is 3 dollars I could have saved to see another movie. The 3D in Tron to me was lacking and just tacked on. I would have liked to see them play a little bit more on the 3D than they did because what they DID have in 3D was invigorating. But Inception chose to stay out of the increasing Hollywood norm of tacking 3D on for more money or popularity, thus relying more on intricate plot and story than visuals

Also, I feel like when I watched Inception, I was not looking at my phone checking the time to see when it was going to end. When I watched Tron (even though I was enjoying the movie and the visuals) there were a few times where I started hoping it was going to end soon because I had other things to tend to. I think that speaks for itself.

The final point I would like to give credit to both is that both of these movies had TOP NOTCH soundtracks. Not a lot can be said other than I made a point to get both of these soundtracks because they are amazing. Oh and Morgan likes to constantly remind me every few days that he is STILL listening to the Tron soundtrack, and probably fondling his meat all the while hoping Jeff Bridges in his Jedi-esque robe randomly pops up and whisks him away into this world where visuals are the only thing that matter instead of an involving story and a much more heartfelt one at that.