Review of Chronicle (2012) by Tommy 'See The Treasure' S — 02 Feb 2014

Chronicle is a pretty frustrating movie. On the one hand it's got some pretty interesting (albeit unoriginal) ideas and characters, and a pretty intriguing central premise. On the other hand, it's constantly hindered by a contradictory wish to be both an authentic found-footage movie and a visual effects extravaganza. I should firstly mention that I don't really have any prejudice against the found-footage medium. I think it worked pretty well in movies like the Blair Witch Project. But here it's a constant distraction.

The fact that footage seems to come from a myriad of sources (security cameras, police helicopter cameras etc.,) completely undermines the desired sense of authenticity. We're not only to believe that it's found footage, but rather found and neatly edited footage. It's a similar conceit to that which all but ruined the 2012 police drama End of Watch. As with that movie, this one never really transcends the limitations of its chosen medium.

Having said that, I actually think the found-footage idea could have really worked very well here, if the director had been willing to restrict it to the lead character's camera. The main character, Andrew, has a solid motive and personal reasons for carrying a camera, the main one being that he wishes to capture his father's cruelty. In the earlier scenes the camera idea was actually working really well. The fact that Andrew always filmed everything gave him an added intensity and a creepy voyeuristic air. Unfortunately, the director has an ambitious visual flair which clashed with this idea, as he laboriously found ways of introducing various fresh footage sources. Honestly, there's one character in the movie whose main purpose is seemingly just to provide another source of footage.

The story itself is solid. A trio of teens develop telekinetic powers from an enigmatic source. One of the teens, the aforementioned Andrew( Dane de Haan ), is an insecure and troubled teen who is emotionally and physically bullied by his father. His only friend is his rather patronizing and confident cousin Matt( Alex Russell ), who has a penchant for quoting classic philosophy. The teens are amused and enchanted by their newfound abilities. But Andrew's power becomes dangerously linked with his personal resentment and angst, making him a very dangerous person to himself and those around him.

The central themes, such as the will to power, and teen angst, are very familiar; and particularly reminiscent of the classic animated movie Akira. It also owes a debt to Carrie, in the way that it links the theme of telekinesis with down-to-earth adolescent issues. Because it has some fascinating concepts I think it's worth watching, but this movie is really too flawed to strongly recommend.