The Maze Runner (2014) Movie Review!

The Maze Runner was filled with twists and turns that kept things rolling.  Thomas is deposited in a place where there are no females and it turns out that all his memories have been erased.  He then learns that they are all trapped in a maze which requires him to join the group of "runners" to get a chance to escape.   This film is based on the novel which was written by James Dashner.  The screenplay was written by Noah Oppenheim, Grant Pierce Myers, and T.S. Nowlin.  The film was directed by Wes Ball who known for his work on A Work in Progress and Beginners, but this is the first film that he has directed that is not a short.

Thomas (Dylan O'Brien) wakes up in an old elevator with no memory of who he is other than his own name.   He finds out that he was put in a place called The Glade which is a large outdoor space surrounded on all sides by 150 foot walls of stone.  There are many other boys who have lived in the Glade for the past 3 years with no memory of how they got there or who sent them.  Each day in the morning the walls open up to allow the boys to explore the enormous and complex MAZE that they say has taken them over 3 years to map out the entire thing.  At night the walls seal the boys in to protect them from something called the Grievers which nobody has lived to tell what they look like.

The maze is constantly shifting, and changing making it nearly impossible to solve. The only hope of escaping lie in the hands of what are known as the Maze Runners who search the shifting maze for an exit each day. Something sets off the balance of things in the Glades and the elevator makes an unscheduled delivery of the first girl Teresa (Kaya Scodelario) in the Glade's history, everything is thrown into chaos. Together, they must all embark on a quest to solve the riddle of the maze and reveal the chilling secret of who brought them there, and why.

As apparently all teenage novels do now this one is right up the alley of the Hunger Games.  At least that is what it reminded me of the most.  With everyone in the Glades being sent there to survive, just like you are sent to the Hunger Games to be the last survivor.  Granted in this you're not fighting each other you are "fighting" the maze, because to find your way out you must conquer the maze.  Don't get me wrong though just because it is similar to that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the film because I did.  This film kept me interested from the very first second when he was coming up the elevator and something was scaring him.

They did an awesome job with the music for this film because there were some very suspenseful scenes that without that music would have just been a joke but I thought they did a wonderful job.  The chemistry for the cast was great considering that it was such a large cast that was the main focus of the film.  The actor that played Chuck (Blake Cooper) stole the film though.  He is such a lovable character you feel bad that he is there and you for some reason just want to help him and take care of him.  Then you have Minho played by Ki Hong Lee and he is the main Maze Runner who spends most of the time with Dylan's character and the two of them work magically together.  They team up to find the exit and it really feels like they are a team in desperate search for a way out.

**THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH HAS TO DO WITH THE ENDING SKIP IF YOU CHOOSE TO I DON'T GO INTO DETAILS BUT BE WARNED**

************************************************************************************

I will have to say one negative thing about this film but I can't give you details on it because it has to do with the ending. I DID NOT LIKE THE ENDING.  I HATE when films set themselves up for sequels.  I feel that every film should be its own unless you plan on doing all the films and are filming them all at once, otherwise give it a solid ending and not a crazy ending at that.  Granted I did not read the book so I don't know if that is how it ended in the book but it was one of the most ridiculous endings that I have seen in a movie.

************************************************************************************

Overall I would have to give this film a B.  It was really good and everyone did an amazing job in it, I just can't get past that ending.  For some reason it is really bothering me to the point that I am dropping this film from an A- to a B.  I would still highly suggest that you check out this film because it was good.  Better than a lot of films I have seen.

 

Let me know what you think in the comments below and give me your star rating of the film if you have seen it.