Daft Punk - TRON: Legacy (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | Review

By: The Ballad - 09/03/2022

*Because of the brevity and number of tracks, this is just going to be a summary of the OST as a whole, and not a review of each individual song. We highly encourage you to go watch the movie yourself and see how the score works with the plot.*

Released on December 3, 2010, Tron: Legacy (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), is the soundtrack album for the 2010 film of the same name. The first and only score composed by French electronic duo, Daft Punk, the score features a unique mixture of electronic and orchestral music. Recorded at AIR Lyndhurst Studios in London and arranged/orchestrated by Joseph Trapanese, this score does a spectacular job of joining two genres which seem by nature to be very opposite, but for the context of this movie, work very well together.

Inspired by the original Tron film by Steven Lisberger and soundtrack composed by Wendy Carlos, Daft Punk (Thomas Bangalter & Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo) hold the original film in very high regard. Stating in an interview that they think the “imprint of the first [film] will not be erased by the new one.” In regards to this new soundtrack, they note that the film was actually cut to the music, instead of the typical method of bringing in the composer at the end in order to score specific scenes. The duo also say that they somewhat split up responsibilities, with Bangalter composing the heroic themes for the protagonists, while De Homem-Christo wrote the darker musical cues.

The music itself is a very unique mashup of two totally different genres, but it’s done in such a seamless way that it feels totally natural and fits the tone of the movie perfectly. You might think that it would be overly electronic given Daft Punk’s discography, however it’s actually very balanced. Both the orchestral and electronic parts play off each other, with the orchestra providing much of the ambiance of the movie, and the electronic elements being tastefully sprinkled in. When the plot quickens, or there is an action scene, however, Bangalter and De Homem-Christo are definitely not reluctant to push the electronic parts to the forefront. Tracks like “Derezzed,” “Armory,” “Solar Sailer,” and “End of Line,” are great examples of this. Others like “Disc Wars,” “Rinzler,” “The Game Has Changed,” and “Fall” are better examples of how they masterfully combine the different sounds to create an atmosphere.

As an original score, I think this soundtrack is one of the most unique of its time. As outsiders to the industry, to even get a Grammy nominee, especially on a Disney movie that did not receive good critic reviews, is a testament to just how well composed and thought out it is. In a world of titans such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Thomas Newman, they held their own remarkably well and I only wish they had continued writing if not at least collaborating on other soundtracks. I guess we can only hope for a Hans Zimmer x Daft Punk collaboration, but whatever sci-fi movie that ends up being, I’m sure it will be amazing.

OST Score: 9/10

Favorite Track: C.L.U.