The Maze Runner

Let's see what's on the Bookshelf.

(A few minutes later.)

Here's one: The Maze Runner, by James Dashner. It's the first of a Young-Adult series. Monsters and Mazes and Film Franchise Potential! Let's see how this latest Literary Film Franchise starter is.

Our hero, Thomas (Dylan O'Brien), wakes up in an Elevator with no memories. His destination is The Glade, a woodland community of  amnesiac guys like him. The Glade is in the center of a gigantic, rearranging Maze. The only way out of the Glade is out of the Maze. Anyone who goes into the Maze (the Runners) will have to avoid the resident Spidery Monsters, the Grievers.

The next newcomer to the Glade is a girl, Teresa (Kaya Scodelario). She'll also be the last newcomer The Glade. She also apparently knows who Thomas is. She's also the likely answer to the Glade's mysteries. Thomas decides to become a Runner himself to get the full answer.

Thomas is opposed by two factors. The first is Gally (Will Poulter), the resident tough guy who doesn't want any extraneous maze running. The second is the ending.

To boil it down: It's the future so life sucks. Why life sucks is detailed in the end. There's a bit of confounding ambiguity about certain back-story essential characters thrown in. It'll certainly throw off neophytes to the franchise a bit. At some point, one of these Young-Adult movies ought to put a "Find out the answers next time!" disclaimer. At least that would show self-awareness.

Wes Ball, normally a special-effects artist, makes his feature length directorial debut here. His film realizes some good imagery on a mere $34 million budget. The Grievers are interesting creatures; however, their scenes are edited too fast to comprehend them. The Maze is a wonderfully gritty and gigantic mix of CG and Real set design.

The Maze Runner is good filler for the Fall Movie dead zone. It goes at a good pace and keeps you invested in the characters' fates. That alone should make up for the open-endedness that'll surely be explained more in the next part, The Scorch Trials.