Chronicle (2012)

Whilst attending a party, three high school friends gain superpowers after making an incredible discovery underground. Soon, though, they find their lives spinning out of control and their bond tested as they embrace their darker sides.

Director:

Josh Trank

Writers:

Max Landis (screenplay), Max Landis (story),

Stars:

Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell, Michael B. Jordan

1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dane DeHaan	...	Andrew Detmer
Alex Russell	...	Matt Garetty
Michael B. Jordan	...	Steve Montgomery
Michael Kelly	...	Richard Detmer
Ashley Hinshaw	...	Casey Letter
Bo Petersen	...	Karen Detmer
Anna Wood	...	Monica
Rudi Malcolm	...	Wayne
Luke Tyler	...	Sean
Crystal-Donna Roberts	...	Samantha (as Crystal Donna Roberts)
Adrian Collins	...	Costly
Grant Powell	...	Howard
Armand Aucamp	...	Austin
Nicole Bailey	...	Cala
Lynita Crofford	...	Casey's Mom

Storyline

The shy, lonely and outcast teenager Andrew Detmer is bullied and has no friends at high-school and lives with his abusive and alcoholic father Richard Detmer and his terminally ill mother Karen. Andrew buys a camera to film his everyday life. His cousin Matt Garetty drives him to school and invites Andrew to go to a party at night. They meet their schoolmate Steve Montgomery in the party and they overhear a noise and find a hole in a field. They decide to explore the underground and they acquire powers. Soon the trio learns how to control their telekinetic abilities and Andrew becomes the most powerful. But he easily loses his temper and becomes dangerous while Matt tries to control him. When his mother needs a medicine and Andrew does not have enough money to buy it, his darker side overcomes and he becomes a menace.

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Plot Keywords:

troubled teen | party | high school | discovery | superpower | 

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Taglines:

Boys will be boys

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

14A

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 February 2012 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Chronique

Filming Locations:

Artscape Theater, D F Malan Street, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$22,004,098 (USA) (3 February 2012)

Gross:

$64,572,496 (USA) (1 June 2012)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, Davis Entertainment, Dune Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The pink haired girl played by Anna Wood whom Andrew was making out with is actually the real life girlfriend of Dane DeHaan (Andrew) They married in 2012.

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Goofs

The movie is set in Seattle but after the guys talk about the new camera, an Opel dealership is visible through the car window. Opel cars are not sold in the USA.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Andrew Detmer: [as Richard tries to enter his room] What do you want?
Richard Detmer: Why is this door locked, Andrew?

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Crazy Credits

After all the credits have ended, even after the traditional copyright disclaimer, is the credit: "Waitress ... Vanessa Lee".

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Connections

Featured in Bad Movie Beatdown: Review of 2012 (2013)

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Soundtracks

I'm Here
Written by Alex Sannie, Andrew Sannie, Anthony Sannie, 'Mungala Londe'
Performed by The Lyrics
Courtesy of Camobear Records

User Reviews

Despite it's short length, I really enjoyed Chronicle.

Throughout the years, audiences have been treated to origin stories such as those based on superheroes. With the recent success of the Batman, X-Men, Spider-Man films; and also worth mentioning "Thor" "X-Men:First Class", and "Captain America", it's not hard to see why they click with audiences. With "Chronicle", the superhero origin story is given a fresh new spin.

Directed by Joe Trank, "Chronicle" tells the story of three friends who gain superpowers from a mysterious tunnel discovered in a remote part of a suburban town. Strangely, these teens don't seem frightened or confused about their new found power. Think about how frightened and confused Bruce Banner was when he first transformed into the Hulk. But whereas Hulk was bombarded with gamma rays, "Chronicle" takes a swipe at a fairly plausible Dues Ex Machina plot device that has yet to be explained in possible future installments.

It's true that some may find fault with it's vignette-style story telling in the vein of "Cloverfield". But unlike "Cloverfield" which was a good film in it's own right but had a little too much "shaky-cam" effect, the technique is surprisingly easy to follow. That along with the well-written script and performances, made "Chronicle" all the more enjoyable and engrossing. Maybe in the future, film-makers should take notice from this film in order to make a superb product. Not only that, they even managed to achieve believable special effects on a low budget along with the script. That's really impressive that they achieved to reach fans of superhero comics and films as well as the general audience; very unique.

But I really wished it was longer. With such an intriguing premise even more better than Hayden Christensen's stinker of a superhero origin story "Jumper". "Jumper" was such a disappointment. It wasn't even fully developed on it's potential and sadly was utterly wasted. Thankfully, "Chronicle" delivers on everything that film didn't and more. The climax(which I will not spoil) is one of sheer awesomeness. Emotionally charged with a nice dash of good vs evil, done in an unconventional way. The length of the film bummed me out, but from the looks of things, I can see this film grow into something really special.