'Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials' A Review

Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials is a dysptopian science fiction moive the second in the Maze Runner trilogy. Thomas and the remaining survivors of the maze are taken to a military facility where they meet other maze survivors. The facility is run by Janson and heavily guarded. Thomas discovers that the survivors are being experimented on and eventually harvested for the bio-chemical immunities they produce in response to the Flare virus. Thomas and a handful of others escape into the blasted wasteland dubbed The Scorch in search of resistance group The Right Arm.

More sprawling and sloppy than its 2014 predecessor The Scorch Trials offers less focus but more adventure. With a thrilling- although somewhat problematic- plot, large CGI set pieces and battles this installment has the feeling of an epic. There is less focus on character and more on adventure and theme. We see this large and desolate world which has been ravaged by the Flare virus only hinted at in the initial installment. The main quandary at the center of the movie is the age-old 'does the ends justify the means' as well as the enduring conflict of the individual vs. the establishment. Classic ideas but even so engaging.

An entertaining, somewhat unrefined, YA adaptation with an admirably diverse cast. The last hooray of the 2015 summer blockbuster season.

Rent It.