Andrew Detmer (Dane DeHaan) is teenager living with an abusive drunk of a father and sick mother who starts to videotape his life. His only friend is his cousin, Matt Garretty (Alex Russell), whom he isn’t very close to. One night at a party, Andrew, Matt and Steve Montgomery (Michael B. Jordan), the popular student body president candidate, find a mysterious hole in the woods.

Not to give much away, but what they find in the hole gives all three the power of telekinesis, which is, when one of them looks it up, the ability to move objects with the mind. For some reason, none of them knew what telekinesis was before looking it up.

They of course do what we would all do if we were given super powers – the most immature, stupid and fun things we could think of. They pull pranks on shoppers, move a woman’s car and impress their fellow students at a talent show.

That is only the first half of the movie, and all good things must come to an end. The second half is dedicated to the darker side of these powers, as everything starts to fall apart for Andrew when he is provoked to use his powers against his abusive father.

What is impressive is how likable the characters are. Although you know Andrew’s downfall is going to lead to amazing fight scenes, you do not want to see that happen. It is quite upsetting to see Andrew go bad after watching his journey.

The found footage genre is more of a gimmick than a genre. This movie in no way transcends that. In fact, it’s the biggest problem. Director Josh Trank finds ways to ignore it by having Andrew use his powers to hold the camera in a way where it actually feels like we are watching a real movie.

Nothing here is new, but it somehow feels fresh due to the new blood that worked on the project.  This is Trank’s first film and he handles it tremendously. The airplane sequence alone, while he was already working with a low budget, is enough to make him a director to watch.

The screenplay is by Max Landis who has only written a few shorts, yet he was able to create incredibly likable character-driven drama out of characters who are nearly stereotypes from the get go. Many veteran screenwriters have trouble pulling that off.

All three actors had their work cut out for them. They are on screen at all times and have to carry the entire film. If one isn’t good, it could ruin everything. Luckily, they all hold their own. Hopefully we will see more of these three young actors.

Chronicle will most likely be forgotten once the avalanche of superhero films rush in later this year, but those films have a lot to live up to now. It is well worth seeing.