The Maze Runner (2014), PG-13, ★★

What is in that maze?

Solving a maze can be exhausting mentally depending on the level of difficulty the supplier has displayed for the challenger. Easy, intermediate, difficult...it does not matter because you either enjoy or get frustrated with the challenge of solving a maze. But, remember The Shining? It will be nightmarish when you play a game where you are inside a maze at night and don't know whether or not you will get out. Hey, maybe it could be just a normal maze or maze full of tricks? However, another YA adaptation has come on-screen and while it starts out superbly, the energy level deflates when knowing what the whole story is about.

Thomas (Dylan O'Brien) wakes up in a rusted elevator called The Box, what a simple name to call that elevator. When he ascends to the top, he is surrounded and greeted by other boys in a grassy area called The Glade where it is also surrounded by gray, thick walls. Thomas does not remember anything that has happened to him but Alby (Ami Ameen), the leader of the Gladers, as what they call themselves, tells him that it will come to him and not go beyond The Glade because there is a maze. It's sort of a "Lord of the Flies" situation with just boys in the area. He also becomes friends with Chuck (Blake Cooper).

That night, the boys are celebrating Thomas' initiation to the small group and Gally (Will Poulter) is wrestling with one of the boys and asks Thomas if he wants to fight. As they are fighting, Thomas falls so hard onto the ground that his head is smashed to the ground and remembers his name. Alby shows Thomas around and when Thomas asks about the name carved off the walls, it symbolizes the boys dead. When he sees a boy charging at Thomas, he is in a stage called The Changing, when a Griever stings a person, it causes a person to go crazy and gets prone to violence.

As Alby and Thomas (Ki Hong Lee) are trying to get out, as the doors close, the maze closes and Thomas rushes in to try to help them and all three are trapped in the maze. Gally calls a meeting regarding Thomas' punishment, rules and how to deal with Alby. It gets a bit more challenging and predictable as Gally is now the head Griever.

Thomas in a very weird state.

This movie is a very strange movie to review, because I am at a loss for words as to describe my experiences with this film. I question whether or not YA adaptations are starting to get uninteresting. It all started with Harry Potter, Twilight, The Hunger Games, Divergent, The Fault in Our Stars, etc. No doubt Harry Potter is the best of the bunch. But, it seems that studios try too hard to make more money on a series that may have potential. It become pressurizing on the director, the writers and production involved. The studio depends on them.

Now, when watching the first half of the film, I was sold on the story right from the get-go and I was almost watching one of the best films of the year having a stronger connection with the story and how convincing it was that it was relevant to the Lord of the Flies and a little bit of Harry Potter and Divergent. But as the film explained a lot more information to the audience and to myself, I felt really disappointed with the story because it turns into another film. And, I cannot say much, but let's just say it turns into a twist that is directed by M. Night Shyamalan and feels weird. It is one of the most disappointing finales of the year.

All of the cast tries their best to carry along the whole film, but it is the smart and sharp story that turns itself into an almost abominable result that displayed that maybe the filmmakers should have had the courage to maybe sculpt the whole second half into a much more satisfying and clearer way to explain what happened then go into the second film. I mean, there's potential for a good second movie, but I would not have my hopes held up high. Strong start, weak finish.

**