Chronicle (2012)

  I'm sorry there are so few posts up this weekend.  I usually don't like to talk about my personal problems here (that's what Facebook is for) but I've been having a hard time lately with various things and I spent most of the past week, when I normally would have been watching movies, curled up in a ball staring down the long tunnel of depression.  I haven't had that bad of an episode in a couple of years now and I'm fighting my way back from it but that's why there are two posts for Saturday instead of six.

This was a very good movie to see while depressed though, because the main character is just as helpless and angry as depression makes me feel.  This is how supervillains are born.  It reminded me a lot of Hancock, in that it's a superhero story without established superheroes.  I think Hancock had a better core story though.

Andrew (Dane DeHaan) is a loser in high school.  His mom is dying of cancer and his father (Michael Kelly) is an abusive alcoholic.  He gets a video camera and decides to document his life.  His only friend is his cousin, Matt (Alex Russell), who is trying like hell to get this kid to stop being so weird and actually participate in life.  After dragging Andrew to a party, Matt and popular guy Steve (Michael B. Jordan) find something in the ground and convince Andrew to come down with them and film it.  Boom.  Superpowers.  It starts off with small things, being able to stop a ball in mid-air or stack Legos, but soon becomes much more and the three must soon decide exactly who they want to be.

I think if I had been about fourteen I probably would have loved this movie.  I'm guessing that was about the average age of the kids in the theater watching with me and they seemed to really enjoy it.  Maybe I'm too old, but I've seen too many superhero movies to get excited by this one.  Also, I do not understand the appeal of gimmicks like 3D, Channing Tatum, and found footage.  Is it not enough to simply tell a story?  Do you have to make me feel like I'm watching some idiot's lame-ass vacation videos?  Just tell the story.