Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015)

Frank Ochieng October 11, 2015

It is quite an automatic instinct to compare and contrast the first installment of 2014’s ‘The Maze Runner’ with the arrival of the latest entry in director Wes Ball’s distant dystopian drama ‘Maze Runner: Scorch Trials’. The original blueprint effectively captured a unique time and place of mystique and other morbid curiosities. The audience was craftily introduced to The Glade, a head-scratching venue out in the middle of nowhere while being surrounded by a massive maze that pretty much rendered its survivors in vulnerability and uncertainty. Well, ‘Maze Runner: Scorch Trials’ looks to revisit that same kind of mystifying aura where our young and daring protagonists face the surreal obstacles in a futuristic facility that begs for the same kind of grandiose ambivalence. Sadly, ‘Scorch Trials’ is a derivative follow-up shadow of its former pronounced presentation. T…

Reno January 24, 2016

★ 7/10

> The adventure expands outside the maze to seek the answers. Another teen movie in the mid series on the line of 'Divergent' and 'Hunger Games'. As an adult, I don't know what to expect from it, but entertainment was the priority. The first film was just an introduction that happened in a small and a single location like the film 'Cube'. Now it has outspread in a large extent with more new characters and takes a wider adventure in the wastelands. Many doubts from the previous film were cleared, yet a few need to be clarified and hoping for the next one to do that job. But anyway the suspense was this franchise's specialty, that simply reminds us the TV series 'Lost'. This second part can be compared with plenty of other post apocalyptic films, but still I liked it better than the first. The best thing was they retained the same director and he's going to be here for the next fi…

Andres Gomez April 26, 2016

★ 3/10

Let's get to the point. This is bad. A dystopian future full of conspiracies in which we throw the typical ingredients thinking that, magically, would make a good movie: teenagers, zombies, a "Mad-Max"-like desert and a stupid story in which main characters and their enemies behave stupidly at every step. Quite a forgettable one ...

Gimly October 4, 2018

★ 5/10

I believe the adage is meant to go "Ask me no questions and I tell you no lies". _Scorch Trials_ however seemed to be trialling the new "I pose you 500 questions, I tell you no answers". But there's still some interesting things to find the further the movie goes on. It lacks the cohesion of the first movie, for sure, but there's more going on, so that tracks. _Final rating:★★½ - Had a lot that appealed to me, didn’t quite work as a whole._

CinemaSerf June 9, 2024

★ 6/10

Well, if you are looking for a collection of good looking folks lurching from one perilous scenario to another - desperate to escape the clutches of the arch villain that is Aiden Gillen; then this is the film for you. If you are looking for anything remotely akin to the books that tell of the continuing adventures of "Thomas", "Newt" etc. as they attempt to defy the will of "WIKD", then get ye hence (as Shakespeare might have said) for this film has nothing for you. Gillen has all the terror-factor of Mary Poppins and whilst Dylan O'Brien, Kaya Scodelario and Thomas Brodie-Sangster; along with a seriously hammy Giancarlo Esposito look like they are having some fun with their escapade-driven flight; the dialogue is all over the place and the story lacks any sort of structure. The effects work well and the battle scenes are well put together but, ultimately, it is a sort of "Percy Jackson…

RalphRahal December 17, 2024

★ 5/10

While The Scorch Trials carries over the strong directing, cinematography, and high production values from the first film, it falls short in key areas that made The Maze Runner so compelling. The character growth and connections that I appreciated in the first movie felt noticeably absent here. The relationships lack depth, and new faces introduced in this installment fail to leave a lasting impression, making it harder to feel emotionally invested in their journey. The script, while fun at times, struggles with repetition. Much of the movie feels like a sequence of action-packed set pieces rather than a cohesive narrative. That said, the visuals and production design remain a highlight. The post-apocalyptic environments are well-realized, and the tension in many of the action scenes keeps things exciting. The Scorch Trials delivers on spectacle and action but sacrifices emotion…