Review of The Maze Runner (2014) by Andrew D — 04 Dec 2016

This kind of feels like a nicer version of the Hunger Games. A world full of kids trapped in a woodland confinement, having been placed there by onlooking adults. The only difference is that rather than kill one another, they have to work together as a team to try and find a way out of a giant maze that borders the perimeter of the grassland.

The maze itself isn't that exciting, other than the fact it has some robotic arachnid type predators called 'grievers' looking to sting anyone who takes a wrong turn. It's definitely one aimed more at the mature child, rather than the likes of Peter Pan that centres all on the kids too.

It's not playful or humorous, but very Sci-Fi and definitely strikes me as a film that bases itself on the book without any form of deviation. I'm hoping that with this being the first in the series, the movies become better as the story progresses as it definitely felt like more of an introduction than an independent film.

For me it never really got going, and lacked any real excitement. There were only a few central characters, none of whom were greatly iconic, but this at least gives the sequels something to build upon.

I can imagine fans of the paperback version will love this as it puts their imagination into a more visual form of stimulation, but I found it just a tad too slow paced and sensible. Very little drama occurs and it required a lot more cutting edge in both the script and the acting.