The Maze Runner Review

As I mentioned in my review for The Giver a few weeks ago, YA adaptations are a big trend in Hollywood. To be honest, I think they may become just as big if not bigger than superhero movies in a few years. Every few months, there is a new YA movie that has a huge fan base behind it and these movies typically involve these elements: a forced love triangle that is the main focus instead of the actual plot or the action scenes, a dystopia that should show dark and twisted ideals but instead tones it down to keep the PG-13 rating, and the end credits/certain scenes being an advertisement for big name indie artists. I was very worried going into this one that it would be another typical YA movie showing at least one of these elements. But to my surprise, The Maze Runner is not your typical YA movie. It's a fun and dark YA adaptation that could become a game changer this sub genre.

One strong positive that this film has is that it strays away from the YA genre and does its own thing instead. While the plot involves a dystopian area with a bunch of boys and only one girl shows up, there is no forced soap operatic romance subplot. Instead the focus is on the plot, which has very refreshingly dark and twisted moments. This is welcoming to me since most YA movies don't even try to take this risk. The other thing that's refreshing is that this movie relies on a really impacting and tense score only and not indie bands trying to make quick cash by showing their music in the end credits or certain action scenes.

Two other strengths this film has to offer is in the acting and directing. I was very skeptical about Dylan O'Brien in the main lead since I am not a fan of his TV show Teen Wolf, but I was very impressed with his performance here. He displays the fear, curiosity, and leadership that his character is written to be perfectly. I have a feeling we will see more of him in movies. Another great performance is Will Poulter, who is best known for playing the naive nerd in We're The Millers. Here,  he plays a ruthless and cruel dictator that audiences love to hate. To my surprise, he plays this part exceptionally well and it truly shows Poulter's range as an actor. The rest of the actors do very well too, going to show that the director picked them for their performances and not their looks. Speaking of the director, this is the debut film for director Wes Ball. He is a visual effects consultant for many films and his choice sounded very wary at first. Especially since the last YA adaptation that had a similar director debut (Eragon) tanked horribly, but Ball handles his directing well. He not only creates a beautifully dark world, but manages to focus on the acting and the characters as well. I hope he gets another big project soon.

While I enjoyed this film, it had some issues. One major issue is that were some unnecessarily slow scenes throughout. Some scenes it worked to build the characters and to develop the plot further, but other scenes were too slow to the point that it could have been cut down to get to the action faster. The biggest problem happens to be in the last 20 minutes of the film. While the first 3/4th's of the film took its time with its characters and action scenes, the last act really falls through. It is rushed to the point where the action scenes feel too quick and easy to get to the ending. And certain plot points feel too quick because of it.

Regardless of its flaws, I really enjoyed The Maze Runner. This is the YA movie I have waited for even though it is not perfect. It's refreshingly dark, doesn't rely on a dumb love triangle, and the performances are all great. Debut director Wes Ball has a great career ahead of him after this film. This film is the start of a potentially great franchise.

Rating: 8 out of 10