This image released by Disney shows Jodie Turner-Smith, center, in a scene from "Tron: Ares." (Disney via AP)

Disney’s “Tron: Ares” is one of the greatest visual experiences I’ve had at the movies this year, a film with sights and sounds that delight the eye and rattle the ear drums. If you’re going to see it, make sure you catch it on the biggest screen possible.

Even with James Cameron’s forthcoming “Avatar” sequel in two months, it’s unlikely to match the joy this one gave me. On the other hand, if you’re seeing this for the dialogue, acting and story, those aspects are, at best, inconsistent. To put it another way, you’ll walk away in awe of what you saw and heard, but the screenplay and characters are disposable.

A prologue reminds us of the events of the first two films. Kevin Flynn (played by Jeff Bridges) created a digital universe but is still missing. ENCOM CEO and Flynn’s protegee, Eve (played by Greta Lee), has discovered a pivotal file and is in competition with Dillinger (played by Evan Peters), a long-term enemy of Flynn. Meanwhile, a program created by Dillinger, named Ares (played by Jared Leto), emerges as a great warrior and suddenly gains the ability to feel empathy.

“Tron: Ares” is easily the most coherent of the “Tron” movies. Like the others, it’s pretentious and profoundly goofy. This is a pro-AI movie, which will strike some as unwise or foolish, though no one should take any of this seriously.

The bits that attempt “Blade Runner”-like reflections are the corniest. Someone notes, “life is hard,” which is as deep as this gets. There’s also Ares repeatedly proclaiming his love for Depeche Mode, which is probably humiliating for Depeche Mode. The Tron movies act like they’re selling techno prophecies but are consistently as deep as “A Minecraft Movie.”

The third act is a semi-disaster, as the lively finale, which doesn’t know when to end, is followed by unintentionally campy wrap-ups (note the absurd bit with a postcard) and a gratuitous sequel setup.

The “Tron” trilogy is easily one of the strangest ongoing franchises in Disney history. The original 1982 film with its breakthrough visuals and the concept of warfare occurring at the pixel level is absurd and breathtaking, often at the same time. The belated 2010 sequel “Tron: Legacy” is still the best in the series, as it balances an overly ambitious religious allegory with gorgeous imagery and blissful action.

Most have noted how good the Nine Inch Nails soundtrack is for the new film — it often made me nod my head with the tempo. Nevertheless, the Daft Punk score for the second film, which utilized a full orchestra and not just techno beats, is still the soundtrack to beat.

The acting is all over the place. Bridges’ cameo is a welcome bit that still appears like it was shot in a single afternoon. Amazing in “Past Lives,” Lee endlessly spouts out exposition, overexplaining the plot and coming across like a B-movie actress. Gillian Anderson chomps down on a busy British accent, Peters can’t match the villainy that David Warner brought to the original and Arturo Castro is obnoxious as the intended comic relief. The best performance comes from Leto, whose intense stare goes a long way in selling his character. Leto isn’t the only one here visibly doing their best to register while acting against the awesome special effects.

I love how Disney spent a fortune on such a strange epic. The concept of weaponizing AI and developing programs that can “feel” is very of the moment, but the film’s story ultimately comes down to the heroes and villains battling things out in the coolest manner imaginable. There’s a lack of consistent logic here, like how no press or military arrives after the armies of Tron create havoc in the real world.

Nevertheless, during its best scenes and for more than a solid hour, I found “Tron: Ares” so exciting and dazzling to behold I didn’t care how silly it was. Only near the end does it finally wear us down and reveal itself as a franchise in need of either an upgrade or retirement.

(3 out of 4 stars)

Barry Wurst II is the founder of the Hawaii Film Critics Society and teaches film classes at University of Hawai’i Maui College.