Movie Review: Chronicle

HO. LY. SHIT. This movie is not the kind of movie I typically go see in theaters but I'm really glad I did. The cinematography made me a little sea sick but it was totally worth it!

The movie is supposed to be "found" images filmed by a troubled teenager named Andrew who at first just seems to want to have evidence that his father is an abusive alcoholic and his mother is dying. He decides to film everything. People at his high school already don't seem to like him much but then pointing a video camera at them just makes it worse. One night at a party Andrew is approached by his cousin, Matt and the school council hot-shot, Steve to bring his video camera and see this weird thing they found in a field. It is never really discovered what the thing is, where it is from or what it does bu that doesn't really matter. The thing they find emits some kind of power which the three boys absorb which causes their noses to bleed and the video camera to freak out. The next day, they find they can move small objects with their mind. With some practice, they begin to move larger things and eventually learn to fly. Each of them has a different idea about what should be done with this power and without meaning to, the three boys embark on very different paths.

I absolutely adore the character development in this movie. Not only are the relationships between the characters absolutely believable, but there is never really a clear villain. When a villain does surface, he never for a second thinks of himself as the Bad Guy. He has very good reasons to back all of his actions and in his mind, every action is validated and for the greater good.

As with any good sci-fi/action movie, the climax is a massive battle between the main characters. This battle was absolutely epic. I am not the kind of person who will verbally express myself in a movie theater (unless it is to ask if we can leave yet during a shitty movie) but I spent the entirety of that battle scrunched up in my seat, eyes wide, muttering, "Oh fuck!" over and over again. Amazing.

I don't want to give away too much of the plot because I really want people to go see this movie. So go. Go. Right now. Find out when the next showing near you is and go see this movie. If you get motion sick, take some drammamein and go.

I give this movie an 8 out of 10.