How many films made during the '80s can be described as timeless? Very, very few, because the '80s, more than any decade, inflicted cinema with a loud, violently-colored, horrible glam explosion that will never, EVER come back into style again (got that?).

Why, then, will Tron, the most violently-colored, über-stylized, horribly written '80s movie of them all, linger in the annals of great cinema? Try asking the tech-nerds, who swear that Tron set the stage for current CGI animation. According to these guys, flicks like Toy Story wouldn't even exist without the influence of Tron. And furthermore, with its plot about a hacker who gets sucked into a computer and battles its evil Master Program, Tron is even visionary, questioning the overwhelming infiltration of computers into human life when most people didn't even own them yet.

But that stuff's for the textbooks. The REAL reason Tron's going to stand the test of time is because it looks and feels cool in a way that will never be matched. The pastel light cycles racing around at breakneck speeds; the perpetual black-lit glowing hum of the costumes. These images are burned into our memories, and were so meticulously prepared, they still look phenomenal, even in the face of today's jaded, 90-billion-dollar special effect saturation.

Celebrate Tron's ridiculous permanence tonight. Get drunk and cheer an old friend who made it through a dismal era to stand the test of time. JUSTIN SANDERS

Mercury Summer Movie Megathon at the Guild, 829 SW 9th, Friday, August 22, 10 pm, $6 ($2 PBR's!)