Line #12 YMMV/Chronicle


1	----
2	* AlasPoorScrappy: A non-fatal variant with Casey. Regardless of how little we really know about her, it's still pretty terrifying to see, from her camera's perspective no less, [[spoiler: how she could have been killed if Matt hadn't gotten her out of her falling car in time.]]
3	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
4	** Andrew. Was [[spoiler:his final breakdown at the end]] a result of everything he had suffered, including getting set on fire, or did the morphine he was heavily doped up on exacerbate his already growing instability? Or both?
5	** Richard, at the end. Was [[spoiler: blaming Andrew for his wife's death]] just him being TooDumbToLive, or did he ''want'' [[DeathSeeker to die by that point?]] Granted, [[spoiler: [[DirtyCoward he's explicitly heard]] [[MilesGloriosus begging Andrew for mercy]]]], which leans towards the former, but the latter could still be something he subconsciously wanted and didn't even know it. He ''is'' an alcoholic, after all.
6	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVnhI6meKb0 "This Bright Flash"]] by M83 is exactly the kind of mood music you want to hear when the movie ends.
7	* CrossoverShip: There's a fair amount of Andrew/Carrie White fanart out there. One imagines they would have a lot to talk about.
8	* CultClassic: It was a box office hit, but it seems on its way to becoming this thanks to the fanbase on Tumblr.
9	* HarsherInHindsight:
10	** Andrew's downfall seems eerily prophetic of Creator/JoshTrank's CreatorBreakdown during the development of ''Film/FantasticFour2015.'' Things started off good for him with the success of ''Chronicle'', but his [[PrimaDonnaDirector on-set behavior]] (which was allegedly caused by ExecutiveMeddling) [[RoleEndingMisdemeanor costing him his role as director of a]] ''Franchise/StarWars'' spin-off film, and the film's overall reception and [[BoxOfficeBomb box office numbers]] have made the film a potential CreatorKiller for him. Trank's behavior even apparently goes back to the production of this film itself, possibly similar to how constantly abusive Richard was from the beginning. And similar to Richard, Trank began having problems with alcohol.
11	** A less harsh example would be Dane [=DeHaan=]'s then-newfound fame after the ultimate failure of ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2'', which still recovered enough for him to keep starring in other films such as ''Film/ACureForWellness'' and ''Film/ValerianAndTheCityOfAThousandPlanets'', though both of them flopped at the box office, sending his career back to the pits.
12	* HilariousInHindsight:
13	** Seeing Andrew suffer at the hands of his dad and hang out with his superpowered friends is especially funny since Dane [=DeHaan=] played Harry Osborn in the ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''. More hilarious is seeing him destroy a spider with his power. Less hilarious is when we see Andrew grow a taste for beating the crap out of his best friends and generally growing more insane by the day, partially thanks to his violent father.
14	** In this film, Dane [=DeHaan=]'s character [[TheToothHurts rips the tooth out of a bully]] quickly and bloodily for pure revenge. Five years later, in ''Film/ACureForWellness'', he winds up on the receiving end of a DepravedDentist in a scene that takes its time!
15	** This would not be Creator/MichaelBJordan's last encounter with the [[Film/FantasticFour2015 superhero]] [[Film/BlackPanther2018 genre.]] When Steve rescues the trucker, his wet, skintight blue shirt begins to resemble a [[Film/FantasticFour2015 Fantastic Four uniform]].
16	** ''Literature/{{Carrie}}'' was one of the main inspirations for the script. A year later and because of his performance in ''Chronicle'', Alex Russell (Matt) starred in [[Film/Carrie2013 the remake]] of ''Carrie'', only that time, instead of a hero, he plays the villain Billy Nolan.
17	* JerkassWoobie:
18	** Richard's {{Jerkass}} tendencies outweigh TheWoobie part, however.
19	** As the film goes on, [[spoiler: Andrew. Although in his case, the 'Jerkass' part could be due to the SanitySlippage he suffered caused by his father's abuse, the stress of his mother's illness, and of course the HopeSpot he lost]].
20	* MoralEventHorizon:
21	** Richard crosses it when he [[spoiler:blames a comatose Andrew for Andrew's mom's death. He even tries to punch Andrew as he lays in his hospital bed. And that's if you don't count his previous abuse of Andrew.]]
22	** Andrew himself is a more complicated example. [[spoiler:He could be said to have crossed it when he caused that car-crash that left the driver at best hospitalized and at worst dead, but he is so broken and emotionally damaged that it is hard to lose all sympathy for him.]]
23	* {{Main/Narm}}: As noted by this youtuber [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jb-0SRWQrg Andrew's dad comes off as cartoonish with his abuse. The fact that he beats him at every turn makes him less of a character and more of a plot device]]
24	** Also noted is the fact that Andrew's downfall seems to kick off with his embarrassment at the party. While an understandably awful experience, it's hard to believe that he would descend so quickly into villainy after that. Sure, his dad continues to abuse him, but the idea that he would suddenly shut Steve and Matt out feels forced and unearned.
25	* NightmareRetardant: Andrew is pretty scary in the final act but he also looks a Halloween mummy reject. While the injuries and bandages are real, it's an unintentionally silly costume for the villain.
26	* TheScrappy: Casey is pretty disliked for being an obvious plot device (there needing to be another camera). Though every other character considered worse than her is practically meant to be a HateSink.
27	* SpecialEffectsFailure:
28	** The Legos, Pringles, and cars thrown around by the boys are very obvious low-budget CGI.
29	** The final shot of the movie has Matt standing in front of a snowy Tibetan temple--or, rather, a terrible greenscreen with an image that looks like a cross between a bad Photoshop job and a [=PS1=] screenshot.
30	** The final battle has some very obvious moments where the cars are flying around.
31	* SpiritualSuccessor:
32	** What a lot of people think ''Chronicle'' is to [[Manga/{{Akira}} a certain anime/manga about telekinetic teenagers]], if it's not considered an outright case of SerialNumbersFiledOff.
33	*** ''Literature/{{Carrie}}'' comparisons are also pretty common.
34	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeFswrz_TCY YouTuber Yhara Zayd]] considers this as the best [[DistaffCounterpart "boy version"]] of ''Film/TheCraft'' - something that ''Film/TheCovenant'' tried to be but failed.
35	** Fans of the ''Literature/{{Jumper}}'' novel may also note a lot of similarities. Abusive parent with a superpowered kid, kid starts using their powers for personal gain (including acts of petty revenge and stealing money), things start going too far... One difference being [[spoiler: which characters end up the hero and villain]].
36	* SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome: Considering that the movie was made on a $12,000,000 budget, the computer-generated effects are pretty impressive.
37	* TheWoobie:
38	** Matt by the end of the film. [[spoiler:He's forced to kill Andrew once it's clear that he can't talk him down from his rampage and ends up on the run from the government after revealing his superpowers to the world.]]
39	** Steve, a BrokenAce devastated by his parent's impending divorce who nevertheless tries to be friendly and supportive towards everyone he meets. [[spoiler:[[NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished His attempt to talk down an upset Andrew results in his death]].]]

Context YMMV / Chronicle