The Scorch Trials – Film Review

The Maze Runner series feels like a teenage version of “LOST” meets an Edward Snowden conspiracy case. I do appreciate the difference in tone for this franchise and such films as”The Hunger Games”, “The Giver”, and “Divergent.” Though this film does borrow a lot of different elements from different films such as the Glass scene from “The Lost World: Jurassic Park”, the desert wasteland outside of the safe zone from “The Giver, and the zombies from “28 Days later.” The originality factor is bringing in the whistle blower aspect of the story and giving it to a kid who still doesn’t have the complete picture of what is happening around him.

Dylan O’Brien is a believable leader and one that shows considerable difference to other Young Adult franchises. He takes ownership of his responsibilities and thinks of others than himself. He also shows loyalty and respect for his friends. In comparison other franchises have the main character be more reactive or having them overcome more challenging disadvantages to be more active. The end of the first film ended with no drive or plan of action, just more questions of what was happening and why the characters where placed there.

You guys don’t have to come with me, but I know that we can make it.

The running/action sequences were well done. The CGI & Special Effects looked pretty good, especially with the mix between the Cranks who were in make up and those that were CGI. A lot of the set pieces looked real and a lot of the film did a good job on world building to make sure you felt like this world could exist. Looking at the screen you could see landscapes and sets that didn’t feel CGI or fake. The editing for the film was well done. The first half of the film felt pretty tense and non stop action.

One of the main reasons I enjoy this franchise is that it is very diverse in cast. It depicts more real world situations between people today and that race isn’t an issue. The main crew from the maze were well used in this story. I thought some of the actions of a couple of characters made didn’t make sense. There wasn’t enough explanation on why an action was taken. WCKD was slightly better developed. I liked the fact there were more adults in the film but they didn’t feel as integrated as the could be. There shouldn’t be such a divide between the adults and kids. I also felt this film introduced a lot of new characters quickly and some of them were better developed than others. I hope the final film really delivers with answers and a closing solution to the virus affecting the world.

7/10