MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE Review

As it goes with these adaptations of popular dystopian YA franchises it is best to know from which perspective a particular review is coming and how passionate the (re)viewer is about the source material they have just witnessed adapted for the big screen. Warning: I have not read James Dashner's version of the "chosen one" narrative so, for me, The Maze Runner series sits somewhere comfortably in between the gold standard that is The Hunger Games and the deplorable Divergent series that couldn't even muster enough fandom for Lionsgate to follow all the way through on it (I guess the first one was fine). Maze Runner is nestled comfortably in between these two opposite ends of the spectrum though, because it is more or less a different take on the exact same story Divergent tried to pull, but done so in a much more enthusiastic manner (which is saying something as these Maze sequels have lacked the energy of that initial flick) as well as being much less convoluted with the main detractor being they have failed to create anywhere near the emotional investment on the part of the audience in these characters; sorry, Tommy, Teresa, and Brenda, but you are no Katniss, Peeta, and Gale. That said-there are A LOT of characters in these movies as tends to be the case in each of the examples cited thus far and by virtue of this requirement there is ample opportunity for solid talent to enlist themselves as part of a guaranteed series of jobs and to that point it is nice to see the likes of Barry Pepper, Giancarlo Esposito, Patricia Clarkson, Aidan Gillen, and Walton Goggins in supporting roles where they are hamming it up the best each of them can even if at least three of them are playing the same type of ringleader role. To this end and to the end that I'm thankful 20th Century Fox decided against splitting this finale into two movies Maze Runner: The Death Cure is a well-made and well-executed action thriller that is more or less comprised of the same sequence of events again and again until our gang of ragtag heroes reaches the last standing city and faces the bad guys down once and for all. That may be a bit harsh as there are shades of honor on both sides of the line that make things more complicated than one might expect from such a film and there is a clear theme of loyalty that screenwriter T.S. Nowlin and franchise director Wes Ball have never strayed from, but much like WCKD, the evil corporate enemy in these movies, The Death Cure delays the inevitable conclusion we all know is coming due to our genre conditioning just a little too long.

First Trailer for MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE

Man, I really need to see Maze Runner: Scorch Trials, but it's been so long since I missed it and have't heard much about the series since that the whole thing just kind of slipped from my radar. Still, I know that I purchased Scorch Trials because I was out of town at my first Toronto International Film Festival when the film came to theaters and was bummed I never caught back up with it before it was released on home video because I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed the first one. And, of course, this third and final installment in the series was set to come out earlier (and by earlier, I mean February of this year), but was delayed due to production having been halted for over a year as a result of star Dylan O’Brien suffering severe injuries as a result of an on-set accident. Filming resumed nearly a year later, after O’Brien had thankfully recovered and was ready to complete the series. With the series finale of Teen Wolf happening last night, in which O'Brien also starred, I'm assuming that's why we're now getting our first look at this final film, but it seems director Wes Ball (who has been with the franchise since the beginning) and 20th Century Fox weren't completely ready for the launch as the first twenty seconds or so of this trailer are scenes from the first two films while the remainder of the trailer clocks in at less then fifty seconds. Still, what we get here looks to be pretty satisfying in terms of the scope and of the action and the intensity of the story. Granted, having still not seen the middle chapter I'm not sure as to where the characters heads are at or where the plot has since taken them since the reveal at the end of the first film, but this quick teaser makes me want to rectify that as I'm eager to see what the whole of this series will offer as Ball seems to have constructed a worthy finale for a series that has flown just enough under the radar to be a good and smart investment for Fox while maintaining its credibility as a fun YA action/adventure. Maze Runner: The Death Cure also stars Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Giancarlo Esposito, Walton Goggins, Aidan Gillan, Patricia Clarkson, Rosa Salazar, Nathalie Emmanuel, Will Poulter, Ki Hong Lee, Jacob Lofland, Barry Pepper and opens on January 26th, 2018.

