THE MAZE RUNNER

2014 / Director. Wes Ball.
Review by Glenn Cochrane.

I watched THE MAZE RUNNER with my kids and when the final credits rolled there were two reactions. Theirs was "Best. Movie. Ever!" and mine was "Steaming. Pile. Of. Dog. Shit!". Hmmm. For the first time that I can remember I was feeling very out of touch. I usually adjust my viewing sensibilities and absorb movies from a target-audience point of view... but with THE MAZE RUNNER I definitely don't feel any connection with the target demographic at all. It's a stupid movie - simple as that. Take CUBE and LORD OF THE FLIES and mash 'em together and this is the gooey mess that comes out. A small community of teenagers live at the centre of a giant maze. Every month a new person arrives via an elevator from beneath the ground. They have no recollection of past lives and no idea why they are there. The labyrinth opens and closes each day and to venture inside is practically suicide. A group of the fittest boys are assigned the job of "runner" and they are the only ones allowed to enter. A new kid comes along and suddenly he becomes the only one with the balls to explore further. Yawn. Its such hammy and contrived stuff. Most of the dumbed down teen audience will have no comprehension of films like LOGANS RUN, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK or THE OMEGA MAN and so they have no idea how these stories ought to be. I am feeling like a jaded old man all of a sudden but I do feel justified. How is it that all of these teenage characters have perfect hair styles and clean shaven faces when they've been trapped for as long as three years?? Oh and don't get me started on the conclusion. I'll leave that one for you to watch and absorb. The sequel will pick up where this one left off and BOY.... I can't wait! 

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