Written by and Copyright Edward Gross
Chronicle has proven itself to be a far more resonant film than anyone may have predicted prior to its release, and as it enters its second weekend in theatres it becomes apparent – as much as a reach as this may seem – that the film has certain thematic similarities to Star Trek's “Where No Man Has Gone Before.”
For those unfamiliar with it, “Where No Man Has Gone Before” was Trek’s second TV pilot, produced in 1965 and which not only had William Shatner playing Captain Kirk for the first time, but introduced the character of Gary Mitchell, Kirk’s friend who, after contact with an alien artifact, finds himself endowed with telekinetic abilities. He grows to see himself as being elevated above humanity – to be, as Chronicle’s Andrew would say – the Apex Predator. As things evolve, Kirk and Spock must conspire on a means of stopping Mitchell, even if it means killing him. In some ways it doesn’t seem too far removed from the situation that Steve, Matt and Andrew find themselves in in Chronicle.
It’s a notion that suggested itself upon the viewing of the film’s first trailer, and one brought up to writer Max Landis in our interview session a couple of months prior to the film’s opening. “What’s interesting about Chronicle,” he said, “is that the power itself is less of a plot device and more of a character tool. The power doesn’t necessarily corrupt you, but maybe it’s just the things in your life that get magnified. Maybe you got through having the power without being corrupted, but if you were already a paranoid person, or you’re an angry person, it’s going to put a magnifying glass on that.”
Actor Dane DeHaan, who plays Andrew, offers up a comment that actually does support the notion that there are unintentional similarities between Chronicle and the Star Trek pilot: “Andrew evolves from teenage insecurity to full-blown narcissism in a way that could happen to anyone facing his extraordinary circumstances,” he says. “When you’re given the ultimate power, and you’re experiencing something that nobody has ever experienced, there’s a certain God complex that comes of that.”
Shifting the focus to “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” years ago the writer of the episode, Samuel Peeples, explained to me, “We were intrigued with the corruption of power theme manifesting over the ordinary individual.”
Added actor Gary Lockwood, who plays Gary Mitchell, “That character was tough to reach, because there’s no prototype character to look at. So you create a mental image and try to fill that slot. All I tried to do was downplay the mechanics and not be too dramatic. I tried to play the part very quietly and very realistically, and later on people don’t think you’re pushing. That was a natural progression to the character.”
“Where No Man Has Gone Before” director James Goldstone, reading from notes he had written on his script so many years ago, relates, “A major point concerns the character of Mitchell and the evolution of his mutation toward god status. My proposal is that from the time Gary suffers the first realization of what is happening… once he begins to give in to it, to enjoy it, even, he moves from his human status toward the status of a god within all the criteria we place on such deities in our Christian-Judaic culture. Specifically I propose that he become oracular, in the sense of Moses. I propose he do this in his stature, his way of using his hands and arms and eyes, silver or normal, his attitude as it applies to the script, aside from those specific stage directions, perhaps physical actions that pertain to the dialogue. I don’t mean to suggest that it become so stylized as to become a symbol rather than a human being. I suggest it happen on a more symbolic level. This can be done by starting him more on the flip, swinging level of articulation so that we don’t even notice at one moment that this drops, but it does, on its way to becoming more formal, then more laden with import, more self-declarative and finally downright miraculous.”
Returning to Chronicle and the impact of the telekinetic abilities on the film’s trio of main characters, director Josh Trank closes, “The powers in this film are not explored as a means for them getting revenge or bringing peace to the land. It’s just how it affects whatever they’re dealing with in their normal life and kind of amplifies that. The thing that connects these kids and keeps them from disconnecting is their friendship. Once something like that crumbles and you don’t have that basic connection with anybody anymore to get you through hard times, that’s when something like this unravels – especially if you have god-like abilities.”