The Maze Runner (2014) Reviewed By Jay

United States, 04 April 2014

 

Jay´s Review

We join a bewildered bunch of young men (and one late-arriving young woman) who are stranded in pleasant glade surrounded by an insurmountable maze. This exhausting first chapter of what is clearly destined to be a series, made me think of William Golding's classic, "Lord of the Flies." I even figured out which one of these lost boys is Piggy!

Based on James Dashner's novel by the same name, this PG-13 Action/Mystery/Sci Fi adventure is directed by Wes Ball ("Beginners") with a screenplay co-written by Noah Oppenheim and Grant Pierce Myers. We see plenty of Computer Generated Imaging, but no gunshots, no sweaty bodies, no vehicular mayhem and no profanity, however you can expect implied deaths and endless face-to-face battles.

Here are some of the "Gladers":

  • * Dylan O'Brien ("The Internship") as Thomas, who lands in this baffling situation with no memory of his life, his skills or even his name. The only thing that sets him apart is his refusal to accept the situation.
  • * Aml Ameen ("The Butler") is Alby, the first friendly face our hero sees.
  • * Ki Hong Lee (TV guest spots) is Minho, a maze runner who attempts to map the maze and break the code so they can anticipate what changes to expect each day.
  • * Blake Cooper (lots of TV) is Chuck, a loyal roommate who immediately becomes our favorite character to root for.
  • * Thomas Brodie-Sangster ("Game of Thrones") is smart, even-tempered Newt; he makes the tough decisions.
  • * Will Poulter ("We're the Millers") Gally is convinced their system has worked for three years and it should NOT be altered!

We get subliminal hints about what's going on but it isn't until the last big "reveal" that we know we guessed correctly. Problem is, it looks like their troubles are only beginning. The last scene makes that pretty clear. Aarghhh!

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