Chronicle 2012

Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine: The simultaneously diverting and annoying Chronicle, directed by Josh Trask, is something like the 184th Found-Footage Faux-Doc horror movie of the past few years. Read more

Christy Lemire, Associated Press: This is an auspicious beginning for a couple of exciting, young filmmaking voices. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: What would you do, the movie asks, if you suddenly had superpowers? It's an interesting question, even as it fades away in a blur of chaotic special effects at the end. Read more

Glenn Kenny, MSN Movies: ...even as its ostensible innovations flag, Chronicle remains watchable, and it doesn't hurt that the picture is a pretty tidy 85 minutes or so. Read more

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: Mr. Russell and Mr. Jordan are as likable as their characters, but it's Mr. DeHaan who pulls you uneasily in. Read more

Keith Uhlich, Time Out: Trank, working from a taut script by Max "Son of John" Landis, indulges in some wild, witty spectacle, but he's equally adept with the tale's grimmer elements... Read more

Scott Tobias, AV Club: Perhaps now the found-footage gimmick has been fully exploited; let us never speak of it again. Read more

Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: It isn't a great movie, but one could imagine -- and hope -- that it becomes a cult favorite, outlasting other films of its ilk. Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: "Chronicle'' will never be mistaken for an artistic breakthrough, but it has a solid gimmick and pieces of it are brilliant. Read more

Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader: As pulp sci-fi this Fox release is pretty good, but it's also commendable for its sensitive depiction of adolescent behavior. Read more

Adam Graham, Detroit News: Chronicle puts a fresh, invigorating spin on the superhero origin story, a tale Hollywood spins again and again (and again). Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Based on Chronicle, it's clear that Trank has the right stuff to move up to big-budget fantasy movies. If he wants to, that is. In a lot of ways, he has already beaten the studios at their game. Read more

Eric D. Snider, Film.com: Without the found-footage distraction, Chronicle is an entertaining and creative take on the concept of teenage superpowers. Read more

Todd McCarthy, Hollywood Reporter: Although it dog-legs into silly mayhem in the homestretch, for a good portion of its quick 83-minute running time Chronicle is a quite clever boys-gone-wild-on-telekinetic-powers fantasy. Read more

Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: This mind-and-fork-bending sci-fi saga comes from the freaky imaginations of director Josh Trank and screenwriter Max Landis, who've packed their feature debut with smartness. Read more

Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: Though Chronicle won't necessarily stick with you, it's a pleasant surprise in the doldrums of the winter film season. Read more

John Anderson, Newsday: This very promising feature debut by director Josh Trank turns into one smart thriller, a parable of unchecked power, and an action film in which the action -- although seen through a viewfinder -- carries the viewer away. Read more

David Denby, New Yorker: "Chronicle" is a mildly experimental commercial film, and, for the most part, it's loose-limbed fun. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: As a surprise entry in the mid-winter movie doldrums, "Chronicle" is a modest charmer. Read more

Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: "Chronicle" is an energetic hodgepodge that tweaks familiar conventions just enough to seem fresh. Forget the X-Men - these are iHeroes. Read more

Kyle Smith, New York Post: With great power comes the responsibility to make a decent movie, but the mysterious force running through "Chronicle" is the power to supersuck. Read more

Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: This is how the young Clark Kent must have felt. If Clark Kent had been on Facebook. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: Chronicle is the kind of movie that makes one excited about the future prospects of the man at the helm. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Sometimes a movie arrives out of the blue that announces the arrival of considerable new talents. Read more

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: The potent and provocative journey in Chronicle never stops springing surprises. You'll be hooked. Read more

Amy Biancolli, San Francisco Chronicle: [It] deconstructs the conventional superhero narrative and reassembles it as a canny discourse on impulse control and the troubled teen psyche. Read more

Rick Groen, Globe and Mail: Once again, the conceit collapses along with the movie, and all that's left is third-act mayhem. Read more

Alonso Duralde, TheWrap: There are many exhilarating moments and ideas in Chronicle that make it a very good movie; if the filmmakers had ditched the unnecessary framing device of the characters filming themselves, it might have been a great one. Read more

Cath Clarke, Time Out: A strong calling card for the talents of Trank and Landis. Read more

Peter Howell, Toronto Star: As yet another found-footage film, Chronicle makes a good argument against further use of this tired conceit. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: It's a testament to Trank's capable direction that the movie feels so grounded in reality. There is no sense of the magical in the goings-on, even though what the boys are doing defies logic and gravity. Read more

Peter Debruge, Variety: Unlike other mock docs, which unconvincingly pass themselves off as real, Chronicle cleverly embraces the format as shorthand for a new kind of naturalism. Read more

Aaron Hillis, Village Voice: Chronicle, with its found-footage storytelling and superpowered teens, at least playfully transcends its "Cloverfield meets Heroes" pitch. Read more

Mark Jenkins, Washington Post: A pretty good idea for a sci-fi thriller is undermined by hastiness - and by the pretense that it was mostly shot by one of its protagonists. Read more