Movie Review: The Maze Runner
Skyler Powers
The Maze Runner was released on September 19, 2014. It is based off of the young adult novel, of the same name, written by James Dashner. The movie follows the main character, Thomas, who is placed in the center of a maze along with many other boys. When a girl shows up the day after Thomas arrives, everything in the maze turns to chaos and the group finds themselves running to escape the maze and to stay alive.
Let me start off by saying that I really enjoyed this movie. It was quickly paced and you never really had any time to get bored with it. However, the story could have been slowed down, in my opinion, as it would have been more interesting for the mysteries and questions to gradually unravel and answer themselves. I have read the novel and I am pleased at how close the movie was to the book. That being said, it did have some major changes which I cannot say due to the fact that this review is spoiler-free. The acting in this film is good, but not anything Oscar-worthy. However, in one scene, the main actor, Dylan O’Brien, puts some real emotion into his performance, which was a pleasant surprise.
From a more technical perspective, the film has some great “chase scenes.” The camera shots of the runners in the maze are done well, and it really puts you on edge. The film has good scoring with the right music at every moment to set the mood. In the end, the movie becomes very intense, holding true to its source material. The movie has its fair share of plot twists which throw you off, but there could have been more if it weren’t for Thomas’s flashbacks. I personally think they gave away way too much, but in the end the movie still keeps you guessing.
The movie concludes with a cliffhanger, leaving you wanting more, but you’ll have to wait until the sequel. All in all, this movie is a fun time with twists and turns and an ending that will leave you wanting more. Based on this, I believe that this film has done its job and it has done it well.
