Review of “Found Footage” Movies: Episode 2 – Chronicle
I wrote about going to a Chronicle event at Fox about 6 weeks ago at which they excited a geeky media audience, but didn’t show the movie. Why didn’t they show the movie? Red flag.
I finally got around to seeing the actual movie yesterday.
It’s imperfect, especially in the third act when it gets into the story trouble that all ubermensch movies find hard to avoid. But I also think the film deserves a lot more discussion and consideration than it’s gotten.
This is a real movie. Carping about found footage – which is not a genre, but just another way to tell a story that is no fad… it will be with film forever – is easy… or if you will, lazy. Chronicle is, in so many ways, what you would think of as an indie film. The effects themselves are never the attraction. They are just a tool to tell this story. And when the last 10 minutes get heavily into effects, the film suffers. When the ideas behind the effects are strong, the movie is strong. (I won’t spoil the end of the film, but anyone who has seen it will know that the last major effect before the coda is the kind of thing we have seen live on Shakespearean stages forever. And that is why it has impact… the drama of the moment, not the effect.)
The basic premise is similar to that of Project X. Three somewhat mismatched teens come together around a moment in their lives and the movie is about how they will mature, or not, as a result. But from early on, Chronicle announces more serious intentions. The central teen has a dying mother whose drug needs are beyond the family’s financial reach and an abusive father, beyond the usual geek insecurity situation. The charmer in the group is black and ambitiously political. The third teen is, as traditional, a little bland but well intended… and also the “cool cousin” to the troubled geek.
But it’s also the execution of the thing. These kids act like kids. They ogle girls just like the Project X boys… but even with “special powers,” they see the world through teen eyes. They don’t turn into middle-aged men looking for the Bada Bing Club. Even the Object Of Obvious Affection, in this film Ashley Hinshaw, fits better. For one thing, she has a thing for the middle guy, not the geek. Second, she looks like a pretty high school girl… beautifully imperfect… not a fashion model waiting to be discovered in the food court. And the “found footage,” until the third act, is pretty consistent and a reasonable part of the dramatic narrative.
And the power… it progresses in what feels like a somewhat realistic way. The lack of focus on coordinating how to use the power… feels realistically teenaged. The clumsiness feels realistic.
And yes, again, there are many flaws, especially in the third act. It’s just really hard to get past the 2nd act break with the stakes overwhelming the concept.
That said, I felt like I was watching the beginning of a future for indie film in Chronicle. At $12m, the budget is workable. And this is a real movie. It doesn’t feel like there was any skimping to fit the indie budget.
Obviously, the next film from these filmmakers is likely to be more expensive and to involve more expensive talent. But this is not a low-budget horror film that is marketed more smartly than it is made. It’s not mumblecore or charming improv. It’s not limited by its nature. It’s smart, tight, and viable as entertainment for a broad audience. It’s not just a trick. It’s not just a gimmick. It’s a good movie.
This is a big success for Fox, but personally, I think it could have been bigger. I don’t think the studio really understood how well received it would be by the mainstream critics, not just the geeks. And had they shown the whole film widely six weeks out, it could have gotten more positive buzz built up. As it is, people who didn’t decide to go to the movie theaters will find it on cable/satellite/streaming. It will be over $100m worldwide before the end of next weekend. But Cloverfield… one of those movies that gave movies like this a bad name… did over $170m ww. Monster and all. Chronicle deserves that size audience.
I loved Chronicle! Glad you got around to it.
found footage eh, that’s just a marketing phrase for reality tv movie.
that’s the whole idea, use the reality asthetic, and the conceit that reality shows are ‘not written’ to do something that feels real. Project X looks about as ‘not written’ as Jersey Shore or The Hills, it’s the logical progression from the MTV shows with a staff of 20 writers, producing 22 page scripts for their “reality” shows.
Loved “Chronicle” and (much to my surprise) loved “Project X,” too.
I think “X” may actually be the best movie Todd Phillips has ever been involved in (even though he’s just the producer).
Yeah, the plot is a mash-up of “Risky Business,” “Superbad” and dozens of other teen flicks, but it somehow managed to feel remarkably fresh.
I even found traces of the glorious “Myth of the American Sleeper,” mostly in its refreshing potpourri of unfamiliar, non-Hollywood-style faces. (The only cast member I recognized was the kid from “Rabbit Hole” and last fall’s “Footloose” remake, and he’s got a relatively small role.)
