The Scorch Trials

Picking up immediately after the events of The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials follows Dylan O’Brien’s Thomas and his fellow escapees as they slowly-but-surely determine that their supposed safe haven might not be quite so safe after all – with the movie detailing their subsequent efforts at locating a group known only as the Right Arm. There’s little doubt that The Scorch Trials fares best in its almost shockingly entertaining opening half hour, as director Wes Ball kicks the proceedings off with an exciting escape sequence that will surely stand as the high-water-mark for this entire series – although Ball, unfortunately, squanders the effectiveness of that stretch to an increasingly distressing degree. The narrative moves into an progressively generic midsection that grows less and less interesting as it moves forward, as scripter T.S. Nowlin places a continuing emphasis on elements that could hardly be less compelling (eg the bland human villains that crop up, the discovery of a ragtag group of underground freedom fighters, etc, etc). This ensures that the series’ decidedly generic atmosphere is far more prevalent and prominent than in the original film, and it’s apparent throughout, ultimately, that The Scorch Trials feels more like a wheel-spinning stepping-stone to the final installment – which, aside from that aforementioned first act, cements the movie’s place as a fairly needless endeavor with little to offer all but the most ardent Maze Runner aficionado.

** out of ****