Chronicle

So, I went to the movies for the first time since August to see Chronicle with a few friends.

Just walking into the theater reminded me why I started to dislike going to the theaters in the first place: the teenagers who think they're hot shit because they're out by themselves without parental supervision seeing a PG-13 rated movie.  I'll admit I was one of them at one point.  But here's the key difference: I knew when to shut the fuck up and let people around me watch the movie.

To emphasize-
The kids sitting in front of  us were a surly little group of 5 boys, none of them possibly older than 14.  One of them kept turning around prior to the credits and asking us questions, which can be fine under the right circumstances.  However, when I lean over to my friend and say "I want a slushie, do you guys want anything?" and this little shit turns around and says "Can I come with you?" when you start to head out, that's when it starts to border on creepy.  Not seeing any harm in it my friend and I reply "Sure, if you want to." but he remains firmly planted with his shitty friends.

So we go to the concession stand, get our overpriced movie snacks, and head back to the theater and into our seats, only to have the shit in question look back at us and say "Why wouldn't you let me come with you?"- it was at that moment when I knew shit was about to get real. 

The entire time during the credits he kept turning around and asking us ridiculous questions, obviously trying to annoy us, but I tried to take it in stride and giving equally as snarky responses in kind.  Eventually they turned their attention away from us and started to throw popcorn and Skittles at one another until the original shit stood up in his seat and proceeded to climb over it and into our row, sitting down next to me.  He kept leaning over and trying to work our nerves more until I just eventually ignored him.  It was only after we were in threat of getting shit thrown in my general vicinity did the child move back to his original seat and calm down a bit.

That is until he turned around and asked us "Do you guys think I'm annoying?"  I slowly turned my head toward him and as a group, my friends and I all replied "Yes."  to which he obviously got a little shaken and apologized.  That is until his next statement.

"I'm in special ed."

Really?  Really little shit child?  You're going to play that card?  ADHD does not qualify sympathy from me.

So I focused on playing the ignoring game as hard as possible until he finally silenced up.

That is until he turned around again saying "Have you seen my wallet?  My wallet's missing.  Did you take my wallet?  Look at me and tell me you didn't take my wallet."

My response:

Because I suddenly became an owl in that moment.

There was the small sound of one sanity snapping as I fixed my cold stare upon him.  "Okay...." and actually fell totally silent and rigid for about 15 minutes.

Right.  The movie.

The movie follows a group of teenagers in their senior year of high school: the popular kid, the school president and the misunderstood loner (effectively the main character) as they go to a party, discover some bizarre thing and develop psychic powers.  The next hour or so is dedicated to these guys goofing around and developing their strength as they go off and hit the town pranking people with their bizarre abilities.

So pretty much every high school student's dream.

Bent silverware and all.

I'm not going to delve any deeper into the plot since today WAS indeed opening night and all 12 of you readers out there might actually go and see it.  But what really sets this movie apart is the pseudo first-person camera that has been making a recent uptrend in cinema as of late.  I say pseudo because the movie actually references the cameras that are shooting it, starting from the big shoulder mounted camera that the loner starts out with and eventually into the handheld digital camcorder and iPhones/iPads of onlookers later on.  It's sort of like the movie is acknowledging that it is indeed a movie, however it almost comes across as slightly more documentary because they literally do at one point go "Alright shut up guys, I want to get this on camera."  They even give excuse to the cinematic angles and effects by making it a point to show that psychic loner can telekinetically float the camera over his shoulder.

Unfortunately no images for that yet.

But still, I really think it was a great movie and had several Akira-esque moments and motifs in it (giant mutant baby excluded).  Go see it if you can, I know I kind of want to go again myself.

However probably a matinee if anything so as to try and avoid the shitty children.