Chronicle (C+ or 2.5/4 stars)
3 teenagers discover a strange otherworldly artifact in an underground cavern in 'Chronicle' (directed by Josh Trank & written by Max Landis). Andrew (Dane De Haan, Nick Stahl/Leo DiCaprio lookalike) is a shy, anxious, socially inept video geek who prefers seeing life through his video camera. He is ridiculed & bullied at both his Seattle high school and at home, where his gravely-ill mom (Bo Petersen) lies on her deathbed & his abusive dad (Michael Kelly) is never far from a bottle of liquor. Andrew's only pal is his cousin, Matt (Alex Russell), but there's a distance btwn. them; as Matt is in the popular crowd & finds Andrew to be both hostile & unpredictable. Then there's Matt's friend, Steve (Michael B. Jordan), who is the school's Golden Boy - liked by all, & seemingly destined for great things.
Their underground discovery imbues Andrew, Matt, & Steve with telekinetic powers. Andrew's seems strongest, but that may be because he focuses with the most intensity. The start with minor gags & tricks (sending grocery carts down aisles, animate a teddy bear off the shelf, move a parked cars!), but their abilities grow stronger with continual use. To boost Andrew's popularity, Steve works with him on a variety-show skit where he gets to show-off his abilities to some impressed students. Soon, the threesome can fly & soar into the sky above the clouds. They draft a set of 3 rules intended to keep them from harming others. Feeling confident & energized, Matt begins romancing a cute blonde girl who is into filming segments for her blog. But he's worried about his cousin, Andrew, who seems willing to use his powers to harm those he still views as enemies. Craziness ensues.
'Chronicle' offers a fairly fresh take on the worn-out superhero origin formula that has become a staple of so many blockbusters with big budgets. The filmmakers have fashioned a morality tale about fear, friendship, & the dangers of power. From the first scene, we are taken into the lives of these teens who stumble upon something that changes them forever. Dane De Haan is quite good as Andrew; whose vulnerability & awkwardness goes far in making us pull for him early on. See, he & the other 2 are regular people with normal problems. They're not Peter Parkers or Clark Kents. Their only challenge is to find a way to cope with, and to recognize that these superpowers cannot change their true selves. You can't change 100%.
The key to what happens in the crazy final scenes is the fear that takes over Andrew. "Fear" is paramount in the lives of those who are bullied. Once transformed by power, many of these victims are bullies in the making. That is a horrible thing to realize. And it's unfortunately what happens to Andrew. Another interesting thing about 'Chronicle' is that it tells a complete story. There's nothing about the ending that requires a sequel, so to speak. There's humor, yet tragedy; levity, yet sadness. This film goes to show that not all superhero stories have to be over-budgeted and/or bloated to have stellar special effects or to be narratively effective.
The reason I am giving this film a C+ and not a B, however, is because - at only 79 minutes in length - it started wearing out its welcome after the 50 minute mark. After quick character introductions, a few cool superhero tricks, & a few humorous situations ... my attention started to wane. Furthermore, the climax gets a bit repetitive & goes a bit over-the-top. And when something like that happens, and the movie was already wearing out its welcome ... you start to naturally second-guess your enjoyment level of the rest of the film. I STILL acknowledge its strengths. I still think the premise is cool. And it's smarter than most superhero crap. But I just think the film stumbles a bit before the ending. Not a bad movie. I just can't react much more than shrugging my shoulders in faint satisfaction.
Their underground discovery imbues Andrew, Matt, & Steve with telekinetic powers. Andrew's seems strongest, but that may be because he focuses with the most intensity. The start with minor gags & tricks (sending grocery carts down aisles, animate a teddy bear off the shelf, move a parked cars!), but their abilities grow stronger with continual use. To boost Andrew's popularity, Steve works with him on a variety-show skit where he gets to show-off his abilities to some impressed students. Soon, the threesome can fly & soar into the sky above the clouds. They draft a set of 3 rules intended to keep them from harming others. Feeling confident & energized, Matt begins romancing a cute blonde girl who is into filming segments for her blog. But he's worried about his cousin, Andrew, who seems willing to use his powers to harm those he still views as enemies. Craziness ensues.
'Chronicle' offers a fairly fresh take on the worn-out superhero origin formula that has become a staple of so many blockbusters with big budgets. The filmmakers have fashioned a morality tale about fear, friendship, & the dangers of power. From the first scene, we are taken into the lives of these teens who stumble upon something that changes them forever. Dane De Haan is quite good as Andrew; whose vulnerability & awkwardness goes far in making us pull for him early on. See, he & the other 2 are regular people with normal problems. They're not Peter Parkers or Clark Kents. Their only challenge is to find a way to cope with, and to recognize that these superpowers cannot change their true selves. You can't change 100%.
The key to what happens in the crazy final scenes is the fear that takes over Andrew. "Fear" is paramount in the lives of those who are bullied. Once transformed by power, many of these victims are bullies in the making. That is a horrible thing to realize. And it's unfortunately what happens to Andrew. Another interesting thing about 'Chronicle' is that it tells a complete story. There's nothing about the ending that requires a sequel, so to speak. There's humor, yet tragedy; levity, yet sadness. This film goes to show that not all superhero stories have to be over-budgeted and/or bloated to have stellar special effects or to be narratively effective.
The reason I am giving this film a C+ and not a B, however, is because - at only 79 minutes in length - it started wearing out its welcome after the 50 minute mark. After quick character introductions, a few cool superhero tricks, & a few humorous situations ... my attention started to wane. Furthermore, the climax gets a bit repetitive & goes a bit over-the-top. And when something like that happens, and the movie was already wearing out its welcome ... you start to naturally second-guess your enjoyment level of the rest of the film. I STILL acknowledge its strengths. I still think the premise is cool. And it's smarter than most superhero crap. But I just think the film stumbles a bit before the ending. Not a bad movie. I just can't react much more than shrugging my shoulders in faint satisfaction.