Being director Josh Trank's first film, and featuring a screenplay by writer Max Landis, Chronicle was an unexpected surprise upon release, being one of the few films to take the world of superhuman powers seriously.
Chronicle isn't a film that's there to please you; it's not there to surprise you with tons of action, a good guy and a bad guy, nor is there a clear narrative or set goal for the characters to achieve. This is a narrative that focuses purely on human emotion and character development.
The film's characters are established rather quickly: three guys, one of which is considered a loser, another is getting through life fairly well, and the other is destined for greatness both socially and academically. We have three completely different characters to unfold before us, under the exact same conditions: they encounter a strange rock that results in superhuman powers.
Chronicle, for the most part, is filmed by Andrew, our loser character. His viewpoint is a result of his prior purchase of a camera that he uses as an escape. A little hobby that allows him to hide behind a lens as he documents his everyday life for nothing more than the reason of boredom and loneliness.
While the characters experiment with their newfound powers, Andrew takes to not-so-ethical practices. His powers have given him an advantage over others; not just a method of protection, but a method that could be exploited for hateful revenge. After all, it's the world against Andrew. His mother is sick, his father is abusive, and he feels truly alone. There's a balance to be found with these powers, and Andrew is breaking into dangerous levels of strength.
These aren't heroes, at best, they're more anti-heroes. They understand the importance of helping others, but they want to have a bit of fun, as well as avoid the public eye. Andrew, running on desperate measures, begins to slowly expose himself to the outside world; he's fighting back, he's losing control of his actions. He's becoming a villain.
Chronicle strives to differentiate itself from your typical superhero film, despite being disguised as exactly that. The entire film is a learning process for its characters; it's about emotional weight and its affect on your surroundings, how emotion can cause great strength and allow you to bend your surroundings to your very will with enough will to do so. Its writing keeps it clear that this film is about Andrew, and shows how powerful hate can be, once it fully consumes you.
Despite being filmed as a found-footage film, it never truly feels as such. The shaky camera movements and angles aren't a result of excellent composition that feels unrealistic, because the very compositions and movements are guided under the narrative that Andrew himself is controlling the camera with his mind as he continues to document his life. It's incredibly creative filmmaking, and so distinct to Chronicle itself. This is truly a unique film, and a massive achievement for both Max Landis and Josh Trank.