THE MAZE RUNNER Review

Young adult literary adaptations have become as much a genre to themselves as the super hero or comic book movie. They exist in a vacuum where many of the same rules apply to the different worlds being brought to life. As of late, and meaning after the breakthrough of Harry Potter, the solidification of Twilight and the confirmation of not simply being a fad by The Hunger Games, we have received several female-led, dystopian-set tales of rebellion and individualism that employ fantastical creatures and environments to communicate their bigger themes to the youth of today. In all honesty, I've enjoyed a great deal of them for either their tone (Beautiful Creatures) or extent of creativity (Divergent) while others have been downright terrible (Mortal Instruments). While it may be easy to spot a YA adaptation from a mile away these days it doesn't mean the trend is fading, in fact it is the opposite, for if anything it feels these types of titles are just ramping-up in the way that studios have finally found solid ground on which to build these series hopefuls. It is in the same vein that it took Marvel nearly a decade to establish their own cinematic universe after the X-Men hit the screen for the first time, but now that wehave a type of blueprint things are moving much faster. No matter the eventual box office return, the feature adaptation of a popular teen-lit series can't presently be labeled as a bad idea and thus we have been brought The Maze Runner. Based on a series of four books (which, if successful, will eventually mean five movies) by James Dashner this is the first real departure for the genre since becoming an institution that deviates from the formula of female lead in a failing, dystopian societal structure. Instead, what we are given is a very stripped down, human survival story with plenty of mystery surrounding the circumstances to keep audiences intrigued as our host of characters slowly peel back layers of the secrets within twisting both our expectations and hopes while consistently keeping us engaged in its proceedings. It is as much an accomplishment as any non-branded, non-sequel movie to hit theaters these days and become a hit as it is for the first installment of a YA adaptation to stand completely on its own while still setting itself up for more stories and if The Maze Runner has a single great strength, that is it.

First Trailer for THE MAZE RUNNER

The race to find the next big young adult adaptation has been one of fierce competition and many failures and with the premiere of what has the best shot at claiming the title, not necessarily from The Hunger Games as it will only have one film left after Katniss leaves the screen for good, but more a placeholder that will make enough money to justify its two sequels while we wait on the next Hunger Games installment and then of course ease the pain of having nothing more to look forward to after Mockingjay Part 2 is released, are the screen adaptations of Veronica Roth's bestselling Divergent series opening this Friday. Thus the reason why we now have a trailer for another contender in what hopes to capitalize on this trend, but it seems the tide is more favorable toward The Maze Runner than something like Beautiful Creatures or The Mortal Instruments. I have yet to read the four-book series by James Dashner, but based on this trailer alone I plan on doing so before seeing the first film. Yes, it still centers around a group of teens in peril and having to fight against some type of system to no doubt prove how individuality can never be truly suppressed by conformance, but at least this time around the premise seems genuinely intriguing and nowhere near as forced or put together by a committee as some of the aforementioned young adult lit hits. Dylan O'Brien (Teen Wolf, The Internship) leads the cast as Thomas, a young man thrust into the middle of this maze that may hold the secret to why he along with countless others have been trapped inside said maze, but more importantly, how they might be able to make it out. The Maze Runner also stars Will Poulter, Kaya Scodelario, Aml Ameen, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Ki Hong Lee, Patricia Clarkson and opens on September 19.

THE EAST Review

Brit Marling is officially three for three in my book. After first seeing the actress and writer in director Mike Cahill's 2011 film Another Earth it was not necessarily her acting skill that was intriguing, but the way in which she gravitated towards projects. Yes, she was good at playing guarded and mysterious, but she was also able to invoke a sense of real intensity that continues to carry through not only the characters she plays, but the films she has a hand in making. Last years Sound of My Voice paired her with friend and director Zal Batmanglij to produce one of my favorite films of 2012 while reassuring me and everyone else that science fiction didn't have to necessarily be big, bold new worlds and fantastic technology to be engaging, but it simply had to have a precise goal and Sound of My Voice was a film very specific in what it wanted to accomplish and did so with a perfect balance of mystery and intrigue. while I completely adore that film and was happy to see Marling re-team with Batmanglij again this year I was thankful they weren't treading the same ground, but were instead moving on to different subject matter completely while still looking to strike up a conversation. With The East these two young, but equally wise artists bring our attention to moral dilemmas. Though the film will grab you in advertisements by purporting to be a slick espionage thriller that follows a rookie agent on her first assignment there is so much more to the film than this generic sounding synopsis. The film is ultimately about deciding what is worth doing that many see as wrong for the greater good of what you believe is right. That is the purpose of the titular-named group that Marling's protagonist Sarah is pulled into and while we certainly expect her to make some type of connection with these people who genuinely feel they have to do these wrong things for the right reasons it comes as a surprise where Sarah ends up going on the arc this movie gives her. There is a balance here that doesn't lean too far in one direction so as to present a slanted view, but in all earnestness wants to create a big picture while getting the small details right in order to make it feel as honest as possible.