Chronicle

Movie night with the wife last night.  After one of my co-workers gave The Grey a so-so review, we decided to go see the new 'found footage' movie, 'Chronicle'.

Boy, am I glad we did.  My wife called it 'entertaining', but I was much more impressed than that.  While it's not literally a 'comic book movie' since it's not based on a comic book, it is a movie about a few high-school kids being exposed to something mysterious, and finding out that they have developed telekinesis, so it plays out as a 'super hero origin' story.

My only complaint about the movie is that the 3 main characters are stereotypes....but they are well played and well casted stereotypes. You have Andrew, the uber-shy geek, with a dying mom and an alcoholic dad, Matt, his cousin, popular despite his slightly geeky psycho babble, and Steve, the Class President.  Andrew is the driving force in the movie, having acquired a video camera to help him view his life remotely.  He happens to have his camera handy when the other two boys want to investigate something strange they have found.

The movie progresses from them learning they have the powers, taping what they have found they can do.  They start with moving rocks, and baseball, and progress to using their powers to perform practical jokes, before learning that if they move themselves, they can even fly. 

Of course, things must get dark.  Andrew, with his downtrodden life at home, is no longer helpless.  There are no 'with great power comes great responsibility' speeches, but Matt does want to talk about rules.  And then, there are fights.  The final confrontation in down-town Seattle reminds me of the battle in Metropolis, from Superman 2....but better.

Like I said, I was more impressed than my wife.  If The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises are even 90% as good as this movie, it's going to be a great year for Comic Book Action movies.  It's a very short movie too...run time about 85 minutes...

I say you give it a 9 out of 10.