What did Jung say about glowsticks?

When I was a young kid, I would imagine myself with superpowers. I wasn’t that kid that exists in movies and commercials – you know, the one who wears a homemade cape and flies around making whooshy noises. No, the only thing I remember superhero-wise took place in the shower. Hold on perverts, this isn’t that type of website. See, I remember letting the water flow down my arm and “shoot” out of my fingertips.  I might close my fingers together to concentrate the beam of water that was blasting (or, um, sort of dripping lazily) from my fingertips. I would do this for minutes as my parents likely imagined a less heroic endeavor taking place in the family bathroom.

That's actually Shawn Kemp, Sam Perkins and The Glove.

This awkward memory/visual leads me to last Friday’s film, Chronicle. Josh Trank's flick tells the story of three high school kids of ascending social status who literally stumble into a mysterious hole while at a party (can I say rave? Do those still happen?). Down the rabbit hole, they come upon a mysterious alien force. Slightly cooler than my shower, this underground crystal grants them superhuman powers.  

It’s at this point that I tell you that this movie is of the burgeoning found footage variety. I don’t really mind the genre, though it seems to be nearing played-out status. Initially, shots and angles are pretty normal (guy shoves camera in the face of people who want him to turn that damn thing off) but with the bolstering powers, we basically get a floating camera that can go just about anywhere it wants to (“Just imagine you’re holding it”). The end starts to use a lot of other footage, from cell phones and closed-circuit feeds, but for the first three-quarters, it’s all Andrew-cam.

Overall, I had a good time. I think for as short as the flick is, it moves quickly and has a generous helping of action. It’s not mind-blowing by any means, but for a found footage flicks starring no one I recognize (though, that’s a rule of these kinds of movies, right?) – it was definitely worth my three bucks. So, let’s fly over to Yays and Boos, intense-nosebleed style.

Yaaaaaaay!

• I found the three leads very likable. I'd vote for Steve in a heartbeat.
• Really enjoyed the progression of their powers. I think the hijinks at the mall were pretty clever, albeit on the innocent side. But when we start marveling about tooth extraction? Um, things have taken a turn.
• Now I know how I'm going to eat Pringles for the rest of my life.
• Football at 30,000 feet. I guess playing that close to heaven is indeed Tebow Time.
• Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Yoda called it.
• The final showdown was ambitious, but I think they pulled it off.
• It ends on a down note. Always a positive.

Check out what pure joy looks like.

    Booooo!

• Hey man, I'm not a Buddhist by any means, but killing spiders? Not cool.
• Wait. You're in high school and you don't use your superpowers for some boobage? Ridiculous. One updraft doesn't cut it, sweet as it may have been.
• Andrew's parents. Yes, they are helping to make him a miserable bastard, but goodness. Dad, you're the worst.
• What's with Blogger Girl? Was she in this film only so that we could cut to her camera? Hot, yes. Necessary, no.
• Good thing people were filming the sky three seconds before two guys go barreling across it. Phew.

My sister and I went to this one after a solid week watching my two-year old son (wifey was in San Diego - or so she says). That said, I might be giving this one bonus love simply because it wasn’t about Monster Trucks or Lightning McQueen, keep that in mind. Anyway, off to the shower...