Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
PG-13
84 Minutes
February 3, 2012
Director: Josh Trank
Writers: Max Landis (Screenplay and Story) and Josh Trank (Story)
Starring: Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell and Michael B. Jordan
IMDb (7.5/10 rating): “Three high school friends gain superpowers after making an incredible discovery. Soon, though, they find their lives spinning out of control and their bond tested as they embrace their darker sides.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what to think of this movie when the very first previews started coming out. It looked like the movie was going to be a comedy about young guys who had super powers, that didn’t really appease to me. Then the longer trailers started coming out and it became clear to me that it was more of a drama/action movie…that’s when I decided that I really wanted to see it when it hit the theaters.
You have Andrew who is an outcast. He has a very hard home life and is constantly picked on at school. Then you have his cousin, Matt, who is more like your average guy. Matt isn’t popular but he also isn’t an outcast, he knows a lot of people in school and he really tries to get Andrew more involved in social life. Our last main character is Steve, the most popular guy in school. Steve is a star athlete, running for class president, and he aspires to go into politics because it’s always so easy for him to talk to people. You would never believe that these guys would become bestfriends, but when something strange occurs to all of them, they become inseparable.
The majority of the movie feels more like a documentary. Andrew starts video taping everything, it’s easier for him to deal with things when he’s behind a camera. He films how he is treated at home, how he is treated at school, where he eats lunch, and some friends. This becomes very important when he goes to a party with his cousin. Matt and Steve end up finding something out in the middle of a field and they want Andrew to video tape it while they all go figure out what is in the mysterious hole…this is the event that changes their lives. After visiting this mysterious hole the three of them discover that they can now control objects with their mind. At first it’s all fun and games, until it starts getting out of control.
I enjoyed the special abilities the boys had and how they continued to grow in strength and control. It was a fun concept and made from some very adventurous and interesting moments. However, there were still some unanswered questions in the end. One of the biggest ones was, what the heck had this effect on them?? They only briefly discussed what COULD have been the reason for their newly found powers…but they NEVER truly addressed it in the film. That really bugged me. I also didn’t like how short the film was…an 1.5 hrs?! Really?! They could have made it a bit longer and truly explained a lot more information for us about each of the guys and given us a bit more action at the end. While the end was exciting, I felt like it was a bit rushed…definitely would have liked to see more fighting.
Overall: I liked the movie. I enjoyed the documentary feel of it and I enjoyed watching the development of the powers. However, this is not a movie I will ever buy to watch over and over…I may watch it again, if some friends rented it and wanted to watch it. I just wish there was more development of characters so that we could have gotten more attached to Matt and Steve and that more questions would have been answered.
