The Greatest Possible Sum of All Its Part: 'Chronicle' Review

In the 13 years since The Blair Witch Project , the subgenre of found footage movies has exploded into a surplus of amateurish, hackneyed filmmaking. The genre seems to be an excuse for poor writing and untamed, frenetic direction; it is supposed to allow for this natural and raw feeling from its actors while also concocting a grittiness that is supposedly achieved through a channelling of cinema vérité. Unfortunately, found footage is frequently overused and poorly utilized with other film faults like pacing issues and editing incoherencies showcased as a result of this approach. Even the original found footage movie, The Blair Witch Project had so much wrong with it that the found footage idea just accentuated everything that made the film bad and not scary. Found footage is a silly genre, but it has managed to work a handful of times because the movies would have been far worse had they been created traditionally. Films like Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity, the best of all the recent found footage films, succeed because the found footage gimmick disallows them from being compared to other large scale monster movies or claustrophobic, household ghost movies, respectively. But now there is Chronicle, a new film from director Josh Trank (Big Fan with Patton Oswalt), that perfectly incorporates the found footage style into a comic book/superhero-inspired premise. The film has enough original ideas and other redeeming qualities to completely separate it from all previous found footage films. With smart direction, great acting, and a highly engaging plotline and script, Chronicle should have the capacity (hopefully) to replace Blair Witch as the prime example of found footage filmmaking.

Chronicle is exactly what the title denotes: A first person video journal told from the point of view of Andrew (Dane DeHaan, who played one of Gabriel Byrne’s many patients on HBO’s In Treatment), a teenager of Washington state who takes us through his daily life with a newly purchased camera in tow and shows us the bleakness of what surrounds him. He struggles to get through every single day of his life because of the bullies at school, the physical and verbal abuse he receives from his father, the emotional effects of watching his mother slowly succumb to terrible sickness in his own home, and the complete absence of true friendship. This kid does not have a single silver lining in his life. The entire world seems to be against him and he cannot do anything to change it. Andrew is alone and without a shoulder to lean on, it might not take much to have this kid completely snap. Will he take his own life or the lives of others? Little do the teenage bullies and his alcoholic father realize that they may be creating a monster inside of Andrew; he could be a ticking time bomb waiting detonate at any moment.

The closest thing Andrew has to a friend is his cousin, Matt (newcomer Alex Russell), who drives him to and from school and, unbeknownst to himself, is the one reassuring aspect that stabilizes Andrew's psychological trauma. Matt may not think much of his cousin, but he is never mean to Andrew, which is the best thing Andrew could possibly ask for. One Friday afternoon on their way home from school, Matt tells Andrew that they are going to a party that night. Andrew is reluctant to accompany his cousin, but Matt assures Andrew that he needs to make a dip into the party scene if he no longer wants to be a target for bullies. Andrew appears at the party with the camera and it does not take long before he is being bullied and antagonized by the party goers which forces him outside where he sits by himself and cries. This is where Steve finds him (Michael B. Jordan, who so brilliantly portrayed the character of Wallace on HBO’s amazing crime drama, The Wire). Steve is that popular kid in high school who is impossible to dislike: He plays varsity sports, is running for student office, has a lovely girlfriend, etc. Steve tells Andrew that he and Matt have found something extraordinary and they need someone to document their findings. Steve brings Andrew to a hole in the ground where strange sounds and ruptures are exuding. The curious trio, mostly intoxicated, enter the hole and find a –

The camera cuts to black for a few seconds…

...and then we cut to the next part of the camera’s footage: We find the three characters, now much more friendly with one another, messing around with their new superpowers in a backyard. Yes, superpowers! Whatever they touched or came across in that hole the night of the party has allowed them to develop the superpowers that flood every child’s dreams. They have the abilities of about three or four different X-Men combined and we get to experience, first hand, how the trio develop their powers and how they are coping with their new superhuman skills. But it's all fun and games until somebody, or everybody, gets hurt. While Steve and Matt are able to keep their powers at bay and use them only when messing around with one another, it does not take long for Andrew to begin exploiting his powers. He slowly becomes corrupted with power and his tired eyes, drained of any ability to care or feel compassion, start to look toward the sources of evil in his life as he begins to wonder, “What would a super villain do?”

Chronicle is written by Max Landis, son of famous 80s director John Landis, and this is probably one of the most impressive first-time feature length scripts in a very long time. He is the champion behind this film’s production because the best parts of Chronicle lie within its structure, its characters and development, its dialogue, and the overall presentation of the concept. The film is compact, but with well developed, individual characters that are beautifully depicted through the creative take on the found footage style. Landis gives the camera reason to be present and director Josh Trank very rarely cheats what a single camera can accomplish (sometimes we cut to the viewpoints of security camera footage or cell phone camera or a video blogger who appears at some of the same events as our center triumvirate). The actors, specifically the three leads, deliver their lines flawlessly and perfectly embody the distinct characters that Landis has conceived. Their progressions through the narrative are perfectly executed and what happens to each and every one of them is rather shocking, but this is a tribute to the writer/director team’s ability to defy conventions and expectations, which is a rare occurrence these days. The film is rather dark and grim, but so were the best comic books and graphic novels, which served as obvious inspiration for Landis.

In just 83 minutes, Max Landis creates an epic demonstration of how being granted such epic abilities can lead to individual and mass destruction. We literally see the creation of a super villain. Landis equates Andrew’s transformation to something like a school shooting. From just taking a look at Andrew, he looks like the kind of kid who is so brutalized by his social and familial life that he may be inspired to follow in the footsteps of those behind the tragic slaughters of Columbine and Virginia Tech. Instead, Andrew uses his powers as a form of retribution going person-by-person and extracting brutal satisfaction on whoever has wronged him physically or psychologically leading to the entire city of Seattle being a victim of his vengeful carnage. Chronicle’s climax is an exciting action sequence, but it is not placed there for clichéd purposes, it lands there because of narrative and character progression; it is charged with such emotional strength that it is not only wholly engaging but also intensely stimulating. The combination of writer Landis and director Trank is definitely one that works and will hopefully be making a follow-up collaboration soon.

Chronicle continues the trend of early 2012 greatness. Studios usually drop whatever they have to get rid of during January and February, just before the Oscars, so that they can earn whatever little money they can before throwing bigger pictures into multiplexes during March and April before summer blockbusters rule from May to September. However, 2012 has proved to have one of the best January-February lineups yet with Haywire, The Grey and now Chronicle all being released within a month of one another (and there is still the terrific Hayao Miyazaki adaptation, The Secret Life of Arriety and the hilarious 21 Jump Street on the way). Chronicle has also been released amidst an overflow of found footage films and comic book adaptations, yet has managed to be one of the best in both categories. It is one of the most enjoyable and entertaining comic book-esque movies as well as the most intelligent found footage film I’ve seen. Chronicle is short, but packs a cinematic punch, so for those wary of spending the price of admission on a film that does not even break the 90 minute mark, please put your hesitancy away. Chronicle is worth so much more.

9/10