Movie review: Chronicle

Having superhero powers can have its drawbacks.

Found footage films, i.e. ones in which the actors are supposedly real people shooting the movie themselves, have been around in one form or another for over 30 years, but have only recently become ultra-popular. There’s no big secret why they’re proliferating; starring mostly unknown actors, they can be shot on the cheap, with the possibility of a big box office payoff. Arguably the most famous example is The Blair Witch Project, which took the film world by storm in 1999, but the Paranormal Activity series has blown all of them out of the water, with the most recent entry earning more than $200 million worldwide.

Chronicle is the latest attempt to cash in on the phenomena, following three high school friends who start gaining mysterious powers following an encounter in a mysterious hole in the woods. The main character is Andrew (Dane DeHaan), who starts filming his life in order to cope with the pain of a dying mother and an alcoholic, unemployed father. His cousin, Matt (Alex Russell), tries to get Andrew out of his anti-social shell, inviting him to a rave. It’s there that the big man on campus, Steve (Michael B. Jordan), ropes him into investigating the hole that he and Matt found.

The trio plots their next move, with the help of a little product placement.

The trio soon starts documenting all the cool new things they can do, like move objects with their minds, withstand painful blows, and, eventually, fly. But as we all know, with great power comes great responsibility, and not all of them are as responsible as they should be. Andrew especially has bigger and bolder dreams for using his newfound skills than the other two, an attitude that leads to conflicts that may be their downfall.

At first, having the guys film themselves doing crazy stuff comes off a bit too much like the fake viral videos showing people doing impossible feats you’ve seen a hundred times. Things improve over the film’s 84 minutes, mostly thanks to the seriousness of Andrew’s issues. However, as the film gets more dramatic, it also makes less and less sense to have gone with the “found footage” gambit in the first place. Cameras upon cameras pile up, making the idea that someone could have gathered all the disparate footage preposterous. The characters also have to explain a few too many times why exactly they’re filming themselves, something that wouldn’t be an issue had director Josh Trank just gone with a normal narrative.

That said, the footage they do get has a decent amount of entertainment value. The CGI, which is shaky at first, also gets better as the film goes along. The flying scenes are especially fun, giving the audience a “you are there” feeling that a lot of us would love to truly experience. And even if the melodrama is cranked up a bit too much toward the end, the spectacle that the guys’ powers provides mostly makes up for any story lack.

It's not good to give the wrong person too much power.

Although the acting ability of its stars is not of paramount concern for this film, a couple people do stand out. Jordan is the most well-known of the three main actors, having significant roles on TV shows The Wire, Friday Night Lights, and Parenthood (he also co-stars in Red Tails). He has a cool, confident demeanor that fits his character well. DeHaan makes the most of his role as well, playing the high school outcast to a tee.

Like most found footage films, it’s best not to think too hard about the intricacies of the plot. As long you can lose yourself in the superhero-like scenes of Chronicle, you’re in for a fun ride.

For showtimes for Chronicle, click here.