The Maze Runner was much better than expected...

| Original Score: B | Aug 19, 2024

...benefits strongly from O’Brien’s charismatic performance and a smattering of above-average action sequences...

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | May 27, 2024

A clearly told, broadly appealing, nicely creepy science fiction thriller.

| Original Score: 7/10 | May 7, 2024

Despite strong performances and a fascinating setup, it feels like a typical episode of Lost in which more questions are asked instead of answered—except here, there's no promise of a new episode next week.

| Original Score: 2/4 | Jul 29, 2022

The Maze Runner doesn't have the cheeriest of presentations, but the film is able to be its own thing. And, for dystopian young adult novel adaptations, that's saying a lot these days.

| Feb 11, 2022

Makes comments about the dangers of conformity and the virtues of bravery and loyalty and does appear to be headed into some twisty-turny territory should the next part of the story get made.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Feb 1, 2021

Smarter than most, thematically interesting, and unique enough to make it stand out in a crowded landscape.

| Original Score: B | Jul 7, 2020

Logic and any adherence to common sense falls to the wayside.

| Original Score: 1.5/5 | Sep 5, 2019

As director Wes Ball builds the eeriness around the complex entrapment of a community of boys living a Lord Of The Flies type existence, he is ably aided by imaginative and well-executed production design and special effects.

| Aug 14, 2019

Despite featuring a somewhat cliched narrative, Wes Ball's The Maze Runner delivers unusual attention to character and world development, producing unforeseen engagement and bringing new depth to a tired subgenre.

| Original Score: 3/5 | May 25, 2019

Despite its familiar tropes, the film boasts a strong cast, numerous heart-in-mouth action moments, and a truly terrifying monster... making it a solid and thoroughly enjoyable little adventure story.

| Feb 28, 2019

It's intriguing enough that I'm now anticipating the next installment, The Scorch Trials.

| Jan 25, 2019

It's as if you are watching a television show with a season-ending cliffhanger, but the difference is you have to wait more than a year.

| Jan 25, 2019

Without backstory it's impossible to care about these boys, so, instead of characters we can root for, we get archetypes.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 11, 2018

There's a big difference between being mysterious and being ambiguous, but The Maze Runner seems to be under the impression that they're the same thing.

| Original Score: 4/10 | Nov 1, 2018

In a field of YA fiction that relies heavily on cliches and Big Messages about Big Things, it's is a welcome change of pace that subverts more cliches than it adheres to.

| Original Score: 7/10 | Oct 31, 2018

Sure, the movie is derivative and ends on a somewhat sour note. But following a long line of tepid popcorn flicks in 2014, The Maze Runner is more notable for what it does right than what it does wrong.

| Original Score: B- | Aug 22, 2018

...all the good done by the movie is destroyed by its incredibly generic and disappointing ending. [Full Review in Spanish]

| Original Score: 2/4 | Jan 30, 2018

Even after having seen the movie, I still feel like I know nothing about the world being presented here

| Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 2, 2017

Overall, The Maze Runner is a solid piece of science fiction that features an interesting story and some compelling visuals.

| Nov 29, 2017