Let me start off by saying that I haven't written a review since about July so forgive me if I'm a little rusty.
Chronicle manages to capture the essence of a superhero origin story, something which (suprisingly) other CBM's have failed to capture. The acting from the lead cast was stellar, stand-out performances. The first act of the movie was mainly about establishing the background of Andrew, the main character and showcasing his troubled home life and him being a bullied outcast. He is friends with his cousin, Matt, who drives him to school everyday and is a popular kid. With Matt's friend Steve, they find a hole in the ground at a party and when venturing into it, find a mysterious crystalized object which messes with Andrew's camera (he decides to document everything that happens to him because of his abusive father, and it is also the basis of the found footage theme) and breaks it. When we next see them, they've got their powers.
The Positives
-The acting was brilliant, from everybody, especially Dane DeHaam (Andrew). He managed to portray an abused soul extremely well.
-The story was very unique, something that I think should be shown in more CBM's. I knew it wouldn't be long before somebody had the clever idea of combining found footage and CBM movies.
-The special effects. They were VERY good for a movie with the budget of $15m, and although they did look a bit shoddy in places, that's what made them so great.
-The sense of friendship. I could really feel for Andrew when he was an outcast being bullied by those assholes, and Matt and Steve being popular kids. I could tell that he was worried about his mother and his father being abusive (BTW, that part was brilliantly played. Especially the hospital scene near the end where I was expecting him to have a change of heart and he just showed everybody that he is an arrogant bastard). After they all got their powers I seriously thought that Andrew was going to be a popular kid from now on.
The Negatives
-I didn't like their origin. They find a hole in the ground, find a sparkly crystalized object, the camera blacks out and they suddenly have powers. I would've liked it if they had shown more insight into how they got out, what actually happened and how they discovered that they had telekinesis. Like, Andrew moving a pencil in class or something.
-I would've also liked to know what the crystal thingy actually
was. I know it added a sense of mystery and it'll probably be explored in the inevitable sequel, but I would've liked some insight in this movie.
And those're my only gripes! Other than that, the movie was fantastic. Josh Trank will become a household name after this, mark my words. He would be a great choice for a
Fantastic Four reboot, although he'd obviously have to tone it down a little bit. I can tell that he and Marc Webb will soon become very wanted men. Good luck Josh!
9/10