Sweet.

Rating: 9/10 (16 January 2015)

There is a miracle brewing here, and I hope there are sequels. In purgatory, there are two things present: the Kardashians and the movie Divergent. These insults to humanity exist on the bottom, most furthest realm regarding American cultural worth. Much higher on the spectrum we have Harry Potter and The Hobbit, which bored me to death due to banality and contrivance; though I appreciated the skill and casting that went into them They just weren't on the same plateau of The Lord of the Rings. And then there is the Hunger Games, a bit beneath Lord of the Rings, but nonetheless engaging, well made and most of all creative. Welcome to the genre known as the teenage Sci-Fi/Fantasy novel turned into existential film. On the one hand, teenage themes are endemic to the import of it all, and must be included in these kinds of films: First Loves, Bullies, Angst etc.—but the awesome films of the genre acknowledge the teen element while prioritizing the basic heart of the story, which is the mythological themes that are timeless among all cultures and time periods. They know the story is a backdrop for the unconscious energies at the guts of all human experience: death, isolation, meaninglessness and freedom. Percy Jackson, The Maze Runner isn't. The Maze Runner is on the level of Serenity, The Matrix and Firefly. You heard me right. This is the miracle I speak of. I fully expected Divergent (clearly, the worst movie ever made), but what I got was the diet cola of Raiders of the Lost Ark—s o don't get me wrong, I'm not saying The Maze is as good as Raiders, Firefly or Lord of the Rings. It isn't. I'm just saying it's at least in the same ballpark. Again, the miracle being the creative forces behind a book turned movie about teenagers satisfying all systems involved without succumbing to total CHEEZE: The producers who think only of marketing, the director who only thinks of his/her creative license, the cast who only think of their performance, all working together to understand and express the satisfaction of the perceived audience. In this light, within the constraints of money and profit, this is an awesome, awesome movie. Bravo. 9 stars. Except.why didn't the kids just build a wooden structure to get them to the top of the maze? They could have just ran to the edge.