The Maze Runner (2014)

I've been slacking lately with blog posts but here's a quick one about the most recent movie I saw in theaters, The Maze Runner directed by Wes Ball.

The Maze Runner Poster. That's a big uphill trek right there

I really wanted to read The Maze Runner before the movie came out but alas didn't have the time to get past the first two chapters. So at least I was somewhat familiar with the first 10 minutes of the movie but it was nice to have everything else be a surprise. The story follows Thomas as he is deposited into a miniature community of teenage boys ranging from about 14 to maybe 18. Thomas wakes up in an elevator with no memories of who he is or where he came from. When the elevator stops, Thomas finds a bunch of boys and their make-do living situation (think abandoned Boys Scouts stuck in the woods for three years and having to adapt without any adults). I bet it smells awesome there.

The Lost Boys...

It actually doesn't seem all that bad of a place until Thomas notices they are surrounded on all sides by huge iron walls and one of them has an opening. Naturally Thomas is curious and learns that they are in the center of a maze. The basic idea is that there are a few boys in their camp who run the maze every day while it's daytime to map it and find a way out. At night, however, there are beasts who kill anyone in their path. Luckily at night the iron gates shut and the boys are safe in their camp. Of course when Thomas comes he stirs things up, wants to be a maze runner, tries to help find a way out yada yada yada I won't spoil the ending.

The Maze

Forest Temple from Zelda

When Thomas is in the maze it felt very much like the Forest Temple from Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I was having major flashbacks. However, after stewing with this film for a few days I actually liked it. It was a fun plot and the characters were interesting, albeit somewhat dumb with some of their rash under pressure decision making skills. I really like the character of Minho and Alby although some of the characters in the background felt very much like extras from "Lost" in the sense of being there but not being active then killed and disappear and you don't really notice. But, it was entertaining and a good "escapist" film, literally and figuratively. It made me want to go and read the books so I can continue the series as this film didn't really feel like a satisfying conclusion since it really wasn't an ending.

Wait this isn't a promo from Lost?!

Yeah, that was a down side when it didn't really "end" but was clearly the end of a part 1 in a series. Hopefully they continue it, I thought it was pretty well done. I didn't think it was expanded upon for this world enough as a solo movie and that bothered me. I suppose they wanted to save some of those details for the next installment but a 5 minute wrap up at the end about why they are doing those things by someone who recorded a video on a screen felt like lazy filmmaking to me. Isn't the saying show don't tell?

Book Cover

If you read the book before seeing the movie, what did you think of it? I'm curious to see how it compared. I recommend seeing this movie if you like this type of genre.