THE MAZE RUNNER

As seen in

www.camrosecanadian.com

When James Dashner released the novel The Maze Runner in 2007, I never even noticed. When it was announced a film was being made, I didn’t even give it second thought. I’ve seen Hollywood try (miserably) to bring young adult fiction to fruition, only to watch them fail (see: Jumper, Percy Jackson, and I Am Number Four). So going to see this flick, I had zero expectation. What I got genuinely blew me away.

The movie begins with a boy (Dylan O’Brien, TV’s Teen Wolf) waking in an elevator with no recollection of his name or where he is and why he is there. When it stops he is brought into a field (known as The Glades) by a group of other boys.  This field is surrounded by trees…and concrete. He meets Alby (Aml Ameen), the “leader” of this group. He tells the boy (who later recalls his name of Thomas) that beyond the walls is a giant maze. And the rules are quite simple: Never go into the maze. That task is reserved for Runners. They are the ones who plot the maze and figure a way out. But there’s a catch – the maze changes every day! Not only that, you find out about Grievers – a very deadly creature that roams the maze at night. 

Every morning, the Runners go into the maze, gather info and come back before the doors close at dusk. Thanks to the Grievers, nobody has survived the night in the maze. However, after events involving another Runner named Ben (and Alby himself), Thomas is promoted to Runner. Things change when the elevator comes, and they find a girl (Kaya Scodelario) unconscious inside carrying a note that could change everything. As the tension builds between Thomas and a boy named Gally (Will Poulter), Thomas’ group must face the struggle against some of the others, the maze, and the Grievers to finally get to the bottom of this puzzle that may be more personal than he ever realized.

As I mentioned, this movie blew me away. I think what impressed me the most is how much it used setting and pace more than special effects to get its point across. However, when they required CG (especially with the Grievers), they spared no expense. I honestly want to read the novel now just to see how they describe the Grievers as their appearance was beyond description for me. 

The actor’s performances were believable, the camera angles and overall cinematography was superb and even the score accented it well. My opinion is outside of Guardians of the Galaxy, this may be the best action/adventure movie I’ve seen all year. Comparatively, I say it is a mix of The Running Man meets Lord of the Flies. I actually wonder how much those books influenced Dashner. 

Finally, with a cliff-hanger like that, I am excited for the potential series.