Chronicle (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo +Digital Copy)
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Clear your thoughts for a “mesmerizing mind-bender” (Rolling Stone) that’ll blow you away! Seen through the lens of a troubled teen’s video camera, yet filled with eye-popping action and jaw-dropping special effects, Chronicle is as real as it gets. When three ordinary high school friends make an extraordinary discovery, they acquire amazing abilities beyond their understanding. But as their powers develop, so do their darker sides. Fun, harmless pranks soon lead to much riskier activities as th
Chronicle (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo +Digital Copy)
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Friends don’t let friends use their powers for eeeeevil,
When friends have a falling out, it’s best for all parties involved – including unwitting bystanders – that they don’t have destructive superhuman abilities. Because the collateral damage off that spat is wicked crazy. CHRONICLE is one of them “found footage” films, the narrative unfolding pseudo-documentary-style mainly thru video cameras employed by the characters. Other recording devices – cell phone & traffic cameras and security feeds and tools brought to bear by breaking news media coverage – come into play later on in the tremendous third act.
CHRONICLE centers around the strange thing what befalls three high school seniors: the popular and charismatic Steve (Michael B. Jordan); the smart and just a bit pretentious Matt (Alex Russell); and Andrew (Dane DeHaan), the weirdo loner burdened with the dying mom and abusive dad. It’s Andrew who opts to escape his disturbing home life by throwing himself into his handycam hobby. As escapism he films everything in sight. He takes his video recorder everywhere. While attending a rave, Steve, Matt, and Andrew are diverted by a deep hole in the ground in the nearby woods. What they eventually stumble across somehow imbues them with super powers. Soon Steve, Matt, and Andrew are experimenting (read: goofing around) with telekinesis and learning how to fly (which is just another extension of telekinesis). Of course, there are the requisite nose bleeds.
Andrew demonstrates a natural affinity for his newfound talents. They develop more quickly than do Matt’s or Steve’s. So at least he has that to feel good about. But there’s a disconnect with the troubled Andrew. The family home melodrama exacerbates his sense of alienation. Still, their mutual powers draw the trio closer together. They begin to hang out a lot more.
There’s an organic flow to the story, or during the first two thirds anyway. The script allows the actors to sound off with believable dialogue. The three leads are natural in their roles; there’s an authentic vibe. I like to think that the stuff they get up to initially, in exploring their powers, are stuff that normal teenagers would think up. Their antics in the supermarket are pretty hilarious, even though that was a mean thing they did, spooking the little girl. Me, I probably won’t be able to help abusing my powers a little bit. Steve, Matt, and Andrew apply theirs to have fun and impress other kids (by, say, staging a magic show or showing off while playing the quarters beer game). Matt is the most level-headed of the bunch. He at least seems aware of the necessity of keeping their secret. He tries to lay down some ground rules, like not using their abilities on living things or using them when they’re angry. It’s worrying that the much bullied Andrew doesn’t see the point of these rules.
Most of the film’s first half is so lighthearted and goofy that it’s all the more impactful when things finally get serious. One of the three begins to subscribe to that old “survival of the fittest” way of thinking. He begins to regard himself as the ultimate predator and mere humans as disposable insects. The other two try to talk sense into him, but, by that stage, we’re all just pretty much waiting for the inevitable downspiral into fighty fight.
I happened to really like CLOVERFIELD, a recent “found footage” monster film (I know a lot of folks didn’t). I think that CHRONICLE shares CLOVERFIELD’S sense of immediacy. Only, this time, you get a feel for what it may really be like to be caught on ground zero when ridiculously powerful metahumans furiously duke it out. One famous landmark in Seattle gets a shellacking.
Did you think the film needed to delve more into the crystalline object in the underground cavern which (it’s assumed) bestowed paranormal talents on them kids? I don’t think so. I even liked that the story dropped it. The kids make an attempt to revisit the hole in the ground, but things don’t pan out, and they shrug it off. And while the introduction of the girl who records with her own camera for her blog may be a convenient plot device, she does ground one of the characters. I like that there’s a thru line to the story, that ***SPOILERS NOW FOR THE REST OF THE SENTENCE*** the superhumans are later exposed to the world. This raises the stakes tremendously. It encompasses the frenetic third act. There are some archetypal elements that come into play in this collision between an amoral monster and his friend still trying to talk him down. And it ultimately defines the makings of a hero. The special effects are pretty amazing considering the film’s low budget. The flying sequences are breathlessly entertaining. And while I enjoyed the sense of humor and the cool superhero beats, these alone wouldn’t have been enough. You required those solid chunks of storytelling and character development to prop them up.
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|Realistic and riveting,
Another in a line of films portrayed as actual footage later found. Filmed documentary styles, the movie tells the story of three high school boys who encounter some sort of alien ship or something, and then acquire superhuman powers of telekinesis. Predictably, things spiral out of control for the three. This is a realistic, and quite good film about a young man with problems who is unable to control the powers he discovers. His two friends try to help, but they are unable to control him. This one was a pleasant surprise and is the best movie of its kind since Paranormal Activity.
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|With great power comes great trouble,
Perhaps no other phrase in the comic book genre applies to daily life as much as Spider-Man’s famous, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Such a phrase has guided Spider-Man throughout his career, but occasionally the thought comes up: what if he didn’t follow this famous mantra, and instead used his powers for selfish reasons? While “Chronicle” may not be related to Spider-man, it perfectly explores what would happen if the famous saying was ignored.
“Chronicle” follows three high school kids who have pretty ordinary lives: one is running for class president, one is the shy type whom nobody likes, and the last is the outgoing, energetic type. One night, while at a rave, the three come across something mysterious, and find themselves in possession of powers that allow them to manipulate things with their minds. As expected, they start off doing pranks (like using a leaf blower on skirts, for example), but as time goes on, being in possession of so much power can be dangerous…and even deadly.
Even among the glut of superhero and found-footage films, “Chronicle” manages to stand out, in most-part, due to that it’s not really a superhero film: rather, it’s really a story about how absolute power corrupts absolutely. While I was watching the movie, I was really surprised to find myself being more interested in the teens, rather then the powers they wield. All three are best friends, and they’re good at heart, but are not above using their powers to mess with people’s heads. Andrew, in particular, is one of the most interesting film teenagers I’ve seen in recent memory, due to his miserable home life, and how he reacts with his new-found abilities. Yet, from the beginning, it’s clear that the power is inevitably going to corrupt the teens, which leads to a extraordinarily powerful third act that that genuinely had me more interested in what Andrew and the others were going to do, and not in the action that was taking place around them.
Even though there have arguably been too many superhero and found footage films over the past few years, “Chronicle” manages to feel fresh and exciting. While it’s faults are few (the CGI is at times a bit obvious), the strength of it’s storytelling more then makes up for any flaws. It’s an unexpectedly gripping and thrilling film that focuses on the emotional consequences of how extraordinary powers corrupt ordinary people, rather then on spectacle and action, as other films would have done, and for that, I highly recommend it.
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