A Comic-Con panel stage features a large screen displaying "TRON ARES," with two people in red Tron costumes standing at opposite ends of the stage.

Movie reviews of “TRON: Ares” & “Roofman”

October 14, 2025/Jan Wagner/
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“TRON: Ares”

Large movie screen displays promotional image for "TRON: ARES," filmed for IMAX, with a release date of October 10. Theater seats and a few audience members visible in foreground.

Walt Disney Picture’s ‘TRON” film franchise is iconic, so when the latest installment of the franchise was previewed in Hall H of the San Diego Convention Center during San Diego Comic-Con last summer, the level of anticipation went through the roof — or perhaps I should say it went through the ceiling, since part of the staging for the preview and panel were bright red laser lights beamed around the perimeter of the ceiling of the enormous Hall H.

Stage event with red and blue neon lights, large screen showing people in costume, and audience members taking photos with their phones.
A large screen displays "TRON ARES" with red laser lights and silhouettes of an audience holding up phones.

Costumed “Program” characters from the new film marched up to the stage where the panel was about to be held.

Two performers in illuminated futuristic costumes and helmets walk through a crowd under red lights at an indoor event, with spectators taking photos.
Two people in glowing red futuristic suits walk through a crowd of spectators, many of whom are taking photos or videos with their phones.
Two people in futuristic, illuminated suits walk past an audience at an indoor event with vibrant red and purple lighting.
A stage at San Diego Comic-Con features presenters and two people in red TRON costumes, with a large screen displaying "TRON ARES" in the background.
Four panelists sit at a Comic-Con table while a man with arms raised stands next to a person in a red sci-fi costume on stage. Comic-Con branding is visible in the background.

With the level of excitement duly built up, the extended-length preview was shown. It blew me away. I could not bear to wait for the movie’s release, but finally that has happened.

A panel of speakers sits at a long table at Comic-Con, with a large screen behind them displaying a scene featuring a futuristic red spaceship.

Here is how Walt Disney Pictures describes the film:

” ‘Tron: Ares’ follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind’s first encounter with A.I. beings. The feature film is directed by Joachim Rønning and stars Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Hasan Minhaj, Jodie Turner-Smith, Arturo Castro, Cameron Monaghan, with Gillian Anderson, and Jeff Bridges. Sean Bailey, Jeffrey Silver, Justin Springer, Jared Leto, Emma Ludbrook and Steven Lisberger are the producers, with Russell Allen serving as executive producer.”

Five panelists sit at a Comic-Con International table, each with microphones, smiling and engaging with one another in front of Comic-Con banners.

This film is fantastic. Rather than a rehash of an old storyline, which plagues so many sequels, “TRON: Ares” has a fresh, exciting new story, and it takes the action full-speed into the real world as the cycles race through the streets and cause mayhem. The special effects are next-level. I want to see it again.

A panel of people sits at a long table on stage at Comic-Con, with a large screen showing a man with long hair speaking and a digital image of a similar man in the background.

I saw “TRON: Ares” in IMAX and that is what I recommend for you. The only criticism I have is technical. Granted my hearing is not as good as when I was younger, but the scenes where there were loud sound effects and music drowned out some of the dialog. I wish that theaters would not play the audio so loud but it seems to be a trend. I will have to wait until I can see “TRON: Ares” at home to better control the volume level.

To learn more about “TRON: Ares” and to see Walt Disney Pictures trailers, visit: https://movies.disney.com/tron-ares.

“Roofman”

A movie theater audience views a bright yellow "ROOFMAN" film poster on screen, featuring actors, a man with a teddy bear, and social media links; release date is October 10.

“Roofman” is based on a true story. I’ll be honest with you. I most wanted to see this film to refresh my memories about the many times that I spent in Toys”R”Us stores (with and without my kids!), since I’d heard that to make this film they basically built a Toys “R” Us store, complete with shelves full of merchandise. The store was so realistic that they had to turn away potential customers!

Here is how Paramount Pictures describes the film:

“Based on an unbelievable true story, Roofman follows Jeffrey Manchester (Channing Tatum), a former Army Ranger and struggling father who turns to robbing McDonald’s restaurants by cutting holes in their roofs, earning him the nickname: Roofman. After escaping prison, he secretly lives inside a Toys “R” Us for six months, surviving undetected while planning his next move.

A man with a backpack stands in a store aisle, looking at bicycles displayed on racks.
Channing Tatum stars in Paramount Pictures’ “ROOFMAN.”
A person in sunglasses, a blue shirt, and pink shorts balances with a large stuffed bear on their shoulders and a pool float around their waist in a toy store aisle.
Channing Tatum stars in Paramount Pictures’ “ROOFMAN.”

But when he falls for Leigh (Kirsten Dunst), a divorced mom drawn to his undeniable charm, his double life begins to unravel, setting off a compelling and suspenseful game of cat and mouse as his past closes in.”

A man and a woman stand by a green car, smiling and talking. The man leans on the car, while the woman stands with her hands on her hips.
Channing Tatum and Kirsten Dunst star in Paramount Pictures’ “ROOFMAN.”

The story is gripping and I found the Roofman-nicknamed character to be sympathetic, but the title of the film is a little off the mark. Whereas the Roofman earned his nickname from robbing a lot of McDonalds locations and other fast-food restaurants, by cutting a hole in the roof, the majority of the film actually revolves around the time period when Roofman lived in the Toys “R” Us store. It looks like it really was quite possible to live in a Toys “R” Us store — store security measures and all, although the food choices were limited and not particularly healthy.

A man in a blue shirt holding a telephone handset stands near a blue door labeled "Manager" and looks to the side.
Peter Dinklage stars in Paramount Pictures’ “ROOFMAN.”

I enjoyed “Roofman” and recommend it. Be sure to stay for the credits, since updates are shown, complete with photos, of the actual people upon whose lives this film is based.

A man in sunglasses wearing a teddy bear costume on his shoulders, a pink swim ring, and holding a gun stands against a yellow background. Text on the image promotes the film "Roofman.

To learn more about “Roofman” and to see Paramount Pictures trailers, visit: https://www.roofmanmovie.com. To explore a wide variety of content dating back to 2002, with the most photos and the latest text, visit “AutoMatters & More” at https://automatters.net. Search by title or topic in the Search Bar in the middle of the Home Page, or click on the blue ‘years’ boxes and browse.

Copyright © 2025 by Jan Wagner – AutoMatters & More #903r1

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Jan Wagner

2 Comments

  1. David Sperry on December 2, 2025 at 11:56 am

    Jan, I saw the original Tron many years ago and really enjoyed it. I passed on all the sequels but may see this one based on your enthusiastic review. David.

    Reply
    • Jan Wagner on December 2, 2025 at 5:54 pm

      David,
      I do think that you will like “TRON: Ares.” If you do go to see it, let me know what you think of it.
      Jan

      Reply

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