With the start of the year, Sci-Fi movies were instantly given a shit start thanks to overblown and useless alien movie The Darkest Hour. But now, with the movie industry gearing up for summer blockbusters, we have a little Sci-Fi gem which was pretty much unknown until it's release. Chronicle is the debut outing for director Josh Trank and it's one hell of a debut. The film is in a found footage format, following in the steps of Cloverfield, District 9 and Paranormal Activity. The found footage genre has started to become a bit saturated recently due to the onslaught of horror films which decided to use the method but Trank has managed to breathe life back into it.
The film follows 3 lads, Andrew, Matt (Andrews cousin) and Steve in high school who at a barn rave, discover a hole in the ground in the nearby woods which ends up being a tunnel to a mysterious object glowing blue. After getting nose bleeds and some pain, the object turns red and the camera is stopped and resumed a few weeks later when the 3 boys are playing around with their newly discovered telekinesis powers. They decide to go back to the hole but find it has sunk in and the area on lockdown due to the unstable ground. As time goes on, the boys grow closer as they pull pranks and play around with their powers. Andrew, the main lead, discovers his powers are getting stronger at a faster rate then the other 2. Eventually the boys learn they can fly and there is an awesome scene of them playing American football in the sky until a jumbo jet nearly kills them after flying by.
The main character Andrew is a troubled teenager who is a loner and has an abusive alcoholic father along with a mother dying from cancer. He starts filming his life to most likely document his fathers abuse (although this is just implied) and you see how he is treated by his father and the bully's at his school. It was because of his new found hobby, that his cousin Matt and Matts friend Steve asked Andrew to film the hole in the ground and what was inside it. Despite his depressing life, he discovers new confidence with his powers and has started to realise how much more powerful he is compared to his peers. He carry his camera with him everywhere and learns to control the camera in the air with his powers so he doesn't have to handle it. After running an annoying motorist off a ledge and subsequently saving his life, the boys decide that they need rules to ensure no one gets hurt from their abilities and that it's never found out. What follows is Andrews fall from grace as his home life coupled with his dying mother trigger him to disregard the rules and start using his powers as he sees fit including getting revenge on the people who wronged him.
The plot is fantastic and the unknown actors do a fantastic job of portraying normal angst ridden high schoolers which realise they have gifts beyond comprehension. The Story of Andrew is perhaps a bit diluted as they director really wants you to know how shit his life is so it kind of gives it away that he would be the one to start abusing his powers. The special effects are done nicely and sparingly until the final showdown. Although slightly predictable with Andrews character, he's very relatable and this is another way of re-telling the already done story of the lonely nerd who becomes almighty and powerful. When watching, you wouldn't want to keep your eyes off the screen just to see what antics the boys get up to next or how the boys would react to Andrews rapid acceleration of powers. The subplot of a person being corrupted by their own powers has also been done before but the fresh spin really drives the message home.
All in all, a fantastic Sci-Fi effort and also leaves a bit to wonder at after the end. Chronicle is a sleeper hit and an awesome movie whether you're a fan of the genre or not. A must see!
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