The Maze Runner movie came out in theatres such as Menlo and Linden on September 19, 2014. The movie was directed by Wes Ball and actors include Dylan O’Brien, Kaya Scodelario and Will Poulter. Dylan O’Brien plays the male lead, Thomas. Recently, he won a MTV Teen Choice Award for Teen Choice Villain in Teen Wolf as Stiles Stilinski and he received a Young Hollywood Award for Breakthrough Actor. O’Brien is most known for his acting in Teen Wolf, The First Time, and The Internship. Kaya Scodelario plays the female lead of Teresa. She won an Ashland Independent Film Award for Best Acting Ensemble in The Truth About Emanuel and was nominated for three other awards. She is most known for her acting in The Truth About Emanuel, Clash of The Titans, and Now Is Good. Will Poulter plays the role of Gally. He won an MTV Teen Choice Award for Best Kiss in We’re The Millers and Breakthrough Actor, and he won a British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award for EE Rising Star. He was nominated for ten awards. Poulter is most known for his acting in We’re The Millers, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of The Dawn Treader, Son of Rambow and Plastic. The movie is rated PG-13 and is considered an action and adventure movie. It’s one hour and 54 minutes long. Tickets cost $12.75 for adults, $10.00 for kids and $11.75 for seniors at the AMC theater in Linden. Tickets at Menlo cost $14.50 for adults and seniors, and $11.20 for kids. The movie is 63% “fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie The Maze Runner was based off of the book series created by James Dashner. The story revolves around the life of a boy named Thomas. He is sent into the “Glade” where he knows nothing about his past but his name along with all the other Greenies, or newbies that came before him. These kids have been living up in the Glade for three years. They have rules: do your part, don’t hurt another Glader and never go into the maze (unless you are a runner). These rules have kept them safe until Thomas begins to change things. After Thomas, comes Teresa. She is the only girl to ever be sent into the maze and the last Greenie. Weird things begin to happen in the Glade such as getting stung by Grievers in broad daylight and the first dead Griever. When the maze doors stop closing at night, the Glade isn’t safe anymore and it is up to Thomas to find the way out. The movie The Maze Runner wasn’t how I expected it to be. For one thing, I believe it failed to reach the expectations set by the novel. Not only were there little differences, but there were also a few big ones. For example, Thomas and Teresa’s relationship wasn’t portrayed properly. Thomas and Teresa had a very strong relationship in the book. Teresa relied on him and they even had a telepathic connection. It was also hinted in the book that they were a couple before the maze because of holding hands and other small signs of affection. I was severely disappointed to not see any of this in the movie. Another big difference was all around the maze included these beetle creatures so that the people who created the maze could observe everything. However, they weren’t in the movie at all. I felt this was a pretty important part of the story although it wasn’t mentioned. Thomas also had a strong friendship with the character Chuck in the novel. In the movie the emotion between them felt weak and was unsatisfying. Right from the start Thomas tries to run away which never happened in the book. There was also a part in the beginning where Thomas is fighting with Gally. Once he gets knocked to the ground, he remembers his name and in the book he started with his name. Another difference is the prison. In the movie it wasn’t close to what it was supposed to be in the novel. There was also a cure to the sting in the story. However, in the movie this “cure” didn’t exist until Teresa came. Looking past all the differences from the book, the movie was good overall. I don’t think it “wowed” me as much as I’d hoped, although I understand it is difficult to recreate so many details in only one hour and 54 minutes. As a movie itself, it was enjoyable. The acting of the characters was played well. There were some parts that kept me on the edge of my seat and other parts that certainly provoked fear, sadness, and shock. However, I did wish that there was more of an “action” factor.
