Chronicle 2012

"Rules man. We need RULES!"

'Chronicle' is the story of three teens who develop telekinetic powers after they encounter a mysterious glowing pit in their town.

I thought I had grown pretty tired of movies that use the 'found footage' technique of film making. I feared this film would be another 'Cloverfield' which is one movie I hated more than most in recent memory.

I understand how 'found footage' solves certain problems for new filmmakers who don't have the money for big name actors or expensive special effects. To make things work you really need to have a sharp script to keep people interested in your story and 'Chronicle's' story makes all the shaky jumps and cuts interesting. The story unfolds in a hundred mini-vignettes. Watching the evolution of the teen's powers is often hilarious, right before everything falls apart.


This movie stuffs more ideas and social commentary into 75 minutes than most movies at twice the length.

I liked the way the director has made a 'teen loner gains superpowers' movie and resisted the urge to follow any of the plot points you would expect. Not every teen has a supportive Uncle to teach them nobility and responsibility like Peter Parker did. This is not a Spider-Man story.


I was interested is seeing just how far they would take the concept and there are many surprises that I never saw coming.

A talented cast of unknowns really sells the idea. The combination of teen types (the loner, the jock, the intellectual hipster) is very appealing and I really rooted for everything to work out good for these three guys although I knew there was no way that they could.

The effects are simple but mesmerizing effective. There is real imagination at work here. The found footage technique only enhances the impact of those scenes. At times I was left breathless.

"Not only does (Director) Trank have a real affinity for his characters, his instincts are pretty edgy, capturing the alienation, class rage and instability of teenage emotions." - Rotten Tomatoes

10/10