A very pleasant sort of sci-fi surprise

Rating: 8/10 (13 December 2014)

If you follow my reviews, you'll know I watch pretty much everything. I take every opportunity to go to my local theatre and if I haven't seen then I'll see it. I figured if I got around to it, I would see The Maze Runner but I didn't end up getting around to it. I am a big fan of The Hunger Games but the other entries in this new genre of "teen fiction to big screen" have been underwhelming to me including Divergent, Beautiful Creatures, Twilight and so on. So my expectations going into this were average at best. Sometimes that helps because The Maze Runner ended up being an awesome thrill ride!! It is a terrific story, great moments of sci-fi and fantasy with a dash of Lord of The Flies mixed in there. It made me instantly become a fan of the series and moved seeing any sequels they release to the top of my "must see" list. Its not the type of film that will take home any awards but as far as sheer popcorn flick entertainment, this one sits pretty darn high. It had a few issues I thought but very well directed, great action, good story, strong main characters and it absolutely is a great start to keep you interested but it also stands on its own merits as well. You really don't feel like you're being left with a lot of unanswered questions although really we are.
Relative newcomer (best known from MTV's Teen Wolf Series) Dylan O'Brien actually gives an incredible performance leading this cast. He proves, in my mind, that he could be the next "It" guy out there. I think he buries any performance by any young guy in the Twilight series. O'Brien has a great charisma and a certain leadership quality that works very well for this cast. The supporting cast for The Maze Runner is actually huge. Because you have this group of young boys all trapped together, you see a lot of faces but only a few stand out and get any sort of depth to their characters. Aml Ameen was very good as their leader Alby, Ki Hong Lee had a couple of very good scenes but he was a character I definitely wanted to see more from and I hope they use him more in sequels, Blake Cooper was very good as Chuck but his character was also a tad predictable, Thomas Brodie-Sangster was really great as second in command Newt (also hope to see a lot more from him in the sequels) and Will Poulter made a really great pseudo-villain/Bully. The most unfortunate part of this cast is the addition of the only female member of the cast (except for a very brief glimpse of Patricia Clarkson) Kaya Scodelario. Now I understand that especially in a film geared towards young adults that the addition of a female hero is necessary but Sodelario's character seems forced into the story for no other reason. She is left completely undeveloped, there is no romance per se and she's honestly pointless to the entire film. They could have easily left her out and it would have made no difference and made the film as interesting and less contrite.
I am very impressed that this is Wes Ball's first full length feature film. However, he has also worked on art direction for years and it shows. The special effects and cinematography in this film is brilliant. I am amazed what they were able to do in a very reasonable budget given the type of film. Much like The Hunger Games, I felt like there was a definitive political message behind this film though its a little less "in your face" than The Hunger Games, its interesting enough to try and figure out what they're saying. You could easily compare this film to the TV Series Lost because many questions are posed and only some are answered but its a fantastic mystery with plenty of action and some scenes that are powerful and moving without being insanely inappropriate for its genre. I am so excited to watch this series continue and grow and I would absolutely watch this again anytime. If you love science fiction and you're tired of the same old...then you might want to give this an honest try!! 8/10