Like “Chronicle,” it proves what you can do in the found footage genre when you cast actual ACTORS. And I found the endings of both films
unexpectedly, almost profoundly moving.
My two favorite major studio releases so far this year are f/f movies.
i liked Chronicle a lot. The only found footage movie i’ve really enjoyed as a narrative.
Project X was rough. The first 20 minutes i was fighting the urge to walk out. Costa was fucking killing me. Soooooooo grating. Once the party got started i got into it more. Once it all went to hell i enjoyed it. Not great but not horrid.
Loved Chronicle. Went in hoping for a fun teen superhero movie, came away having seen something much more. Definitely runs into problems the further along it gets, but the acting keeps it all from falling apart. Definitely my favorite studio release of the year thus far – which doesn’t say much, but it doesn’t say nothing, either…
SPOILERS
just a thought: ‘chronicle’ is being referred to as ‘found footage’, but who finds the footage, tibetan monks? the abominable snowman? that shitty camera would be history after one snowstorm. maybe a broader umbrella term such as, i don’t know, ‘home movies’ should be introduced for when ‘found footage’ is not…right.
my house is a constant rotation of teenage boys (and girls) – my own, my ‘step’-boys and assorted other ratbag friends and neighbours and strays – and getting them off the game controllers to open up and talk is not always the easiest thing in the world… but after i took my mob to see ‘chronicle’, an unexpectedly effective little gem and at heart a family drama, there were some interesting conversations in the car on the way home and subsequent reflections brought out by andrew’s exhilarating, tragic rise and (inevitable) painful fall. ‘chronicle’ really touched a nerve for them.
so kudos to ‘chronicle’ for getting ‘my kids’ (i love kids, they’re so funky and imaginative) to talk about the shocking abuse andrew endures at the hands of his stressed-out, callous, idiot father and how it changes and hardens him (and ultimately leads to his destruction); the importance of friendship and trust, and having a parent you can turn to, who doesn’t hurt you physically or otherwise; how easy it is to do the wrong thing for the right reasons; the consequences of allowing negative impulses and anger to get the better of you (how much can you take before you snap?); how do you wield power, in whatever form that may take for you; and not giving up on the people we love, coming from a place of love until the bitter end in the way matt did for andrew. and of course what it must feel like to be able to fly, the ultimate freedom rush, yeah…
chronicle with all its burgeoning adolescent superpowers and abuse is a parable on the perils of growing up, but also in a larger sense on life in general; an intimate, specific take on the universal themes of feeling like an outsider and the desire to be (and joy of being) ‘accepted’, the damage emotional family baggage often wreaks in our lives, how bad choices tend to compound and snowball and spiral out of control, etc, these home truths never leave us no matter how many years pass.
(as a piece of film-making i think the amateur-hour aesthetic of it works in its favour for the most part, with some flat sections – weirdly for me mostly in the ‘action-packed’ final act when the ‘superhero’ effects take the spotlight and character and relationships take more of a back seat, which says something about the balance and relative strengths and effectiveness of the movie for me – but for the most part ‘chronicle’ earned enough points for unexpected ingenuity and pathos that any bits at the end that seemed a little flat or underwhelming were easily forgiven/overlooked. an exhilarating, disturbing movie with a sad, painful heart.)
i thought Chronicle had the best use of the Seattle Space Needle since The Parallax View
Chronicle was beast!It was such an overwhelming movie that broke even the toughest people’s hearts.I couldn’t help but cry the last 10 to 15 minutes.Sure,all families struggle,but beating up you son isn’t going to save your wife’s life.I mean the story line itself was just brilliant.Who would imagine a tunnel leading to almost godly powers!I felt feelings that I had never felt from a movie before.Once I got outside,I wanted to run to the box office and scream,”WHEN IS CHRONICLE 2 COME OUT!!!!If you want my opinion,I say………………………………………………….. GO SEE CHRONICLE!!!!!!!!! Thanx!<3
I disagree with David about the third act. After two acts of teenage issues. I was getting anxious for some action. For the limited budget, I thought the third act came through.
I thought that it would be a better film if they would stop using the found footage gimmick. Sometimes gimmicks work well. Like I enjoy the paranormal activity movies even though it is gimmick. You know that going in and either you are on board or not. But chronicle had potential to be so much more than that.
Bennett… I thought the 3rd act story was fine… I just think they got too effects focus and lost character connection at times.