The Maze Runner

Directed by:

Wes Ball

Starring:

Dylan O'Brien

Will Poulter

Aml Ameen 

Ki Hong Lee 

Thomas Brodie-Sangster 

Kaya Scodelario
 

Directed by Wes Ball and starring Dylan O'Brien as the reluctant but very obvious saviour of the masses, The Maze Runner is one of those movies that you can just tell was a fantastic novel but the transfer to the big screen did not do it justice on such a small budget. First off, we need to establish that this is a movie for teenage boys, a more dynamic and interesting response to the one-dimensional Divergent. However, the step up from that chick-flick isn't all that great. Thomas arrives in this seemingly dystopian world in an elevator. He steps from the elevator, highly confused by his surroundings, immediately running away from the teenage boys around him who seem to revel in his confusion - all of the boys have no memory of who they were before arriving here. His running is halted when he realises that the world in which he has been thrust into is confined behind four high walls from which there is no escape - unless you tackle the maze - the only possible escape from their perpetual enclosure. 

The boys live their lives in relative comfort; it never rains, they all sleep outdoors, there is no disease and they eat what they grow. But it is here that the story becomes so obviously one-dimensional, leaving you with many questions about the boys and their lives. Why are there no bullies? In fact, safe for a few seconds towards the end, nobody portrays villainous traits whatsoever. Though this is a prison for boys, it's obviously a teenage version of Oz The Series? Obviously the extreme homo-eroticism of that show cannot be portrayed here but why go to the other extreme? The obvious long-term effects of captivity are not dealt with here at all. Why is everybody so nice? If this is a metaphor for an all-boys school, where are the bullies? Where is the guy that pushes you around just because he can? Where is the guy that waits until you have a plate of food prepared then shoves that to the floor? We are expected to believe that every boy that comes up that elevator is a charming boy with the social graces of a man 20 years his elder.

Perhaps the major flaw in this movie is the lack of vulnerability these boys show. Emotions in a teenage boy are at the fore - always! Yet there are effectively no fights between the lads and aside from one side character in a very short clip, none of these lads cry out for their parents. Some of them have been there over three years and not once in the movie were the absent members of their families wept over. I get that the boys are being made out to be mature beyond their years but at 30 years of age, I still miss my parents. If I missed my parents at 17 I would at least talk about it. The human side of the boys is lost in the obsession to focus on the maze itself. Every day, the "runners" go into the maze to try and find a way out before the doors close at night. They return with plans drawn in their heads of the pathways, they are the cartographers of the dystopian age.

For a time The Maze Runner came across as The Matrix meets The Goonies. We have the futuristic vibe, the chosen one and the questioning of reality, not to mention the gates being the blue pill. Then we have the teenage adventure, the gadgets, the search for treasure and there is even a small, jolly, fat kid called Chuck - that's waaay too close to Chunk for that to be a coincidence. However, it is only when the first girl comes up through the elevator that the theme becomes obvious. This movie is a metaphor for turning 18, of how afraid you are of escaping the walls of childhood, where your life has comfort, meaning and strata and yet you are so excited and curious to escape into the maze of adulthood, where you have only yourself to rely on, away from the annoying teenage girls that created divisions amongst the boys and into the unknown. It is then that this movie begins to shine. 

The hero slowly begins to take his place at the top of the food chain and it is then that we see the true emotions of the boys. Parents are mentioned, fears are divulged, tears are shed and there are even villainous deeds and death. In a rare cinematic occurrence, the movie grows with the boys. This is definitely a slow-burner but give it time and you will be rewarded with a fantastic ending and an open door for what promises to be an intriguing sequel.

Most of the actors in the movie are British which is not to detract from the talent. On the contrary, it is a compliment to how accomplished young British actors and the British film industry is in general. While Dylan O'Brien played the part of the handsome, reluctant hero very well, it is Will Poulter who was the star. This chap has a fine career ahead of him has a villain. His brow alone should see him trying to slay James Bond sometime down the line. 

The music of the movie is generic and though special effects are unnecessary in the majority of the film, slicker CGI would have been appreciated. There are plenty of terrible movie adaptations of novels out there but author James Dashner's is better than that. There are still perhaps too many questions, the biggest of all being left unanswered at the end. I shan't divulge what that is here for fear of spoiling the movie. (SPOILER ALERT!!) Let's just say this is more The Island than Oliver Twist. Still, look forward to the sequel, if only to quell your curiosity. Not a great movie but not a waste of time either. You get the feeling the book, read as a teenage boy, would be much better.

Rating - ✮✮✮½

Trailer -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64-iSYVmMVY