Chronicle film review
Chronicle is the first film of 2012 for comic book geeks, as well as lovers of sci-fi and fantasy, to really rally behind. Having released just a fortnight earlier in the US, the movie arrived in South Africa atop a wave of hype. Although nobody claimed the film was perfect, and certain standard criticisms kept popping up in overseas reviews, praise was consistently high for the film. So much so that frankly, I was a bit disappointed when I finally watched Chronicle. The movie is well made and highly entertaining, to be sure, but it’s also very uneven, which stops it from reaching its full enjoyment potential.
Shot in a high quality version of the handheld/home camera style – utilised in the likes of The Blair Witch Project, Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity, amongst others – Chronicle steps away from established superheroes of the printed page to instead centre on ordinary, flawed people who, in our reality, find themselves dealing with extraordinary circumstances.
In Chronicle those ordinary people are a trio of high school boys who stumble on a mysterious, presumably alien, object, and develop amazing telekinetic abilities as a result. Carrie-esque main character Andrew (Dane DeHaan) is a hostile misfit, who copes with his miserable home life (a drunk, abusive father and terminally ill mother) by chronicling his life with a video camera. His cousin Matt (Alex Russell) is a pseudo-intellectual, quoting philosophers in the hope of picking up chicks. And Matt’s friend Steve (Michael B. Jordan) is a wildly popular sports star and class president.
Unlike a certain other super-powered high school senior, these teens give the finger to the mantra “With great power comes great responsibility,” and use their new abilities chiefly to mess around – performing pranks, impressing girls and, as events turn darker, exacting revenge on bullies.
Chronicle excels during the scenes where Andrew, Matt and Steve explore their burgeoning capabilities. The flying scenes are best of all, with our heroes reacting like children (or adults for that matter) venturing out into snow for the very first time. It’s a powerful moment of fantasy fulfilment for the characters and audience alike, and you just don’t want to come back to reality. It’s a moment that at least one Superman film should have delivered, but never has.
Chronicle’s special effects are nifty in making scenes like this a reality, but their refreshing credibility and energy really stems from the strong performances of the film’s three young, unknown leads.
As for the film’s choice of the “found footage” visual style – which has been unfortunately overused this past decade by filmmakers trying to shortcut the process of making their films appear more “realistic” – I had no real problem here. The requisite shaky cinematography, disjointed editing and tendency for characters to address the camera directly are all present, but the footage is HD digital as opposed to grainy VHS tape, so you often forget that you’re supposed to be looking at an amateur’s filming efforts.
This said, in the movie there are still a handful of very contrived moments that are evidently meant to explain why certain conversations, events and camera angles are recorded. And Chronicle could have done without this clumsy attempt at clarity.
It’s a minor failing though in comparison to the fact that that after an outstanding first half, Chronicle develops a narrative nosebleed. Things become messy, overblown, and very predictable. I can’t think how I would have wrapped up the film differently – and admittedly the escalating conclusion does fit the dark sci-fi thriller mould that the film has chosen for itself. However, it’s hard to deny that once a certain character makes their exit, the movie loses a lot of its charm, and ALL of its fun. And surprise, surprise, as usual it’s the troubled poor kid who is warped by power.
Ultimately then, while Chronicle could have been brilliant, it ends up falling short. It’s technically very well done and you do genuinely care about the characters, but it stumbles after its direction change into darkness and obviousness.
3 and a half stars to 4 stars out of 5 – depending on how critical I’m feeling.
Shot in a high quality version of the handheld/home camera style – utilised in the likes of The Blair Witch Project, Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity, amongst others – Chronicle steps away from established superheroes of the printed page to instead centre on ordinary, flawed people who, in our reality, find themselves dealing with extraordinary circumstances.
In Chronicle those ordinary people are a trio of high school boys who stumble on a mysterious, presumably alien, object, and develop amazing telekinetic abilities as a result. Carrie-esque main character Andrew (Dane DeHaan) is a hostile misfit, who copes with his miserable home life (a drunk, abusive father and terminally ill mother) by chronicling his life with a video camera. His cousin Matt (Alex Russell) is a pseudo-intellectual, quoting philosophers in the hope of picking up chicks. And Matt’s friend Steve (Michael B. Jordan) is a wildly popular sports star and class president.
Unlike a certain other super-powered high school senior, these teens give the finger to the mantra “With great power comes great responsibility,” and use their new abilities chiefly to mess around – performing pranks, impressing girls and, as events turn darker, exacting revenge on bullies.
Chronicle excels during the scenes where Andrew, Matt and Steve explore their burgeoning capabilities. The flying scenes are best of all, with our heroes reacting like children (or adults for that matter) venturing out into snow for the very first time. It’s a powerful moment of fantasy fulfilment for the characters and audience alike, and you just don’t want to come back to reality. It’s a moment that at least one Superman film should have delivered, but never has.
Chronicle’s special effects are nifty in making scenes like this a reality, but their refreshing credibility and energy really stems from the strong performances of the film’s three young, unknown leads.
As for the film’s choice of the “found footage” visual style – which has been unfortunately overused this past decade by filmmakers trying to shortcut the process of making their films appear more “realistic” – I had no real problem here. The requisite shaky cinematography, disjointed editing and tendency for characters to address the camera directly are all present, but the footage is HD digital as opposed to grainy VHS tape, so you often forget that you’re supposed to be looking at an amateur’s filming efforts.
This said, in the movie there are still a handful of very contrived moments that are evidently meant to explain why certain conversations, events and camera angles are recorded. And Chronicle could have done without this clumsy attempt at clarity.
It’s a minor failing though in comparison to the fact that that after an outstanding first half, Chronicle develops a narrative nosebleed. Things become messy, overblown, and very predictable. I can’t think how I would have wrapped up the film differently – and admittedly the escalating conclusion does fit the dark sci-fi thriller mould that the film has chosen for itself. However, it’s hard to deny that once a certain character makes their exit, the movie loses a lot of its charm, and ALL of its fun. And surprise, surprise, as usual it’s the troubled poor kid who is warped by power.
Ultimately then, while Chronicle could have been brilliant, it ends up falling short. It’s technically very well done and you do genuinely care about the characters, but it stumbles after its direction change into darkness and obviousness.
3 and a half stars to 4 stars out of 5 – depending on how critical I’m feeling.
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